Hi theatre lover friends. I hope that you are doing well. The beginning of the year is always slow theatre-wise because of the changeover from holiday to other shows but I do have 2 performances to report on. Both of these were technically comped but I a choosing to just do the logs for various reasons. This upcoming weekend I have several teen shows I will be seeing so that should be a blast to write about. Anyway, here’s some thoughts on 2 recent shows I saw

The Last Five Years- Hart Theatre Company, Salt Lake

The main reason I am not doing a full review of The Last Five Years at Hart Theatre Company is frankly they never gave me a program. Pretty hard to write a review without a program! I’m a big fan of The Last Five Years, particularly the songs, so I attended the production with a lot of excitement. While it does have much good about it, particularly Rebecca Lichfield as Cathy, it didn’t quite come together for me as an interpretation of this musical. It’s certainly not awful but also a weaker version of this material than I have previously seen.

My biggest gripe with the production is Diego Rodriguez as Jamie. He lacked the swagger and confidence one needs for the character. Ideally we should dislike Jamie because he cheats on Cathy but we should also find him oddly compelling especially because he starts the musical young and in love.

That brings me to my other major gripe is the direction by Morag Shepherd forgoes the tradition of having Jamie and Cathy not interacting on stage until the wedding (if you don’t know they are telling flip sides of their love story.) Maybe I’m too attached to the way I’ve always seen it but having them touch, exchange clothing, be on a bed together etc takes away from the building tension and the importance of the “The Next Ten Minutes.” I guess you could say it’s a new take on the material but it didn’t really work for me.

Fortunately, like I said, I did like Lichfield and the musical itself is fantastic so there’s that to enjoy. It’s currently playing at the Regent Black Box at Eccles. The Last Five Years is currently playing until the 18th and tickets can be purchased here.

Now over to Heritage Theatre in Perry, Utah. Instead of a traditional musical or play they are doing a revue full of Rodgers and Hammerstein songs. This is all directed by Kaylee Nelson who also did the scenic design, choreography and props for this production (she is certainly busy!)

The production is more like a recital full of songs by Rodgers and Hammerstein. It has a small cast of only 5 but by the end of we get 33 songs from a variety of shows to enjoy. I appreciate they even include songs from lesser-known Rodgers and Hammerstein shows like Flower Drum Song. It’s also nice to enjoy the more dated songs from something like The King and I without the more outdated elements.

Some highlights are “The Gentleman is a Dope,” “I Enjoy Being a Girl,” “This Nearly was Mine,” and “Don’t Marry Me,” “Sixteen Going on Seventeen,” and “I’m Goona Wash that Man Right Out of My Hair.” It’s by no means a professional production at Heritage but it is a charming amateur show and one I had a good time watching. It is playing through January 17th and tickets can be purchased here.

Please let me know what you have been watching in live theatre in 2026 so far. “Some Enchanted Evening” contains songs with music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein with a concept by Jeffrey B Moss. The Last Five Years has music and lyrics and book by Jason Robert Brown

These logged shows I usually pay for out of pocket, and I’d love to do that as much as possible. If you have a show you’d like me to take a look at and write a full review let me know. I also have my patreon which is a great way to support what I do and get some really fun perks. Find out more here.