Next to Normal

This is a somewhat unusual review. Normally, reviewers are invited to a show to write a review, but this show I attended all on my own with a ticket I purchased. And instead of seeing the main cast, last Sunday, I attended the understudy performance of Next to Normal at the Bramble Arts Loft. A close friend was the assistant director of this production and his work focused on the understudy cast, so I attended that show to show support. Despite not intending to attend the show as a reviewer and seeing the understudy and not the main cast, I still wanted to share my thoughts on the performance because it was incredible. Next to Normal is a beautiful show and it is both musically and emotionally complex. It’s also in my all time top five, so the cast had a high bar to clear for me to love a production of it. Fortunately, this production knocks it out of the park.

Next to Normal tells the story of Diana Goodman (Phoebe Albert at this performance), a woman suffering from personal loss and mental health issues and how they affect her and her family. She wants to live a normal life, but that relentless push for ‘normalcy,’ whatever that means, only makes it harder to face the problems. Diana has to be one of the most challenging leading roles of the 21st century. Alice Ripley originated the role, giving an iconic, Tony-winning performance, injuring her voice in the process. Albert has some big shoes to fill, is what I’m saying. She crushed it. Portraying mental illness is a tall order because it has to be intense without lapsing into melodrama or accidental parody, and her performance nailed it. Underlying the more specific symptoms of grief or a mental health crisis, Albert gave Diana a real sense of being lost. She is also an amazing singer. There were a few sound issues (more on those below) and at one point her microphone pack went out, and without missing a beat, she soared vocally over the band. This show is as hard as it gets for a singer, both technically and emotionally, and I was spellbound by Phoebe Albert’s performance every moment of the show.

Opposite her is her husband Dan, played both here and in the main cast by Casey Huls. He loves his wife and wants to help her, but honestly, he doesn’t really know how, and his desire for a ‘normal’ life easily becomes another pressure on the already overwhelmed Diana. In lesser hands, he could just be an inept partner, blind to what she really needs. Huls’ performance, however, gives Dan real depth, and it is clear that he is ultimately as lost as Diana, even if he is ignoring it in the name of helping her. Huls’ performance was beautiful and deeply layered. Dan’s desire for normalcy could make him the villain of the show, or at least the biggest obstacle for Diana. Huls’ performance makes Dan relatable and sympathetic, even if he may not be able to be what Diana actually needs. He also did a really good job of portraying the caregiver fatigue and resentment that can set in with chronic illness, even if you would never want to name it that. Together, Huls and Albert do a great job portraying a marriage that may be flawed, even deeply flawed, but one that is also real, and by no means worthless.

Diana’s daughter Natalie (Lauren Canfield for this performance) is a classic overachiever, excelling at school to avoid dealing with her problems at home. She meets the laid back Henry (Logan van Lerberghe for this performance) and struggles to let him in, with the specter of her mother’s mental health and relationships hovering over her. Will she turn into her mother? Can she let down her high walls to let Henry in? I’ve seen multiple productions of this show over the years, and I think the relationship between Natalie and Henry is often the weakest link in otherwise stellar productions. The relationship gets overshadowed by the main story or the actors can struggle to have convincing chemistry. Canfield and van Lerberghe were fantastic here. She gave Natalie real vulnerability under her sharp edges and he gave Henry a sweet sincerity and did a great job letting Henry seem a little overwhelmed when it makes sense that he would be. More than anything, both actors did wonderful work actually relating to each other. Their performances really felt in sync and responding to each other in the moment rather than just saying the next line, and it really brought life to their relationship.

Rounding out the Goodman family is son Gabe (Ben Frankart for this performance). I can’t say too much in the way of specifics for fear of spoilers, so I’ll say this. First, Frankart has the voice of an angel. Several of his songs have him soaring above the cast in near falsetto, and he both nailed the music technically while staying a part of the cast harmony, no small feat. Second, there is a moment where I watched him start crying at what was happening with the other characters, and it was just really clear he was not crying because the script said ‘cry here.’ He was fully in the moment and responding honestly to what was happening, and it’s a rare actor that lets themself be so vulnerable on stage, and it is incredibly effective.

Rosa Campbell portrays Dr. Madden, Diana’s therapist in the main cast as well the understudy performance. Dr. Madden is usually portrayed by a man, but the gender switch really adds something to the portrayal. It makes it easier to see that Madden is not dismissing Diana, but acknowledging her own limits. Madden cannot cure Diana because there is literally no cure. All Madden can offer is the prospect of a lot of hard work to, at best, manage a chronic condition. Campbell brings a wise warmth to the role that strikes the right balance between sympathy and professional distance. Dr. Madden has no magic fix, but in Campbell’s hands, that never reads as failure, just honesty.

To keep this review from getting too saccharine, I do have one critique I think is worth mentioning. The Bramble Arts Loft is a fantastic new theater space and I’ve seen some excellent shows there, but the theater is on the smaller side for a show with so much of its score performed by electric instruments. The sound balance was off in a few places and the (let me be clear, excellent) band overwhelmed a couple of quieter moments. That, however, is a comparatively small complaint, and even with that problem, the cast never lost my attention or my connection.

The show runs through this weekend and you should absolutely see it if you can. Next to Normal is an ambitious choice for a show, regardless of the size or experience of your theater company. This production is thoughtful and beautifully executed, and the cast I saw was truly incredible. If nothing else, it passes the core test for a production of this show: I cried several times.

Highly Recommended

Performed through August 2nd at the Bramble Arts Loft. Tickets can be purchased here.