Hi everyone, how are you? I hope your doing well and that you’re having a nice spring. Today I will be reviewing the musical Next To Normal written by Brian Yorker. Next To Normal is a lyrical musical about a woman who struggles with mental illness and the impact it has on her family. I recently listened to this musical because one of my friends told me that it was a beautiful musical with a great plot and lovely songs. My demands were met when I listened to the opening song, Just Another Day. It introduces us to the characters. We see that the main character Dianna has a normal suburban life. She lives with her husband, daughter and son. But when we listen to the song for a little more time we realize that Dianna is quite unwell. She has bipolar disorder and has hallucinations, and anxiety. I was taken aback by the story and the way that the actors and actresses played the characters so well even through the soundtrack. One of my favourite things about Next To Normal is the way that the songs told the story in a way that was fluent and precise. It was very satisfying to hear. Each song would range from upbeat and loud, to soft and calm, and yet each time they played a different song I could think about what dialogue they had said between each song. It was a very interesting listening process. I was never bored. One of my favourite songs was Who’s Crazy/ My Psychopharmacologist And I. They were two songs mixed together. One of them is a song sung by Dan, Dianna’s husband. He talks about how before Dianna’s disorder she used to be very happy. Bubbly, bright and smart. He tells the audience that he wishes it didn’t have to change. The other song talks about Dianna’s Psychopharmacologist and her relationship with him. The doctor talks about Dianna’s state of mind and how stable she is throughout the song. I like this song because of the way the songs meld together. They are both somewhat upbeat. I love the way the melody joins the actual lyrics. The way the songs are blocked out is genius. I would be lying if I told you that I had a favourite character. Usually when I listen or watch something I instantly have a character that I relate to so when I listened to Next To Normal i was surprised that there wasn’t a character that I liked more than others. I liked all the characters equally. I think one of the reasons that I had neutral opinions on all of them was because I didn’t feel like a related to any of the characters. Obviously all of the characters have issues and mental illnesses like bipolar, OCD, anxiety and eating disorders. I haven’t experienced this first hand which is why I don’t relate to the characters. I thought that this musical was absolutely beautiful. It made me cry numerous occasions. I hope you enjoyed this review! If you have any suggestions about what I should review next please tell me I am always looking for new musicals. If you like books please tell me if you have any books that you love I would love to read you. Thank you! I hope you’re all having a great day! See you soon!
Ellie
The Ellington Review 