Singer and Jonas Brothers fame Nick Jonas is set to make a return to theatres with the first-ever Broadway production of The Last Five Years, a hit musical that has become a cult favorite and has spawned off-broadway and film adaptations. Jonas would star against Tony Award winner Adrienne Warren in this newest production, originally the brainchild of multihyphenate playwright Jason Robert Brown.
The Last Five Years gets a Broadway production
Theatre director Whitney White will direct Jonas and Warren in this play, set in New York- as it chronicles the stories of a rising author and a fledgling actress, falling in and out of love with each other. White, who was nominated for a Tony award for Jaja’s African Hair Braiding, calls the play “one of the greatest original American musicals in the canon,” and is excited to bring it to Broadway with Jonas and Warren, “two powerhouse performers and lovers of theatre.”
The news comes as the duo is set to present at the Tony Awards ceremony on June 16.
The Jonas brother is actually a Broadway veteran, with acting credits in several productions under his belt- namely Les Misérables, Beauty and the Beast, Annie Get Your Gun, and How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, while star Warren made her debut in 2012’s Bring It On – The Musical, afterward making an appearance in Shuffle Along, Or, The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed. Her latest performance as legendary musician Tina Turner in 2019’s Tina fetched her a Tony Award.
Playwright Jason Robert Brown expresses his excitement
Brown, who composed the first song of the play nearly 25 years ago, has given his nod to the casting, which he thinks is impeccable. “To have Nick and Adrienne taking on these roles is a composer’s dream come true, and to have Whitney’s extraordinary guidance and vision is the hope of every playwright. It has taken twenty-five years, but the time is right,” he said in a statement.
The musical tracks include many hits: The Next Ten Minutes, Shiksa Goddess, and Still Hurting. Director White acknowledges the genius of the musical compositions, calling them very fitting into the themes of the play in a recent statement.
“I know that audiences will be blown away, once again, by the brilliance of Jason Robert Brown’s one-of-a-kind composition, orchestration, and musical vision,” says White, adding that the audience would be able to see themselves in the leads Jamie and Cathy, as they go on to figure things out.
ALSO READ: ‘I Hated That’: Sophie Turner Speaks Out on How Marriage With Joe Jonas Made Her Feel ‘Trapped’
