Next to Normal Coming to Broadway!!- Page 5

[ljay889]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 1:10am

Thank you, April. I am studying Psychology, and that is why I was trying to get to the bottom of this. Bipolar can be a very extreme disorder, and to go unmedicated with it could be very dangerous. This is exactly why I was wondering if the show is accurate to the disorder. Updated On: 2/17/09 at 01:10 AM

[iluvtheatertrash]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 1:40am

I adore this show and would love to see it move. I would not mind, however, the replacement of Damiano. Her voice grates on me...

[changinandhow]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 2:02am

theatertrash, did you see the show at Second Stage or Arena? I didn't care for her voice very much when the show was at Second Stage but she sounded excellent and much better at Arena. I heard she had been sick for the majority of the off-broadway run.

[heo1128]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 2:18am

Hey insiders, what does "late March" mean? I will be there the final weekend of March, and if I miss this show, along with 9-5, I will be SERIOUSLY pissed.

[snl89]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 2:20am

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.



Oh, I apologize, what I said DID totally come across like I was saying that, but that's actually not what I meant haha. I was just too vague because I was trying to avoid spoilers



*WARNING: I don't explicitly give away spoilers here, but for purposes of explaining, it does kind of give a lot away, so if you haven't seen the show and don't want to be spoiled, DON'T READ FURTHER*





Yeah, I kind of consider it to be the fact that she never DEALT with the trauma that happened. Not that the trauma itself caused the problems. But I think... instead of actually dealing with it from the get go, she kind of suppresses everything, so that over the years it builds up into a very real chemical situation in the brain.

I totally get what you mean- I think that people with bipolar disorder DO have a certain biological predisposition to it to begin with. But I would just argue that, when something traumatic happens that triggers that chemical reaction in the brain, I would think it COULD probably be much more manageable if addressed and treated right away, instead of allowing it to build up to the point that Diana does in the show. So, basically I personally feel like if she'd gotten help in dealing with her grief from the get go, her bipolar condition might have been manageable mostly with therapy, and without the use of much medication, if any. But because she didn't truly deal with it for so long, that's why her condition became as severe as it did.

And I think, on that note, that's a large part of the reason that she ends up walking away from treatment, if only for the meantime, in the end- because yes, she has a chronic illness (and now there's a whole part in the end where Dr. Madden reminds her of exactly that, and she acknowledges it), but treating the chronic illness is not going to help her deal with the things she needs to deal with emotionally in order to fully get better. So the way I personally view the ending the way it is now, is not that she's walking away from any kind of medical treatment forever. She's simply taking a break from it so she can properly deal with her grief, and then she can go back and actually sort out the rest, rather than just having medicine prescribed to her to cover up the real problem.


Sorry, I know that's UBER long, but... yeah, that's essentially what I meant before haha. Again, I was just trying to vague and I realize now that it came off sounding like I thought the trauma itself was the cause :)

[burntplains]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 2:54am

I'm SO Excited:)

[dramamama611]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 7:28am

Anyone else surprised that this thread hasn't been pulled yet??

[jordangirl]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 8:27am

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.

I completely agree manic_magic_n2n2. When I knew Brian was doing Shrek I resolved myself to seeing someone else in the role. By the end of the first time I saw N2N at Arena, Bobby had completely won me over ~ vocally and ESPECIALLY acting. He just brings something to the role... And given the changes his portrayal works. Brian's...the way he did play Dan wouldn't work with the changes. Especially at the end. For me, I get that Dan is shocked, but Bobby's tears are so much more effective than Brain's impression of a bump on a log until that one break.

Also since it is clear from the pics Bobby is on the cast recording... My guess is it wil be the Arena cast that opens it.

heo1128 ~ I have heard dates around that last weekend. Given that it's NOT a hugely technical show, I don't see them having to delay.

April Saul ~ I do see what you are saying regarding what the show is about, but at its heart it really is about a family trying to cope with crisis and catastrophe. Bipolar is the primary route they choose to take/focus on. But it's also Dan's story ~ the story of what undealt with grief can do. And it's also Natalie's story ~ trying to live up to essentially a ghost and never feeling like she's good enough. It's all of their stories woven together ~ not *about* any ONE of them. Diana's is just the most obvious.

dramamama ~ Not really. Sometimes the mods don't pick up on things until later. I've seen a few breakdown threads last almost 24 hours. If my memory serves correctly, it's usually the "so and so is closing" more than the opening threads that get deleted.

[Ed_Mottershead]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 9:02am

I apologize for being late with this comment and the questions may have been raised/answered previously, but where, except for the PR article, has NTN's Broadway opening been announced? No one I've talked to seemed to know anything about it -- in fact, I was always being the first to tell. Several skeptics have asked the question, "Says who?" and I wasn't able to come up with an answer. Excepting for the PR, WHERE has this been announced by a reliable source?

[jordangirl]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 9:22am

From what I'm hearing, announcement to be Wednesday.

[TimesSquareRegular]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 9:24am

"Hearing" where, Jordangirl?

[jordangirl]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 9:41am

Around. :)

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 10:07am

If this does come to Broadway, I have to convince my parents that this is worth seeing!!!!

[jordangirl]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 10:08am

I have already told my parents and sister that this WILL be our second show when they're here over Spring Break. (Assuming it's true of course.) I am not giving them an option. :)

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 10:12am

ljay, my main problem with the show at Second Stage was the complete misrepresentation of mental illness. The writers appeared to have no education on mental illness and treatment. They appeared to create this conglomeration of several mental illnesses, some real, some pulled from sensationalized television programs and movies, and put them all together for this character in this show. It was COMPLETELY inaccurate, and to me, offensive.

