Presented by the Second Stage Theater, Carole Rothman, artistic director. Enter Next to Normal, a rock musical that exploded on Broadway in 2009 with a powerhouse cast and a driving score, garnering it a whopping eleven Tony nominations. I went opening night (not previews night) and all I can say is UGH! At the center of the production is a truly gutsy tour de force performance. Somers and Brian d’Arcy James. Next to Normal. It is this melodic combustibility that fuels the thrilling revival of “Next to Normal” now occupying the Kennedy Center’s Eisenhower Theater. Jones, a Tony winner for her portrayal of careworn mom Heidi in “Dear Evan Hansen,” locates in Diana a woman whose charms and humor have dissolved in the acid of her restive grief. kennedy-center.org. Music by Tom Kitt; book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey; directed by Michael Greif; musical staging by Sergio Trujillo; sets by Mark Wendland; costumes by Jeff Mahshie; lighting by Kevin Adams; sound by Brian Ronan; musical director, Mary-Mitchell Campbell; orchestrations by Michael Starobin and Mr. Kitt; vocal arrangements by AnnMarie Milazzo. The COVID-19 crisis provoked divergent, even dramatic, reactions, with some industries taking off and others suffering badly; the effect was to shake up historic norms. And the difference therein is transformative enough to make “Next to Normal” of real value to anyone who cares about the direction and possibilities of the American musical. Through Monday at the Kennedy Center. 3 of 5 4 of 5 Jason Watson (Dr. Fine / Dr. Madden) and Alice Ripley (Diana) perform in "Next to Normal" at the Curran Theatre in San Francisco Calif. on Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2011. Theater review by Alex Huntsberger. At the center of the production is a truly gutsy tour de force performance. Photo by Craig Schwartz. The National Tour Company of Next to Normal. Next to Normal is a breath of fresh air on the Broadway stage. The smiles it engenders are the marveling kind, etched in tears. Tony Kiser Theater at Second Stage Theater. Ms. Ripley (“Side Show,” “The Dead”) and Mr. d’Arcy James (“Titanic,” “The Sweet Smell of Success”) do their best work to date here. Next to Normal takes a while to warm up and show its layers, in part because the creators want to surprise the audience with this and other aspects of the situation. At Second Stage Theater, 307 West 43rd Street, Manhattan; (212) 246-4422. This deeply moving piece of theatre provides a wonderful opportunity for performers to explore dramatic material and showcase vocal talents with an … By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, A professional critic’s assessment of a service, product, performance, or artistic or literary work. It also, in an honored tradition of all-American hometown weepers, makes a high school dance an acid test for a central character. Thanks for exploring this SuperSummary Plot Summary of “Next to Normal” by Brian Yorkey. Based on the original 2008 New York reviews and those Ripley has received … But Mr. Kitt’s music, far superior to his score for the recent Broadway clunker “High Fidelity,” has a seared sweetness that evokes layers of conflicted feelings, particularly of warring anger and love. At once a rock concert and a suburban, family psycho-drama. The cast is rounded out by Adam Chanler-Berat, who plays Henry, Natalie’s devoted boyfriend; and Asa Somers, who portrays two of Diana’s ultimately clueless doctors. A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Next to Normal won the Pulitzer Prize in Drama. From now on, any definition of incandescence must include the sublime chemical reaction that occurs when Rachel Bay Jones and Brandon Victor Dixon collide onstage. Theater Review: ‘Next to Normal’ ... this may not sound like a fun evening at the theater, but Next to Normal is an engaging and touching musical that does it right. Next to Normal takes audiences into the minds and hearts of each character, presenting their family's story with love, sympathy and heart. And he takes advantage of the regulation blueprint book to create sharp geometric counterpoints among the characters in song. THE NEW TRADITION OF AWARD-WINNING MUSICAL WORKS-IN-PROGRESS This is a story about a woman who could not bear the heavy loss. They justify, she says, the contrasting plunges into darkness. Jan. 31, 2020 Want a great alternative to Super Bowl Sunday? Next to Normal took nearly a decade to develop, and college classmates Yorkey and Kitt endured many questions about whether it made sense to tell the story as a musical. Director Michael Greif — who guided the original production to Broadway — again leads a superb six-member cast. The disease did not allow Diana to realize the surrounding reality and supported her false visions. The winner of the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, "next to normal" is a work of honest, raw feelings and emotions carried forward by a dri...ving rock score and well-drawn, three-dimensional characters. “Next to Normal” hurts so good. This fall, from October 30th to November 3rd, the Gettysburg College Theater Arts Department and the Owl & Nightingale Players presented the Next to Normal musical