Rarely does a musical about the death of a relationship find a way to end on a high note, but that’s the clever twist of Jason Robert Brown’s The Last Five Years. In 80 minutes, the musical watches as Cathy looks backwards on her now dead relationship, while the man who done her wrong, Jamie, presents the rise and fall of the relationship in chronological order. Hard to follow? A bit. Worth the cerebration? You bet. The irony of watching a man fall in love while the woman replays the arguments that killed it, and then watching the man justify his transgressions while we see the woman leap into another ill-advised affair is in a word sublime. This is a showcase for two strong performers, and with fledgling Ovation Theatre Troupe’s first production, the strength of the piece is only somewhat undercut by a few missteps by the generally good performers.

Local success story Philip Fazio has brought together two performers with whom he has worked in the past to bring life to this tricky musical. His direction is superb. He does what he can to make the concept understandable, and he finds stage pictures that pile the irony on the irony.

However, there is something initially missing from the duo he has cast. Colin Israel and Lindsay Levine are very good performers. Israel has a strong voice and good stage presence, and Levine is graced with comic timing to go along with her strong pipes. Israel, though, doesn’t quite capture the spirit of a young phenom novelist, coming across too youthful and missing a bit on the growing cynicism. Levine captures the frenetic Cathy quite well, heartbreakingly moving from jaded to joyous. The show does not easily allow for the actors to connect, as the only moment of true face-to-face interaction is when the stories intersect at their engagement and marriage. Still, it’s hard to believe that these two ever hooked up in the first place.

Nevertheless, these are very strong performers who know how to sell a song. Each has a moment of transcendence that makes up for any of the flaws in their individual performances. For Israel, that moment comes as he gives his love the Christmas/Hanukah gift of a sung short story that can soften a stone. For that magical song, Israel’s Jamie seduces the audience into understanding how women can fall for such a man. Levine’s saving grace comes as she performs a series of songs that will tickle every actor; she desperately works through a series of auditions and sings of her frustration in a way that should be a required text for anyone wanting to become a professional actor. It is here that her comic timing crystallizes.

The visual element is expertly underdesigned. The re-use of the set from a prior production is smartly painted by T.J. Weltzien to transform it into a Dali-esque commentary. Ben Rollin’s lighting depends on isolation spots to support the feeling of disconnect. The musicians (Leif Erickson, Kate Bivona, Darin Shryock, and Mike Hall) are excellent and well balanced.

For a first production, Ovation Theatre Troupe should be proud of its creation. This is a complicated musical with many potential pitfalls, most of which Fazio and his ensemble have been to avoid. Despite a few minor issues, this is still an affecting evening that I highly recommend.