#1
Posted: 1/26/08 at 6:37pm
Theater doesn't come any odder than NEXT TO NORMAL, Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey's tremendously accomplished new rock musical currently presented at Second Stage Theatre. Because N2N is so good (with occasional periods of greatness), the various flaws (all of which seem to stem from Michael Grief's schizophrenic direction) are virtually ignorable. N2N is, quite possibly, the best musical I've seen since The Producers in 2001.
Diana Goodman (Alice Ripley) is a suburban housewife suffering from paralyzing depression, all of which stems from the death of her 18-month old son Gabe (Aaron Tveit), who has haunted her for the past 16 years. Her husband, Dan (Brian d'Arcy James), has all but lost hope, and their neglected 16 year old daughter, Natalie (Jennifer Damaino) is one step away from heading down Diana's path. When Dr. Madden (Asa Sommers) annouces that he'd like to try electroshock therapy, they can't help but go along with it.
It's heavy subject matter for a musical. During intermission, the theater was buzzing with "it's fantastic but how could they turn it into a musical?". Kitt and Yorkey's electrifying rock score (95% solid) somehow makes the whole thing work. In fact, watching the show, you can't help but wonder how nobody wrote a musical about it sooner. Kitt and Yorkey have done something which has, thus far, never happened - they created an authentically sounding rock score which doesn't sacrifice lyrical integrity for sound quality.
With N2N, Alice Ripley transforms herself from a fine, if never truly outstanding performer, to a true ACTRESS. Demonstrating how actions truly do speak louder than words, Ripley's transfixed, vacant eyes are more expressive than any piece of dialogue could ever be. Her performance also provides the best example of a role which should require a matinee-alternate. On stage for 95% of the show, Diana is so demanding that it's no wonder why Ripley sounds hoarse at some points. Still, I haven't been so blown away by a performance since Christine Ebersole's in Grey Gardens almost two years ago.
The rest of the cast is quite fine (though none truly reach Ripley's level). Ripley and Brian d'Arcy James have wonderful chemistry. The same can be said for Jennifer Damiano and Adam Chanler-Berat (who plays her boyfriend). (As an aside, Damiano is the spitting image of Ripley.) Aaron Tveit is very strong as Gabe, and gets, perhaps, the best song in the score ("I'm Alive!"). Asa Sommers fades into the background as Dr. Madden, but, even so, is very strong.
Unfortunately, the biggest problem is Grief's manic staging. Mark Wendland's three-level set doesn't help, either. Grief has staged scenes on each level, often with two going on at the same time. The result is that you have no idea where to look first. And the result of the three-level set is a serious case of craned-neck disease, especially if you're sitting in one of the front rows. I see no reason why the show couldn't be performed on a one-level stage.
N2N is an intimate show, and it seems as though Grief has totally destroyed the "point" in trying to make it bigger and more commercial. It's almost as though Kitt and Yorkey went in and said to Grief "hey, our show has a message, let's get it through!" and he responded saying "nobody wants to see a show about depression and drug addiction" (ironic, no?) "so let's make it as big and commercial as possible." I don't think it works. Perhaps a better director would make it truer to an originally intended form, if there was one.
And now, a question of the ending. Not "hey, what the hell is going on?," but something I've read here. In one of the threads, it was said that the whole show, apparently, takes place in Dan's memory after he's had a nervous breakdown. If that was true, than it was completely changed, since there's no indication of that now.
N2N leagues better than Spring Awakening, which is a tremendous plus. I give Second Stage a tremendous amount of credit for putting it on, considering that all indications point to N2N being a downtown show - perhaps a NYTW or Atlantic Theater production.
I don't know how long it would last on Broadway (it's definitely an Off-Broadway show), but if Xanadu can do well, so can this. I just have one thing to say...if it does transfer to Broadway this season, it would certainly throw a kink in the plans of a lot of other shows. And Alice Ripley could end up giving Patti LuPone a run for her money.
Diana Goodman (Alice Ripley) is a suburban housewife suffering from paralyzing depression, all of which stems from the death of her 18-month old son Gabe (Aaron Tveit), who has haunted her for the past 16 years. Her husband, Dan (Brian d'Arcy James), has all but lost hope, and their neglected 16 year old daughter, Natalie (Jennifer Damaino) is one step away from heading down Diana's path. When Dr. Madden (Asa Sommers) annouces that he'd like to try electroshock therapy, they can't help but go along with it.
It's heavy subject matter for a musical. During intermission, the theater was buzzing with "it's fantastic but how could they turn it into a musical?". Kitt and Yorkey's electrifying rock score (95% solid) somehow makes the whole thing work. In fact, watching the show, you can't help but wonder how nobody wrote a musical about it sooner. Kitt and Yorkey have done something which has, thus far, never happened - they created an authentically sounding rock score which doesn't sacrifice lyrical integrity for sound quality.
With N2N, Alice Ripley transforms herself from a fine, if never truly outstanding performer, to a true ACTRESS. Demonstrating how actions truly do speak louder than words, Ripley's transfixed, vacant eyes are more expressive than any piece of dialogue could ever be. Her performance also provides the best example of a role which should require a matinee-alternate. On stage for 95% of the show, Diana is so demanding that it's no wonder why Ripley sounds hoarse at some points. Still, I haven't been so blown away by a performance since Christine Ebersole's in Grey Gardens almost two years ago.
The rest of the cast is quite fine (though none truly reach Ripley's level). Ripley and Brian d'Arcy James have wonderful chemistry. The same can be said for Jennifer Damiano and Adam Chanler-Berat (who plays her boyfriend). (As an aside, Damiano is the spitting image of Ripley.) Aaron Tveit is very strong as Gabe, and gets, perhaps, the best song in the score ("I'm Alive!"). Asa Sommers fades into the background as Dr. Madden, but, even so, is very strong.
Unfortunately, the biggest problem is Grief's manic staging. Mark Wendland's three-level set doesn't help, either. Grief has staged scenes on each level, often with two going on at the same time. The result is that you have no idea where to look first. And the result of the three-level set is a serious case of craned-neck disease, especially if you're sitting in one of the front rows. I see no reason why the show couldn't be performed on a one-level stage.
N2N is an intimate show, and it seems as though Grief has totally destroyed the "point" in trying to make it bigger and more commercial. It's almost as though Kitt and Yorkey went in and said to Grief "hey, our show has a message, let's get it through!" and he responded saying "nobody wants to see a show about depression and drug addiction" (ironic, no?) "so let's make it as big and commercial as possible." I don't think it works. Perhaps a better director would make it truer to an originally intended form, if there was one.
And now, a question of the ending. Not "hey, what the hell is going on?," but something I've read here. In one of the threads, it was said that the whole show, apparently, takes place in Dan's memory after he's had a nervous breakdown. If that was true, than it was completely changed, since there's no indication of that now.
N2N leagues better than Spring Awakening, which is a tremendous plus. I give Second Stage a tremendous amount of credit for putting it on, considering that all indications point to N2N being a downtown show - perhaps a NYTW or Atlantic Theater production.
I don't know how long it would last on Broadway (it's definitely an Off-Broadway show), but if Xanadu can do well, so can this. I just have one thing to say...if it does transfer to Broadway this season, it would certainly throw a kink in the plans of a lot of other shows. And Alice Ripley could end up giving Patti LuPone a run for her money.
