Next to Normal in DC 7/10 Review

[shrekster224]

Posted: 7/11/11 at 8:39pm

So, I had the pleasure of snagging two last minute cancellation tickets to the matinee of Next to Normal on the last day of their stop at the Kennedy Center. It was a pleasure sitting center orchestra, next to Kyle Harris as well (current Tony on the WSS tour and original workshopped Gabe/Henry cover). It was my first time seeing the show, so I'll review the cast, and some general things.

JEREMY KUSHNIER:
He was great in my opinion. His Dr. Madden was much better than Dr. Fine, but he was overall great. In the rockstar bits the audience was cracking up. He was pretty hammy. Very believable, and he had a solid voice. The thing about the fact that the tour is about to end is the chemistry in the cast, and he really held a lot of that together. They all know they are down to the final shows, so in scenes like right back from act two, when she is receiving the shock therapy, and Gabe and Dr. Madden have a "dance" around the gurney, you could see them holding in smiles during it, and it really showed that the cast became close. Overall, he was great.

PRESTON SADLEIR:
Again, he hit the nail on the head. He sold the role, in a solid, well sung performance. His acting was very good, and his chemistry with Emma Hunton was very believable. The scene in the practice room where we first meet Henry was very good/funny, and he established the character from the very beginning. Some of his best moments though were his change and development once Natalie "changes" and juxtaposes him to seem "sober". His voice really is great, and although some of the high notes sounded strained, I just liked something about it. Very solid, and he would have been the perfect replacement for Adam CB once he started walking through the role.

CURT HANSEN:
Not much to say about him, but he was very solid. His acting got better at the show moved on, and his voice is very interesting. It almost sounds muffled, but he can hit the notes (sometimes with his face turning red in the process). He was good, and very nice at the stage door. His best scenes were more of the "evil" scenes, and had a great scene with Asa at the end when Dan speaks to Gabe. His "There's a World" was almost haunting, and his I'm Alive was great too, but he didn't do the optional high note.

ASA SOMERS:
I heard mixed things about him going in, so I was a little skeptical, but he sold it. Maybe not as well as "recordings" of Brian D'arcy James did, but he was good. I felt like he did really care about the family and Diana's wellness, and his I've Been was amazing. His voice had a few rough spots, but it seemed like he (yeah this might sound weird) just didn't get water off stage during breaks, and that he was parched. During Dan's solo in Light he cracked, and it was terrible. It didn't take away from the song too much, but I wish it hadn't happened. He was pretty good.

ALICE RIPLEY:
Ok. After everything that has been said about her for the duration of the tour, going in, I was wishing I they would make a last minute announcement that Pearl was going on. By the end of Just Another Day, she had me. Not only was it obvious that she was deserving of her Tony Award, but she really, just amazed me. With everything that she did, the whole audience could see the role was hers. During the show, it was hard to imagine anyone else (maybe Jessica Phillips :) ) play the role. He was so enthralling and and every move she made was interesting. It almost seemed like she knew that she was going to call out for the night show, so she blasted the roof off with her vocals. At first, I think she was saving it and thinking about doing the final show on tour, but by You Don't Know, she was just going crazy. And even though her voice is not what it was at the beginning of the Broadway run, it worked. She blew it out of the water, and the voice worked for the character. But, that being said, many of the lines she said I could not understand. But they sounded cool :). She was amazing, but not the true stand out of this one. BTW, Pearl was on for the night show. I saw her come out of the stage door and tell one of her friends that she would be on, and later heard from a friend who was there.

EMMA HUNTON:
I saved her for last for a reason. As many stated, I believe adamgreer and maybe Jordan, when she went on for the shows on Broadway last August, she was amazing. Well, not only is she one powerhouse of a performer, but she slightly surpassed Alice in stealing the show. Yes, the show revolves around Diana, but after hearing the cast recording, seeing press footage and everything of Alice, I knew what to expect of her more than of Emma, and Emma really blew me away. Her voice is crystal clear, and so strong. She does have odd facial expressions while singing, though. Her chemistry with both Preston and Asa was very strong, and Maybe with Alice was probably the best song in the show, at least story line and singing wise. Her acting was so impressive, and this girl deserves to be a Broadway star. I knew going in what people have said about her, but I would even be raving if I hadn't heard anything about her performance. Emma blew it out of the water.

It was my first time seeing the show, but since I didn't have anything really to personally connect to it, I wasn't crying at the end as some of the patrons around me, but it did move me. It was pretty draining, and definitely near the top of my list of favorites. I wish I would have seen it sooner to have the chance to go back and digest it, but at least I got to see it. The cast was pretty phenomenal as a whole, and the show was in excellent shape. If anyone sees the final show in Canada, report back!

Thanks for reading,
shrekster


EDIT: Forgot to mention, I would also love to see Jeremy Kushiners take on Dan. He would probably be excellent. As well as Preston as Gabe, but the roles really could go either way. Updated On: 7/11/11 at 08:39 PM

[littlegreen2]

Posted: 7/11/11 at 8:59pm

I just thought I would say that Ripley had an absolutely phenomenal run in Washington DC. I normally love her anyway, but DC was my fourth tour stop and I was blown away by her performances. Her shows on Friday night and Saturday afternoon were mindblowing and beautiful. I saw Pearl for the first time on Saturday night and she was also phenomenal - it was very refreshing to see her as Diana.

Thanks for your review and I'm glad you had such a great experience with the show!