Okay, so I returned from America about a week and a half ago, but as per usual it took me a while to get around to writing this. While in New York I was privileged enough to see Next to Normal, West Side Story, Chicago and The Lion King. Out of those four, Next to Normal was by far my favourite, hence I would like to start by reviewing that first.
This musical, which was nominated for Best Musical at the Tony's along with 11 other nominations (it won Best Score, Best Orchestrations and Best Actress in a Musical - Alice Ripley), can only be described with one word. WOW. It is not simply a musical, but more an experience. You go in and sit down for 2 hours and you don't just have good time but you come out feeling that you have just experienced something important and amazing.
Aaron Tveit, Alice Ripley and J. Robert Spencer
Next to Normal opened in April 2009 and details the struggle of Diana Goodman (Alice Ripley) a mother with bipolar trying to live with her illness. It also follows the trials of her family, including her husband, Dan (J. Robert Spencer), daughter, Natalie (Jennifer Damiano) and son, Gabe (Aaron Tveit). With only 6 people making up the cast, it gives the feeling more of a dramatic play with music to enhance the emotion, rather than a straight up musical. That being said the show has a total of 37 songs, so it is not lacking in music. Each act started and ended with a big or emotional number, which meant that as you walk out of the theatre either for interval or after the ending, and when you come in you are greeted by an outstanding piece of music, meaning that even if you don't like a few songs, you feel that the show as a whole is amazing.
Jennifer Damiano, Aaron Tveit and Adam Chanler-Berat
With the subject matter of mental illness, it can be hard to find a good balance between comedy and tragedy so that the show doesn't leave you feeling incredibly depressed. This show managed that incredibly well. It contained the right combination between Diana's illness and her struggle with jokes and subplots to prevent you from leaving on a downer. In particular the relationship between Natalie (Jennifer Damiano) and Henry (Adam Chanler-Berat) which allowed for a sweet little romance, separate from Diana's character.
Aaron Tveit, Alice Ripley and J. Robert Spencer
The show was impressive in that every cast member as equally as incredible a performer, so at no point does the talent fall short. That being said; however, Alice Ripley is by far a stand out performer in this show. She fully deserved the Tony for Best Actress in a Musical. During the 2 hours of the performance, Ripley demonstrates a full emotional spectrum, including multiple times where she was actually crying. I was lucky enough to have a seat close enough to see these tears, however, regardless of where you were sitting you have felt the raw emotion pouring out of this fantastic actress. After performing a show for over 250 performances, to continue to produce real tears onstage each night is a great accomplishment.
The whole cast in "My Psychopharmacologist and I"
Musically, the show is phenomenal. The use of harmonies throughout the show meant that despite only having 6 people in the cast, it still felt like that chorus element existed. I have seen shows previously that use small casts and no ensemble and without great harmonies it lacks that element of big show stoppers and powerful emotion that every theatre goer loves to see. I felt that Act 1 had more individually great songs, while Act 2 had great songs as a combination, meaning that Act 1 is one to chuck on the ipod in shuffle, but Act 2 is something to sit down with and listen the whole way through. This is partially due to the fact that many of the songs in Act 2 are reprises, emphasizing the changes that have happened between the characters and what effect these changes have had on each character. This being said Act 2 in no way fell short in terms of emotion. By the last couple of songs, I could hear sniffles coming from all throughout the audience, and this was on top of my own tears. At the end I whole heartedly stood up and clapped with glassy eyes and cheered for the amazing cast. Of course I wasn't the only one, I doubt there was a dry eye in the house. Out of the four shows I saw, Next to Normal was the only show that received a standing ovation, the tears were just an added bonus.
The whole cast in "Light"
Technically, the show did not fall short. Using a unique set design, the stage had three levels, each level incorporating the band in some way. The lighting worked to compliment this, through a combination of side lighting, back lighting and individual light bulbs attached to the ceiling of the centre level. A particularly poignant use of lighting was during 'Light' where the backdrop raised to reveal a blue light background, symbolizing change and the new light. It was a really nice touch at the end. Lots of side lighting meant that the show had a great paranoid and emotional mood. Sound was used very effectively to demonstrate falling asleep by anaesthetic as well as emphasising Diana's delusions.
Louis Hobson and Alice Ripley
I was lucky enough to meet the whole cast after the show and get there autographs. As a musical nerd, waiting at the stage door, that was probably the highlight of my trip.
If you happen to be in New York anytime soon, please see this musical. It will not disappoint. If you can't get to New York, listen to the soundtrack. It too will not disappoint.
Here is the cast of Next to Normal performing at the 2009 Tony Awards. Watch this, you will understand what I'm on about.
