Nick Jonas, a man so Christian he once wore a purity ring with his brothers, is going to sing an ode to dating a Shiksa as a Jewish man on Broadway. He will originate the role of Jamie in the first Broadway production of The Last Five Years, directed by Whitney White (Jaja’s African Hair Braiding) and opposite Adrienne Warren (Tina: The Tina Turner Musical) as Cathy. Jason Robert Brown’s autobiographical-ish musical The Last Five Years is one of the most iconic musicals of the 2000s — it’s already been revived off-Broadway and made into a movie starring Anna Kendrick and Jeremy Jordan — but it hasn’t been on Broadway until now, because it’s thought of as too intimate for a Broadway house. The show features only two cast members and both characters mostly just trade solos. It follows the entirety of one couple’s relationship from meet-cute to marriage to cheating to break up, but Jamie’s story is told chronologically, while Cathy’s arc happens in reverse. And, again, Jamie sings an entire song titled “Shiksa Goddess” entirely from the point of view of being Jewish man.
“I have always believed that when the time was right, The Last Five Years would make its way to Broadway,” Brown said in a press release. “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.” White added: “The Last Five Years is one of the greatest original American musicals in the canon. I could not be more excited to bring it to Broadway for the first time with Nick and Adrienne, two powerhouse performers and lovers of theatre.” The show will begin previews next year at the Hudson Theatre on March 18 before opening on April 6. That means it will begin previews three days after Purim and open less than a week before Passover. Nick Jonas, if you’re reading this, those are Jewish holidays.
This post has been updated with dates.
