Living Life to the Fullest Backwards – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Nov 11, 2026 by Two Sues On the Aisle

By Sue Weston and Susie Rosenbluth, Two Sues on the Aisle

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, now playing at the Public Theatre, takes a fresh look at F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic story of an old man whose life unfolds backwards. Set in a fishing village on the coast of Great Britain, performed with Cornish accents by a company of amazing actor-musicians, this musical unfolds into a magical tale of a love that defies all odds and touches every emotion from laughter to tears, and back again.

The original story, written by Fitzgerald, was set in upper-class Baltimore, Maryland, just before the American Civil War (1860). Roger Button arrives at the hospital to find that his newborn son is biologically a seventy-year-old man, complete with a long beard, fully dressed with spectacles, and a stooped gait. Over time, Benjamin will age in reverse, becoming a helpless infant.

Photo credit: Joan Marcus

Reimagined

The creative team, Jethro Compton and Darren Clark, entirely reimagined the story using the premise of a baby born as a man of 70 as the jumping-off point. The show was a hit in London. In 2019, it premiered at Southwark Playhouse and in 2024 moved to London’s West End, in 2024 where it won the Olivier Award for Best New Musical in 2025. Now it is at The Public Theater in NY for a limited run through December 20.

The show takes place across the Atlantic, in Cornwall, England, a remote, working-class fishing village, in 1918. Benjamin (Andrew Durand) is born wearing a suit, a bowler hat, and a cane, looking like a man of 70. The midwife is terrified, and his disgraced parents hide Benjamin in the attic, expecting that he would die within days or weeks, instead he gradually grows younger.

At age 59, Benjamin sneaks out into the village, and at the tavern “The Pickled Crab,” he meets Elowen Keene (Kelsee Kimmel), a high-spirited barmaid (the midwife’s daughter). Benjamin is smitten, singing “When E’re She Looked at Me”. Referring to himself as ‘just Benjamin,’ they form a silent connection, both wanting a life beyond the village. They embark on adventures, going their separate ways. Benjamin heads to sea. Years later, as a younger man, he reconnects with Elowen.

Photo credit Joan Marcus

Filled with Life Lessons

Watching as Benjamin’s life plays backwards while everyone else ages is a statement about the passage of time, and our need to embrace whatever hours remain. To reinforce the element of time, the exact calendar date, hour, minute, and second are called out with each new event.

Benjamin Button is a celebration of life, of family, and of embracing our differences. Benjamin and Elowen’s attraction is compared to the moon and the sea. They move on entirely different planes but are connected through a gravitational pull on each other. When they first met, Benjamin shared an impossible dream, that one day man would walk on the moon. Years later, they watch Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walking on the moon, a milestone signifying the uncertain nature of time and the limitation of the human imagination.

Maybe the most significant message is the unconditional acceptance Benjamin gets from his family. After traveling the world looking for a cure, he returns home and discovers that Elowen and their son, Locryn (Kris Saint-Louis), accept him as he is. They create a space where he can live honestly and truthfully. He finds that with his family, he is finally home.

Photocredit: Joan Marcus

Incredible Production

The actor-musicians’ exuberance brought the story home, from slapping wooden tables, stomping their boots, and clicking tin cups, to their playing violins, accordions, and guitars, transporting the audiance to a pub in Cornwall. The illusion is complete with Jethro Compton’s wooden, elaborate dock set and Anna Kelsey’s rustic costumes. Entering the theater evoked the feeling of being on an old, misty dock. We could almost smell the salty air.

Photo credit: Joan Marcus

Andrew Durand is outstanding as Benjamin Button, changing his posture, movements, body language, and speech to alter his age right before our eyes (without the use of makeup). He is well matched with Kimmel as fun-loving Elowen. Her energy and warmth are captivating, making a believable romance. The entire eleven-member cast was endearing, swapping roles over the course of the performance, keeping the high energy throughout the entire 2 ½ hours, and returning for a raucous encore song that brought the audience to its feet.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a captivating show, filled with uplifting music and a powerful message about family and the nature of time. The performance was pure magic. We expect to see it follow the path of other Joseph Papp productions, Broadway-bound.

Benjamin Button