Rock is alive and rolling like thunder in Next To Normal. It’s the best musical of the season by a mile (take that Billy Elliot), an emotional powerhouse with a fire in its soul and a wicked wit that burns just as fiercely. Composer Tom Kitt and writer-lyricist Brian Yorkey have broken the shackles of tired Broadway tradition, pushing it in new directions. OK, sometimes push comes to shove. But the effect is never less than mesmerizing.
Like Spring Awakening, Next To Normal shakes up old forms. It’s the ultimate dysfunctional family musical. The opening number, “Just Another Day,” is deceptively conventional. After quickie sex with her surprised husband Dan (J. Robert Spencer), mom Diana (Alice Ripley) sends her teen children, Gabe (Aaron Tveit) and Natalie (Jennifer Damiano), off to school. But there’s a jangle in the song, even a hint of threat. For good reason. Diana is a bipolar manic-depressive who has kept her family off balance for years. The reasons are revealed in time, and they won’t be given away here. Just know this:
Polish up a Tony for Ripley who is simply magnificent as a woman who can’t find her way home from the maps provided by drugs, hypnosis and electroshock therapy doled out by her doctors, both played without glib condescension by the excellent Louis Hobson. “I Miss the Mountains” is Diana’s haunting hymn to the high and lows the drugs take away. Ripley doesn’t just occupy the stage — she owns it.
The entire cast, under the vibrant direction of Rent’s Michael Greif, is stellar. The superb Damiano makes you feel Natalie’s resentment of and reliance on her mother. Her scenes with her stoner boyfriend Henry (the appealing Adam Chandler-Berat) result in her own psychopharmacological anthem, "Superboy and the Invisible Girl,” that brings out Natalie’s rancor toward of her older brother. As Gabe, Tveit gives a star-is-born performance that promises a stunning future. Singing “I’m Alive,” he’s electrifying, the embodiment of seductive despair. Maybe you’ve seen Tveit and Damiano in small parts on Gossip Girl. See them here and watch them fly.
The score of Next To Normal (now available on the Ghostlight label) is a must for anyone interested in music with the muzzle off. Spencer digs deep into the role of the husband. His quietly devastating take on “I’m the One” uncovers Dan’s grieving heart. It’s a stark contrast to the explosive ”Light” that ends the show on a high that contains no artificial sweetener. You leave this show feeling you’ve discovered something fresh and vital. Next time you think the Broadway musical is dead, head off to Next To Normal. It’ll pin you to your seat.
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LarryScott | September 28, 2009 3:19 PM
I have been happily (well, most of the time) attending Broadway and off-Broadway plays since the 1950s. Judging from my stack of collected Playbills, I estimate having seen about seventy musicals over the years, some more than once. I was born and raised in NYC,
and consider myself somewhat reasonably cultured, and certainly open to new, contemporary and compelling theater.
THAT SAID, I would like to review Next to Normal very succinctly: This was without a doubt the worst travesty to muck up a Broadway stage that I have ever seen. Leaving the theater dumbfounded and angry, I was almost compelled to run to the local police precinct to report a robbery (of the price I paid for tickets). Let me also mention that I went to this play with a group of six equally cultured and experienced theatergoers, and the feeling was unanimous. We were all astonished by the fact that anyone in his right mind could find any saving graces among the plethora of this show's failures.
Some topics simply don't merit being a musical unless the quality of the music, lyrics,
performances, staging, choreography and direction can present the story in an ultimately pleasing and entertaining manner. "Rent," of course, accomplished this with flying colors. There was hope, excitement, emotion and all the wonderful performances of its youthful cast that made it such a great show. NTN had none of those qualities. What it DID have was formless, forgetful and formulaic music, forced and oftentimes ridiculous lyrics, screeching instead of singing, wooden (and I'm being kind here) acting, staging apparently
created by someone who specializes in either marching bands or storefront mannequin
displays, and most of all, a story that reeks of hopelessness, despair, tragedy, pain and suffering, all presented somehow without affect and with a total lack passion. Yes, it's a fun
night out to watch the end of Act One with mommy on a gurney awaiting shock therapy amidst
something pretending to be music and lyrics.
I had long thought that another Broadway travesty, "Mourning Pictures," another festive songfest about a woman dying of cancer, ranked as the worst of my theater experiences, but by one or two points, Next to Normal has usurped that role.
I need to reiterate that the topic alone is not the sole cause for my negative review This is simply an endeavor that does not work, and
certainly hasn't enough talent or creativity to fill up a Broadway stage. I can only
surmise that many a reviewer was enchanted by the fact that other peoples' lives are
destroyed by drugs and despair at least as much as their own, and how nice to watch the
characters suffer, as well as the audience who had to sit through this garbage.
Linda | May 24, 2009 10:37 AM
Awsome best I've seen by far Alice Riley & Jennifer Damiano deserve the Tony if ur a fan of broadway musicals "don't" miss this one
jda | May 19, 2009 11:16 PM
I saw this show at Arena Stage in DC, front row on December 10 -- Alice Ripley's birthday I later found out! I found it amazing and I would love to go to NYC to see it again on Broadway!
Pat | May 13, 2009 1:50 PM
N2N is an amazing show.
It takes you on a rollercoaster
ride. There is such depth and you are laughing one moment and crying the next. May be the best play I have ever experienced. The acting was excellent. Loved it!
