Jagged Little Pill - Reviews — Page 6

I loved everything about this show however I found it odd that few reviews (if any) focus on the fact that this is a rock musical. And this is most definitely a rock musical — the silliest of all theatrical genres. I expect a rock musical to have a large, unwieldy cast, edgey (or sometimes dopey) dancing, along with every social issue and the kitchen sink thrown in.

I also found this cast to be joyous, dramatic, disturbing, gorgeous and full of incredible broadway debuts. Celia Gooding and Antonio Cipriano made me feel like I was falling in love again for the first time in high school. Derek was as always perfect — I will forever love his voice. Kathryn Gallagher broke my heart. And Elizabeth Stanley is my pick for best actress.

I also thought this was some of Diane Paulus’s best work especially in the musical stagings. The entire cast is acting their asses off and giving the performances of their lifetimes. I truly felt like I was experiencing one of those magical moments in the theater from a cast that we will see a lot more from. I heartedly recommend it

On a side note: like the other dark musicals (Hadestown, Moulin Rouge) I got to say that despite their spectacle & elaborate sets, at heart, these are all intimate shows that seem to play best to the seats in the front of the house

Updated On: 12/17/19 at 05:27 PM

mailhandler777 said: "gibsons2 said: "Can anyone advise for/against the $59 partial view seats, please? How bad is the obstruction? I was thinking of D14 seat on the right side."

My friend was in E something to the side and said it was fine. I'm in B 12 in a few weeks. Everything happens front and center. You will miss a few ensemble members in a few scenes that stand over to the sides but nothing is really happening there."

Thank you! Will either grab one of $59 tickets or will wait for the Broadway week if one of my kids agrees to see the JLP with me.

"I also thought this was some of Diane Paulus’s best work especially in the musical stagings. The entire cast is acting their asses off and giving the performances of their lifetimes. I truly felt like I was experiencing one of those magical moments in the theater from a cast that we will see a lot more from."

I also felt that that the staging was just brilliant, definitely one of her best works to date.

ctorres23 said: "perfectliar said: "What's confusing and doesn't make sense?"

It's very straightforward. First, they were the perfect loving family, so adoring. But they're grappling with some gray and rainy weather, and they're living on a latte and a prayer. But the mom will keep the plates all spinning, with a smile so white & winning all the way.

Her son gets into Harvard, and her daughter feels unseen. Basically he's Superboy and she's the invisible girl. She throws herself head-first into extracurriculars, hoping everything else goes away.

The mom struggles with her relationship with her husband. She's distant and unsteady - it's like living on a cliff-side, not knowing when you'll dive. Does she know, does she know, what it's like to die alive?

Her husband wonders if it's his fault. They've been fine for so long now - how can something go wrong that he can't see?

It turns out that due to pain from a previous car accident, the mom is addicted to opioids, but her psychopharmacologist won't give her a refill. The mom pleads, but the pharmacist doesn't budge. She and her psychophxrmicoloist - it's like an odd romance; intense and very intimate, they do their dance.

After a brief attempt at sobriety, the mother relapses. Catch her, she's falling. Please hear her calling. Catch her before it's too late.

She survives. It brings their family back together. They find the will to find their way, knowing that the darkest skies will someday see the sun. When their long night is gone, there will be light.

There will be... liiiiiiiight.

"

I was just going to ask if this show is Next to Normal 2. Thanks for the help!

perfectliar said: "It's really not. That summary is an overly snarky, overly simplified (it doesn't address like half the plot points or characters) version of events written to make the writer feel clever.

It's only similar to Next to Normal in the way that every rock musical is similar to Rent."

(Spoilers for both JLP and N2N)

Let's see...

The central characters of both shows are a nuclear family who are perfect on the outside but f*ed up on the inside. Mom, dad, older son, younger sister.

The mom is, on the surface, the stereotypical family manager, but she's secretly on medication and it's beginning to wear her down. In N2N, Diana has bipolar depression, while Mary Jane Healy is addicted to opioids following a car accident, but both are barely keeping it together on the surface while dealing with their underlying medical issues.

The father is distant, attempting to reconnect with the mother as she battles her own demons. The specific details of their characters are different - we know more about Steve Healy's personal life (he's addicted to porn!) than we know about Dan from N2N, but in both cases their wife's ailments are creating a strain on the relationship.

The older son is a golden boy - literally the only quality I can remember about Nick Healy off the top of my head is that he was accepted to Harvard. Gabe from N2N is described as "super boy" in one of its songs, and when they list Gabe's itinerary ("Jazz band before school, class, Key Club, then football" ) it sounds pretty similar to Nick's ("all those years of cello lessons, Connecticut debate society tournaments, Mathletes, AP everything, and and 5 ja.m. swim practices are finally paying off" ). Also, in N2N the son "isn't there" because Gabe is a figment of Diana's imagination, whereas Nick "isn't there" because his character is pointless and has no reason to exist in the show.

The daughters in both shows feel unseen. In the first scene of JLP, Frankie laments that her parents are concerned about her appearance but don't care about her activism. Natalie from N2N refers to herself as the "invisible girl". In both shows, the daughter throws themselves into school and budding relationships.

Frankie/Natalie's love interests, Phoenix and Henry, struck me as having very similar laid back personalities, which serve the same narrative purpose of acting as a foil to the high-strung Frank/Natalie.

In terms of story arc, the show opens with a demonstration of how "perfect" they are - N2N with an expository song about the family ("We're the perfect loving family" ), JLP with a narrated Christmas card. We then quickly find out where the cracks are under the surface - medication, domestic problems, and so on.

The beginning of Natalie and Frankie's relationships mirror each other: in N2N, Henry observes Natalie practicing for a piano recital which kicks off their relationship. in JLP, Phoenix watches as Frankie performs a poetry reading in class (the song "Ironic" ).

Back to the mom - in both shows, the mother hits a roadblock in their medication: Diana voluntarily flushes her meds, while Mary Jane's pharmacist blocks her from refilling. This kicks off a downward spiral for both.

Midway through the shows, we find out that both have painful events in their past that the medication may have been partially covering for. In N2N, Diana lost a child; in JLP, M.J. was raped in college.

Both shows feature the husband character successfully convincing their wives to attend therapy; in both shows, the therapy fails.

Both Diana and Mary Jane nearly die; Diana attempts suicide after going off her meds, while M.J. overdoses. Both characters are then sent to, essentially, rehab - Diana gets electroshock therapy and has to rehab her memory. M.J. goes through withdrawal symptoms. At a very specific level the conditions are different, but the thematic brushstrokes are the same.

By the end of the show, everyone survives and returns to the status quo. There's a final song about optimism for the future and how dark times can give way to a brighter future ("Light" for N2N, "You Learn" for JLP).

Now... are the shows exactly the same? No, of course not.

There's a rape subplot in JLP that has no equivalent in N2N. And of course the entire character of Jo doesn't exist in N2N, because they didn't need to shoehorn a reason for someone to sing "You Oughta Know" into that show.

But JLP's main plot is basically like someone told Diablo Cody "just take the N2N storyline and change a few minor details about each character". Take Diana, but change bipolar to opioids. Natalie, but change Natalie's intense focus on schoolwork/extracurriculars into an intense focus on activism. Gabe, except instead of being a ghost, he's a real character with the personality of a ghost. And Dan can be exactly the same, except go into more detail on his job and porn habits.

To sum up: it's not just like "every rock show is a similar to Rent". It goes way deeper than that.

Updated On: 12/27/19 at 12:47 PM

I won the lotto on thursday, I loved it.

Lauren will 100% get a nom. Showstopping.