I did, however, love the score and the cast. And from what I have heard, the main offensive song has been cut since Second Stage, and the authors have done some reading on the realities of mental illness and made appropriate fixes to the book.

I'm hopeful for the show on Broadway, and look forward to revisiting it, especially since I think the score was so promising.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 10:45am

Any word on Tveit's participation?

[hockeynut2]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 10:52am

I agree with SNL9. Diane probably suffered from manic depression, which probably was undiagnosed before the tragic event, and the disease was worsened by her inability to deal with the death of her child. I also believe that the disease is genetic. When I interviewed/podcasted Alice in her dressing room at Arena Stage, we talked about manic depression, and when I talked about the ending where she walks away from taking meds, I told her that from my personal experience and the experience of my family and friends who suffer from this horrific disease, throwing away your meds can lead to "crashing" and severe and wild manic episodes and excessive spending (she sang the Costco song for me where you clearly see this), the inability to concentrate well, and the inability to perform well and hold a job. She told me, when I mentioned this on the podcast, that it all depends on the person. Well, I disagreed with her and moved on quickly, because I knew we weren't going to agree on this one. I know personally that the group of epileptic and anti-seizure medications like Lamictal and Neuronton, work so well to stabilize those who suffer from manic depression. So, personally, I was horrified by Diana's decision not to stay on her meds. Hey, if there is someone out there who is bipolar and doesn't need to take meds, and is doing well - good for them. But I haven't met one person yet in all my life who was and is bipolar who didn't "crash" when they stopped taking their meds. Working at the American Psychiatric Association, I keep up on the research and articles and studies on this disease, for obvious reasons, and I haven't read anything yet that supports throwing the meds out. I am yearning for the day when we won't have to take the meds, but until then, I am grateful we have them and that they work. By the way, if the news is true, you are all in for a treat in NYC. The Arena production was sensational and all the changes they made improved the show and made it more focused than the 2nd Stage production. I wish the cast well, and I hope it is a hit when it returns to the Big Apple. With Rooms and Next To Normal coming back to NYC, the musical theatre season will get a well needed shot in the arm.

Podcast of Alice Ripley at Next to Normal at Arena Stage Updated On: 2/17/09 at 10:52 AM

[ljay889]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 12:55pm

ljay, my main problem with the show at Second Stage was the complete misrepresentation of mental illness. The writers appeared to have no education on mental illness and treatment. They appeared to create this conglomeration of several mental illnesses, some real, some pulled from sensationalized television programs and movies, and put them all together for this character in this show. It was COMPLETELY inaccurate, and to me, offensive.

See, now that pisses me off big time. I will still try to see this show though.

[classicalprose]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 1:35pm

From what I've heard and read the writers have done extensive research on mental illness/bipolar disease etc from talking to doctors and psychiatrists to researching on the internet. It's a difficult topic to write a musical about and given that, I think they've done a brilliant job handling it with the respect it deserves. The Arena Stage production dealt with the issue much better than Second Stage. They were still finding their footing at Second Stage so it's not entirely fair to judge it based on that.

[Kelly2]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 1:37pm

What bothered me about the show at second stage was the encouragement it provided people who do have serious problems to go off their medication. I know two specific people who saw this show, who were on anti-depressants and other types of medications, and were inspired to toss their pills because they didn't want to be "numb" and all of this ridiculous nonsense. I'm sorry, WHAT? Any kind of insinuation that this is a good idea is misguided, I think. We're, for the most part, talking about people who have severe chemical and hormonal imbalances, and need them regulated. Of course they're going to feel a little numb in comparison to the hyper-dramatic moods that they're used to. It was so frustrating to me to watch people see Diana as a guideline to be emulated rather than a cautionary tale.

[ljay889]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 1:43pm

You will NOT find a psychiatrist who would advise a patient with bipolar to go off their medication. Maybe the writers need to do better research.
Updated On: 2/17/09 at 01:43 PM

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 1:50pm

The problem with your argument is that she is not bipolar. It's never explicitly stated that she is. I'm not saying the show is a perfectly accurate portrayal of mental illness, because it wasn't last time I saw it and I haven't seen the Arena version myself. But the people who have been going on about how wrong it is in the context of bipolar disorder seem so set on willfully ignoring the fact that it's not that simple. In the Second Stage version, Diana's illness didn't explicitly get a name. And isn't there now a line about how bipolar disorder didn't cover it, or something? It's not stated that she's bipolar, people just decided she is anyway. And that annoys me.

Updated On: 2/17/09 at 01:50 PM

[Kelly2]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 1:52pm

"You will NOT find a psychiatrist who would advise a patient with bipolar to go off their medication. Maybe the writers need to to better research."

That's absolutely correct. Which is my problem with the show. No psychiatrist would advise it, but people are influenced by Diana's decision to do it.

[ljay889]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 1:56pm

Bipolar or not, I do not believe a psychiatrist would advise a patient to go off their medication. Mental illness is mental illness. And to go untreated in severe cases is extremely dangerous to the patient and the people around them.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 2/17/09 at 1:59pm

I don't think that means her decision should be taken out of the show, though, because it's an important part of the story. This is a delicate topic and needs to be handled in a proper way, but eradicating a part of the story to be responsible for people's stupid decisions isn't the answer. And frankly, a lot of people with mental illness who would refuse treatment would do it without seeing an example. It happens all the time, and would happen anyway. It's almost like the show needs a "do not try this at home" insert or something.

Updated On: 2/17/09 at 01:59 PM