Michael | May 8, 2009 12:44 AM
This show is amazing. All of the performers are so good it almost masks how special Ripley's performance is. As for "it's fake" etc, no - if you've lived it, it's very very real. The care with which everyone's emotions and reactions are detailed is impressive for a rather short musical (musical!). Compare to the utterly synthetic 33 Variations...
Jay | May 7, 2009 12:23 AM
This review is right on. Next to Normal is the best new musical on Broadway since Sweeney Todd in 1979 (and I've seen 'em all!). Don't discuss the plot with anyone, there are spoilers, just go see it with an open mind and prepare to be rocked and moved. It blew me away, I didn't expect it.
JP | April 22, 2009 1:28 PM
The point is not if I seen a play on Broadway or not. The point is if the production is so great that everyone should see it. Why doesn't it play nationwide? It's kind of like raving about a local rock band that doesn't tour outside of the city. The rest of the country just have to take your word for it.
By the way, I did see "Sweeney Todd" starring Angela Lansbury on video. I know it's different from seeing a play in a theater. Which goes back to my main point.
NEC | April 21, 2009 3:03 PM
JP - have you ever seen a Broadway show? I'm thinking you prob not..... go see one and then you'll get it!
Chuck | April 20, 2009 7:45 PM
By far the best musical I've ever seen on Broadway, bar none....
Clarendon | April 18, 2009 10:06 PM
I agree with Frankie. This show was a huge disappointment for me. Just because singers are screaming at the top of their lungs about being in pain doesn't mean it's artful. I liked Alice Ripley's daughter. She seemed very believable and is a talent to watch. Alice Ripley seemed to be on auto-pilot. She didn't do much for me, but I found the entire evening to be too much like a movie of the week focusing on a dysfunctional family.
JP | April 18, 2009 4:15 PM
Why is Broadway such a big deal? It's theater in one city. Nobody in the rest of the country gets to see what the fuss is about. When the play does tour the country, it doesn't have the original cast the critics rave about and who received the awards. Am I wrong to think that the hype about Broadway is classic New York City narcissism?
frankie1234 | April 17, 2009 9:18 PM
Have to say I was disappointed and don't know what the fuss is about. This is not rock music. It's loud Broadway music! The performers and direction are brilliant. The story is pretentious and manipulative and kind of a fake. It's pretend "important." Really worth seeing for the actors, but this is no RENT, Hair, Tommy, Spring Awakening, etc.
Ben | April 17, 2009 7:42 PM
I saw Next to Normal with my fiance last Sunday, and we were so blown away by the show that we went again a second time on Tuesday night. As far as Billy Elliot and [title of show] go, I enjoyed them both(haven't seen tos but enjoyed the cd a lot), so no need to knock either of them. I do think Next to Normal is one of the best scores/shows I have ever heard/seen. It is a very memorable score/show that will stay with me forever. I agree that Alice Ripley absolutely deserves the Tony. I'd love to see some other members of the cast up for Tonys too.
glittergirl | April 17, 2009 5:49 PM
Title of Show has nothing on Next To Normal (I mean come on! Have you seen N2N!!) I think its ridiculous to even try to compare the two! TOS is just camp and inside industry jokes. Sure its funny but that is it. N2N is heartfelt, deep, sensitive etc. I'm so glad a show like this opened this season - B-way needed it - big time! This review is awesome and they deserve it! Rock on!
intrigued | April 17, 2009 5:18 PM
I've never seen a musical before. This review makes me want to.
Sara | April 17, 2009 4:02 PM
Great review! I saw this in previews last week and was blown away. By far the best musical I've seen in years. The performances were top notch. (If Alice Ripley doesn't get Best Actress, I will be very disappointed)
It's so refreshing to see an original musical in a season full of revivals and movie adaptation.
Srg129 | April 17, 2009 1:27 PM
N2N was so far superior to Billy Elliot. The score to BE sucked big time (actually it's the worst score of any musical this year; even 13 and The Story of My Life had more memorable scores than BE). And nearly all the performances in BE are trite stereotypes that any number of actors could deliver. No cast member in that show really has standout vocal ability. And honestly, did anyone ever think that Billy wasn't going to get into the Ballet School? Nothing surprising there. The dancing dress number was ridiculous and they completely ruined the dance with the older and younger Billy as soon as they decided to make the show Peter Pan. It's really a show only a NYC tourist can be satisfied with (the Phantom and Beauty & The Beast theater-goers). [tos] was also better than BE but not N2N. The outstanding score for N2N coupled with the stellar performances of the entire cast really make it the musical of the season. Any anyone with an appreciation of theater will marvel at the exquisite detail of Alice Ripley's performance.
JoHerman | April 17, 2009 12:59 PM
Earlier this season you gave an equally positive review of '[title of show]' @ the Lyceum on Broadway!
If N2N is the 'best musical' of the season 'by a mile'...where exactly does '[tos]' stand in the race against BILLY ELLIOT?
The 'songs' in '[tos]' I believe are the BEST stand-alone musical #'s of the season...that will outlast ANYTHING in N2N or BE. Opinions?
Bo | April 17, 2009 2:16 AM
I Miss the Mountains is a haunting song. But I doubt it could be written/thought up/sang so by someone "clipped". So a paradox? ;)