Next To Normal

Musical (2008)
Music by Tom Kitt
Book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey
Directed and choreographed by Pascale Florestal
Voice and Music direction by Katie Bickford
Central Square Theater
Co-produced with The Front Porch Arts Collective
Central Square, Cambridge, MA
May 30 – June 30, 2024

With Sheree Marcelle (Diana), Diego Cintron (Gabe), Anthony Pires, Jr. (Dan), Cortlandt Barrett (Natalie), Dashawn McClinton (Henry), Ricardo “Ricky” Holguin (Dr. Madden and Fine)

It becomes apparent that Diana (Sheree Marcelle) is afflicted in some way. Wife to Dan (Anthony Pires, Jr.) and mother to Natalie (Cortlandt Barrett) and Gabe (Diego Cintron), she clearly has some serious psychological issues. She consults with Dr. Madden (Ricardo “Ricky” Holguin) who appears to her in an altered form due to her distressed state. After further treatment and consultation she embarks on some more serious treatment under the guidance of Dr. Fine (Ricardo “Ricky” Holguin), and the resulting change of her state leads to some consequences for the relationships in the family. In the midst of these complexities, Natalie forms a friendship with Henry (Dashawn McClinton) which begins to blossom into something more.

I had seen this show at the Speakeasy Stage about ten years ago and, though that production was quite good in many ways, the writing of both music and lyrics struck me as somehow off. Conceived by author Brian Yorkey and composer Tom Kitt when they were college friends and then developed as a mature theater piece over the next dozen years, it struck me still as a curiously immature investigation into mental illness rather than an evolved and heartfelt one. This time around, largely due to the overall excellence of this production, I felt somewhat differently. Though there are some elements of the script, particularly towards the end of the show, with which I continue to have issues, the quality of the book, lyrics and music struck me this time as more appealing.

Indeed the music by Tom Kitt is not easy, but under the direction of Katie Bickford, the orchestra played wonderfully well and the singers did a spectacular job of realizing the score which vocally is also quite complex in some places. At some points, I thought that composer Kitt was just showing off, as when at times forcing parallel violins to strain upwards in a way that didn’t seem necessary. But that feeling was incidental and intermittent as I listened to the score this time around, during which I found there were some really beautiful harmonies and orchestrations and some incredibly wonderful choral arrangements. Overall, I was blown away by the quality of the instrumentals and the vocals.

A couple of the performers – Cortlandt Barrett as Natalie and Diego Cintron as Gabe – are quite young and still in college, but they are terrific, as is the rest of the cast. Though some of the music, and hence the vocals, get a little brassy at times, the vocalists do a superior job of keeping things together and on the mark. They all deserve a real shout-out for the quality of the performances.

Clearly, the stage direction of Pascale Florestal contributes immensely to the underlying dramatic quality of the production, evident throughout. Not only is the show musically adept, but it is dramatically potent. In the talkback after the show, the actors described Florestal’s kindness and effectiveness as a director, giving a sense of the overall support she offered to the cast, regularly welcoming its input regarding staging and interpretation.

Though there is no dancing in the show per se, Florestal also does whatever choreography is required and, as a result, the staging is fluid and dynamic. I had seen Florestal’s direction and choreography a couple of years ago in the excellent Once On This Island at the Speakeasy Stage and formed the clear sense then, strongly confirmed with this production, that she is a directorial talent to be watched.

– BADMan (aka Charles Munitz)