My thoughts on the new company of NEXT TO NORMAL — Page 2

Ahhhh....What note was it?!? lol.

^The only one of the "new" leads in the Bryant Park performance is Meghann Fahy. Jessica Phillips is Diana and Dan isn't featured in any of the numbers.

I've seen the show a considerable number of times over the three productions it has had though I am sure nowhere near the number of viewings some have racked up. The last time I saw the show was September 2009 and I decided to make a return visit yesterday afternoon. I confess to being a major Alice Ripley fan (long time- her casting was what made me want to see the show at Second Stage), and I rather ok with the show being, well, "the Alice Ripley show" for a considerable amount of time- with some fine performances by most of the other members of the cast. That said, yesterday I too witnessed the show being a true ensemble piece. It stood up.

Mazzie was wonderful, as always, vocally (though the lack of belting in the 2nd half of "You Don't Know/I Am the One" did bother me slightly) and I appreciated the more subdued, yet still in character, take on the role. Daniely has a beautiful voice, far more so than at least one of the other actors that have taken on the role of Dan. While I'd argue that his voice is not the right fit for the score, I think he did a tremendous job. It was certainly well acted. The final scene got me for the first time.

I'd not seen Massey before and while I appreciated his performance, I must say I am not a fan of the "boy band" sound, but that became less of a concern for me as the show went on. He certainly has strong acting skills. Fahy, as others have pointed out, plays the role much more innocent than her predecessor. It worked though I still appreciate Damiano's take. She started off a little weak vocally (shaky pitch here and there) but once settled in, it was clear she has a beautiful voice.

All in all, though certainly not a perfect show, N2N remains one of my favorites and I am generally pleased with the new company.

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Updated On: 8/1/10 at 08:53 PM

Ha! That typo is brill, if I do say so myself.

Having seen the show once with the OBC and once with the OBC minus Aaron, I saw the show last night for a third time to see the new cast.

I hate to say this, but I was not pleased. Marin Mazzie sung the role beautifully, but her line delivery left me flat.

As for Jason Danieley, well...I agree with the following poster:

"And then there's Jason Danieley. He's not bad, just a complete non-entity. His Dan doesn't register with me. He's just kind of there. No emotional impact whatsoever."

Those are my sentiments exactly.

Overall, the evening was a big disappointment. At least I have the memories of the earlier performances.

"I thought Jason Danieley was terrible acting wise, but sang it well enough"

Sorry, but Danieley's acting was top notch. He hit it out of the park in every imaginable way.

Sorry Adam, but I agree with Marin. Danieley's acting is amazing. ;-p

Well I saw Next To Normal at the Booth theatre. I don't know what the fvck you two saw.

I saw the show this evening (my third time, but first time with Marin/Jason/Meghann). Compared to my last visit where Alice was driving ME crazy, this was a revelation. First of all, Meghann is superb and I think her Natalie is much stronger than Damiano's. I think Louis Hobson has made some interesting changes to his characters in the past month that made his performance quite refreshing. Adam has always been adorable and endearing in his performance. Although I will always cherish seeing Aaron's Gabe (W-O-W!), Kyle has grown into the role quite well and seems to be breaking out of his comfort zone a little and making his Gabe just as physical as Aaron's.

I have to agree with the OP in terms of Marin and Jason. Great performances and a nice fresh change. Marin is indeed a stronger willed Diana than Alice. (And though I may get shot for this, it was nice not having to cringe at some of the notes that Alice butchered last time.) I thought the sexual tension between her and Kyle, while creepy and unsettling, was apropos and worked. Jason was equally as good...and I thought had a powerful presence that was nicely cracked by Kyle at the end (that is scene that hits me the hardest and tonight was the first time I actually cried during that exchange).

Next to Normal has always been a favorite of mine, but it was firing on all cylinders tonight. At the end, my date said I was nothing but goosebumps for the majority of the performance. That was a true story. I will definitely be returning to see this cast again once they have had even more time to make the roles their own.