Next to Normal Coming to Broadway!!- Page 4

[ljay889]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:01pm

Fair enough.

[jordangirl]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:03pm

Ah, ok. :)

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:09pm

I'm glad to hear that "Feeling Electric" was replaced and that Diana's illness seems to be more solidified now than it was at Second Stage.

I look forward to giving the show another chance.

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:22pm

Congrats (in advance) to Alice Ripley on winning her first Tony Award.

[April Saul]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:23pm

Wow, I am amazed that a show about bipolar disorder is actually going to try to make a go of it on Broadway...and I'm crossing my fingers that it finds the larger audience it deserves. A few things:

ljay, you're right that Josefina Scaglione will be a Tony contender, she is wonderful, I saw her in WSS in DC. You raised the question of whether N2N is an accurate portrayal of bipolar, to which I'd say yes, bipolar folks I know are especially touched by it and many moments in the show really rung true. However...

snl, I hope you're right in saying that the show is less anti-medication than it was when I saw it at Second Stage, especially since you say you didn't see it in DC but have heard the score. I have far too many bipolar loved ones and know all too well that medication is nearly always the foundation for living with this incredibly difficult disorder...even though by the end of the piece, we're shown that Ripley's character was emotionally crippled from past experiences that needed to be brought to light, the LEAST realistic part of this show was the implication that gee, maybe she didn't need drugs after all.

Interestingly--at least for me, anyhow--I saw Roundabout's Distracted this weekend, which seemed to conclude that kids with attention deficit really don't need medication either, just attentive, loving parents...aaarrrggghhhh!!

I know it's theater, but life just ain't that black and white. I hope Next to Normal makes it, and I'm looking forward to a second viewing; even at Second Stage, it was a moving experience and it sounds like it's gotten even stronger.

[manic_magic_n2n2]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:26pm

withoutatrace... PLEASE DONT JINX IT. (but yes!, hahahahahahahha!)

[nexttoelectric]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:26pm

just because there seems to be some confusion, N2N IS NOT A SHOW ABOUT BIPOLAR DISORDER. It is a show about a psychologically and emotionally ill woman and her family and their abilities (and methods) of coping with her disease and their own deep seated issues

[DrTheatre]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:28pm

How come I press the link on the first post and it no longer on there?

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:31pm

They removed the link from the homepage but it's technically still there http://www.barlowhartman.com/next_to_normal.htm

[ljay889]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:32pm

t is a show about a psychologically and emotionally ill woman and her family and their abilities (and methods) of coping with her disease and their own deep seated issues

- Yes. I believe that. But every article mentions that she IS manic depressive. Or does the plot twist change that? Without seeing the show, It seem she is bipolar but has other underlying issues.

[manic_magic_n2n2]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:34pm

she has a few problems, not just bipolar disorder (but yes, it is mentioned that she is bipolar). if you don't want spoilers, don't dig into this question too much haha.

[nexttoelectric]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:39pm

She does have many of the symptoms of a bi-polar individual, but it is discussed in the show that, while earlier in her life she was diagnosed Bi-polar, that clearly didn't cover it. And even if she was quote/unquote bi-polar, it is not a show ABOUT bi-polar disorder, that is simply one of the elements. The show is about this ONE family and their struggles to deal with emotional illness and grief. To say it is a show about bi-polar is doing it a disservice, there is much more to it than just Diana's mental state (yes, as the central character, her mental state is important, but it's hardly what the show is all about)

[manic_magic_n2n2]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:40pm

agreed. the bipolar disorder is NOT the main focus of the show in the slightest. there is so much more to the plot and character of diana than just this disorder.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:41pm

I am really curious,
"because it's good, it has an audience and creative team/producers who belive in it."
All Good,
THE VISIT was Great, had Chita Rivera and Kander and Ebb, Galatti, Reinking, Hearn and still couldn't find backers.
I am just interested in the back story,
I haven't seen NEXT TO NORMAL, so to me it's a new musical with untried BWay crede, (not, the cast, they are all top drawer)
in the vein of GLORY DAY.
I'm not comparing I just wonder why?
I'm ready for anything starring Ripley.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:43pm

Wait, huh? How is this in the vein of Glory Days? It's not exactly a random novice team. And no, I'm not talking about the cast. Tom Kitt? Michael Greif? Come on. No, it's not comparable to something with a pedigree like that of The Visit, but nor is it to a mistake like Glory Days.

