Next to Normal is messy, but goddammit, there’s something in this lively, unpredictable musical – finally getting its stint on the West End after premiering on Broadway all the way back in 2010 – which has meant on a humid summer’s evening, my face was sufficiently moisturised with tears 145 minutes later. The reason, I’ve concluded, is that this story of a mother – and her immediate family – dealing with her bipolar disorder is so profoundly, devastatingly human.
With abrupt switches from the tender to the chaotic, my initial impression of Tom Kitt’s music wasn’t positive. I had only just recovered from the tonal whiplash that was Opening Night that to see another musically incongruous show did get my back up at first, but the more I think about it, the more I understand it speaks to that central notion of a musical that numbers are there to emphasise what standard dialogue can’t quite get across on its own.
It amplifies the aching emotion exhibited across the cast, from Eleanor Worthington-Cox’s heartbreaking performance as Natalie (a daughter who, in tracks such as “Superboy and the Invisible Girl”, despairs at her mother’s neglect for a hallucination of said mum’s deceased son Gabe), to Caissie Levy’s incredible belting as protagonist Diana and Jamie Parker’s Dan is raw as her supportive husband. The entire company give their all.
If you’ve read my reviews of People, Places and Things and Some Demon, then you’ll know of my view that the current era of mental health plays is having a hard time conveying the right message which balances being candid and honest with not being defeatist or troublesome at the same time. In Next To Normal, Brian Yorkey’s book perfectly explores mental health’s impact on several members of a family with commendable, substantive detail – emphasised in Michael Longhurst’s direction.
While I did, at times, find the extent of the ghost of Gabe (Jack Wolfe) and Diana’s intimacy a little uncomfortable and unusual for a mother-son relationship, its interrogation of grief and how we process it, plus the ways in which we hold on amid struggle, is strikingly authentic.
Natalie’s growing relationship with Henry (Jack Ofrecio) follows the classic coming together, strain and then reunion over its two acts, but a focus on mental health and Natalie’s fear of her own flaws (no doubt informed by the way in which Diana sees herself reflected in her) introduces a gut-punching dynamic to a typical love story. In fact, if the distress experienced by Diana and others is hard to watch (and a lot of this production is desperately sad), then there is pure bittersweetness to be found in this subplot.
Staging-wise, Chloe Lamford’s domestic, kitchen set allows for some neat ideas when it comes to scene changes, a kitchen counter doubling up as a hospital bed when Diana undergoes electroconvulsive therapy in the second act. The live band are located on a higher level, with blinds sliding up and down throughout, allowing for pretty, swirling video designs from Tal Rosner, but also a clear establishment of the idea of Gabe being separate from reality, hands up against the glass walls longing to be more prominent in her psyche again.
I do believe it’s Yorkey’s story here which is the most affecting, although several numbers – not least “Perfect for You” – are tear-jerkers, and I still have the hook of “I’m Alive” looping in my head. Just by the fact that the breezy opening number “Just Another Day” soon indicates it’s going to be anything but, this musical ditches the fanfare for something far more serious, and where it does burst into unexpected, energetic moments, it only serves to make the tale more unpredictable, and highlight the complexities of mental illness.
It’s been a hard time wrestling with my overarching opinion of this production since I saw it on Thursday, and whether its wild musical numbers plus a few, aforementioned minor qualms warrant a lower rating, but I’ll always maintain that only the best shows make you feel something on such an acute level, and Next To Normal sure does that, as one of the most moving musicals I’ve seen in a good while.
★★★★★
Next to Normal is now playing at the Wyndham’s Theatre until 21 September.
It will be captioned on 7 September and audio described on 14 September.
Production Images: Marc Brenner.
Disclaimer: I was invited to watch ‘Next to Normal’ for free in exchange for a review of the performance as a member of the press. I did not receive payment for this article and all opinions stated above are honest and my own.
Liam O'Dell 