at the Kline Theater. The storyline is really good, as is the music and performers, but I couldn't listen to half the music because of Alice Ripley (the mom in the show). Stunning depth and exploration of the human condition and an honest, raw look into the lives of those who struggle with PTSD every day. The smiles it engenders are the marveling kind, etched in tears. The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning. Beautiful wife and mother Diana (Tony, Emmy, and Grammy award winning actress Rachel Bay Jones) seems fine on the surface, but within moments is frantically making sandwiches on the floor. Winner of three Tony® Awards, including Best Musical Score, and the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, NEXT TO NORMAL explores a suburban household affected by mental illness. This fall, from October 30th to November 3rd, the Gettysburg College Theater Arts Department and the Owl & Nightingale Players presented the Next to Normal musical at the Kline Theater. But like “Spring Awakening,” “Next to Normal” is steeped in an inescapable, aching compassion for people crippled by pain. “Next to Normal,” which played at Farkas Hall from Nov. 1 to 3, attempted to bring a voice to the “ugly,” lending a realism to this complex, powerfully-constructed performance. But Mr. Kitt works adroitly in a number of musical idioms here, from country-western ballads (for Diana’s elegy to the heady highs of her illness) to stadium power-rock (for — gulp! With a gripping story and a surging contemporary rock score, NEXT TO NORMAL is a raw depiction of a family in crisis trying to overcome the past. We saw an incredible show in this beautiful theater. This musical fits right into a season chockablock with plays about imploding nuclear families and shaky marriages under siege — from Tracy Letts’s “August: Osage County” to revivals of domestic dramas from the 1950s, starting with William Inge’s “Come Back, Little Sheba.”, Mr. Yorkey’s script will also seem familiar to anyone who has watched the Lifetime channel’s inspirational dramas about mothers and daughters on the brink of sanity. Helen, Fred and Steven check out this new original musical at the Booth Theatre.Get tickets to Next to Normal at http://www.broadway.com/shows/next-to-normal/ When the economy settles into its next normal, such sectoral differences can be expected to narrow, with industries returning to somewhere around their previous relative positions. THE NEW TRADITION OF AWARD-WINNING MUSICAL WORKS-IN-PROGRESS Damiano, Alice Ripley, Asa A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. "Next to Normal," the Pulitzer Prize-winning musical about a suburban mom's struggle with bipolar disorder, first arrived in Los Angeles in 2010, on its national tour. 81 reviews of Next To Normal - CLOSED ""Next To Normal" is an amazing fairly new off-Broadway musical that is far from normal and will keep you on the edge of your seat. 3 of 5 4 of 5 Jason Watson (Dr. Fine / Dr. Madden) and Alice Ripley (Diana) perform in "Next to Normal" at the Curran Theatre in San Francisco Calif. on Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2011. As the show makes plain, Dan’s devotion proves a mixed blessing; sometimes, focusing on someone else’s pain is a way to avoid one’s own. Click here to buy Next to Normal tickets today! Head to … Very rarely does a show this fantastic come along. By Jason Blake. By Britney Brunache, A&E Editor. “Next to Normal” retains its brilliance and its universality. And since I’ve already spoiled one revelation — that Diana (Ms. Ripley) is manic-depressive, which we don’t learn until 10 minutes or so into the show — I promise not to mention the story’s other significant surprise, which comes later. ), Like them “Next to Normal” assesses the fragmenting effects of mental illness within a family. But like “Spring Awakening,” “Next to Normal” is steeped in an inescapable, aching compassion for people crippled by pain. Next to Normal follows the struggle of one woman, Diana Goodman, with mental illness and the effect of the illness on her whole family. "Next to Normal" features, clockwise This characterization fails to do full justice, really, to the level of work here. The architecture and seating were incredible. And Dixon — Judas in the televised “Jesus Christ Superstar” and the second Aaron Burr in Broadway’s “Hamilton” — has both leading-man magnetism and a voice like a cello. The musical addresses grief, depression, suicide, drug abuse, ethics in modern psychiatry, and the underbelly of suburban life. That’s no small feat in a theatrical form prone to tuneful generalization. One of the show’s strengths is its sly staggering of information about its characters. Reviewed June 3, 2019 via mobile . For all its soaring rock ballads, Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey’s Next to Normal is a perfect fit for David Cromer’s intensely intimate style. About 2 hours and 20 minutes. As befits what is surely New York’s first mainstream musical about manic depression, “Next to Normal,” which opened Wednesday night at the Second Stage Theater, is apt to produce bipolar reactions in anyone who sees it. 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