Updated On: 2/16/09 at 11:43 PM

[nexttoelectric]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:43pm

Glory Days was a train wreck. N2N has had TWO non-broadway engagements in the last 12 months and undergone improving rewrites (mentioning nothing of the fact that show has been evolving for almost 10 years)

It's NOTHING like glory days.
Updated On: 2/16/09 at 11:43 PM

[nexttoelectric]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:56pm

Looking at the BH website now, methinks someone let the cat out of the bag early by posting the wrong link/icon on the front page as now Rock of Ages is there instead of N2N

[April Saul]

Posted: 2/16/09 at 11:56pm

It is a harrowing, exhilirating and amazing portrait of a family living with the mother's bipolar disorder...but it's still about bipolar disorder!! I mean, Sunday in the Park with George is a gorgeous story of a tormented Impressionist artist...but it's still about a painter! I don't get the distinction you're trying to make here, Ripley's character is clearly a manic-depressive who misses "the mountains" and I don't think using the words "bipolar disorder" which are in the play itself and mentioned in every review, diminishes Next to Normal's impact or demeans it at all. It's a beautiful piece...about bipolar disorder...which makes it all the more terrific, in my mind anyway!

[manic_magic_n2n2]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 12:04am

personally i think there is much more to the show than just diana's manic depression. ...and she is not only manic depressive, there's more.

anyway, look at the other characters-- gabe and dan, plus natalie and henry. i think there's more to this show.

[snl89]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 12:09am

Exactly- I think really Diana's manic depression is just a symptom of what the REAL problem is. And I won't specify what the real problem is because that would be a spoiler but yeah, there's a definite underlying cause FOR her manic depression, along with the other issues she has, and the show revolves around the whole family coping with that underlying problem.

[bjh2114]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 12:26am

Now the question is can Brian Darcy James please leave Shrek and come back to this. I mean, I love J. Robert Spencer, but Brian IS that part. Not that this would ever happen, but Brian could be nominated for two leading actor Tonys in the same season.

[manic_magic_n2n2]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 12:39am

i have debated and debated with myself about this... after seeing it at second stage and arena, i used to be really attached to brian but now i'm just as in love with bobby. honestly, they both bring such great things to this role... i feel like it's more probable that bobby will continue in the role, at least, when it first opens on broadway. if the show runs long enough to need a replacement for bobby, maybe brian will be done with shrek and step in. maybe.
Updated On: 2/17/09 at 12:39 AM

[IdinaBellFoster]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 12:47am

YES! This is the best news I've heard in awhile. I haven't seen the show since 2nd Stage, but from the audio I've heard, they have made some wise changes.

Hopefully this can take that fourth slot for Best Musical. They would also have a nice shot at Best Actress and Featured Actor.

[EveHarrington]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 12:57am

I saw it at Arena Stage. I still can't imagine that Ripley would beat Janney. And to be honest, I hope she doesn't.

Next to Normal is vastly overrated.

[April Saul]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 1:06am

No, the underlying cause for Ripley's character's manic depression is NOT something stressful that happened to her. Sure, it could have been--and in the context of this play, probably was--TRIGGERED by a stressful event in her life, but the cause of bipolar disorder is in fact probably different genes acting together to create a certain situation in the brain. A study published last month even found that schizophrenia and bipolar share a common genetic cause--and pretty much everybody I know who has it inherited it from a parent or grandparent.

Not trying to pick a fight here, but it's really important that people understand that bipolar is not just a reaction to trauma, it, or at least a predisposition for it, is something the person is born with ...that's why the anti-medication attitude in the NYC production didn't make a lot of sense. There's just so much misunderstanding about mental illness...which is one of the reasons Next to Normal is so welcome.