Next To Normal

If you can get hold of a copy of the OCR I urge you to do so! This is the best Broadway musical to be around in AGES.

Has anyone seen it? We have tickets for December and cannot wait!

This is so high on the list of musicals I want to see soon. I have a few friends who saw it pre-Broadway down at the Signature Theatre in Virginia and they raved about it.

Plus, I love Alice Ripley in general.

Loooooooooooooooooove this show. It's all I've listened to for the past month.

"Next to normal" open in Oslo in autumn 2010, apparently the first one next to the Broadway production:

http://www.aftenposten.no/kul_und/article3440173.ece

There are two Oslo theatres competing in being the leading musical theatre ; Folketeateret and Det norske teatret. It's the latter doing "Next to normal". I'm very curious on what Folketeateret wil come up with...

Awesome! I'm glad to see this show opening elsewhere. It's a great show and deserves a bigger audience.

I'm crossing my fingers for a US national tour (and a stop in Dallas... or even Fort Worth).

The Oslo cast has ben announced. Well, only the names of the actors, but judging by age and such I assume this is correct:

Diana (mother): Heidi Gjermundsen Broch
Gabe (son): Frank Kjosås
Natalie (daughter): Charlotte Frogner
Dan (father): Lasse Kolsrud
Henry (school mate): Thomas Bye

It's quite a team, both Broch, Kjosås and Frogner are first rate actors as well as singers. Première is September 3rd this autumn, at Det Norske Teatret: https://www.facebook.com/n2ndnt

Just want to say saw this on Broadway just before Christmas and it was by far the best thing we saw and one of the best performances I have ever seen generally. The cast were all absolutely perfect and on top form and we were lucky enough to see the full, original Broadway cast. I think this is a really important musical and I hope it's around for many years to come.

Next to Normal won the Pulitzer for Drama.

http://www.broadway.com/shows/next-to-normal/buzz/next-normal-wins-2010-pulitzer-prize-drama/

I really can't think of a more deserving show.

I'm soooo looking forward to the 2010 Oslo production of this. People rave about "Next to Normal", and the Oslo cast seems brilliant. Opens in the autumn sometime.

I seriously love this musical. I hate that I missed Aaron Tveit by putting off watching it for so long.

This was announced a few days ago, but I've just not gotten a chance to post it.

J. Robert Spencer is leaving the Broadway production on May 16, but *cues drumroll* Brian D'Arcy James is returning to the role of Dan!

http://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Brian_DArcy_James_Returns_to_NEXT_TO_NORMAL_May_17_20100422

And, conveniently enough, they already have pictures from Second Stage.

phantomphan1992 wrote:This was announced a few days ago, but I've just not gotten a chance to post it.

J. Robert Spencer is leaving the Broadway production on May 16, but *cues drumroll* Brian D'Arcy James is returning to the role of Dan!

[url=http://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Brian_DArcy_James_Returns_to_NEXT_TO_NORMAL_May_17_20100422]Article Here[/url]

And, conveniently enough, they already have pictures from Second Stage.

Is he really leaving? The article says that James will only perform for a limited engagement from the 16th to the 17th.

Viscountess wrote:

phantomphan1992 wrote:This was announced a few days ago, but I've just not gotten a chance to post it.

J. Robert Spencer is leaving the Broadway production on May 16, but *cues drumroll* Brian D'Arcy James is returning to the role of Dan!

[url=http://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Brian_DArcy_James_Returns_to_NEXT_TO_NORMAL_May_17_20100422]Article Here[/url]

And, conveniently enough, they already have pictures from Second Stage.

Is he really leaving? The article says that James will only perform for a limited engagement from the 16th to the 17th.

Yes, he is.

http://www.broadwayworld.com/article/J_Robert_Spencer_to_Play_Final_Performance_in_NEXT_TO_NORMAL_516_20100420

His last show is the 16th. The other article doesn't say when Brian's run ends, but it does say this:

Due to a pre-existing conflict, Mr. d'Arcy James will not be in the production July 1 - 11.

So it looks like he'll at least be there for a good part of the summer. That also means if you want a Michael Berry fix, that's a good time to see the show.

Promo version of "Eg saknar fjella" (I miss the mountains) sung by Heidi Gjermundsen Broch:

http://www.detnorsketeatret.no/ (click on the play icon in the front page)

operafantomet wrote:Promo version of "Eg saknar fjella" (I miss the mountains) sung by Heidi Gjermundsen Broch:

http://www.detnorsketeatret.no/ (click on the play icon in the front page)

I'm trying to watch it and every time I do, it plays for about ten seconds then the page goes blank and it starts trying to reload the page, which for the record, never actually reloads.

Is anyone else having a problem with it?

It's working for me.

And wow. Absolutely beautiful!

phantomphan1992 wrote:It's working for me.

And wow. Absolutely beautiful!

Isn't it, though? Heidi G. Broch is, in the right roles, a fantastic performer. She adds many levels to her characters. Can't wait to actually see her in the role. In the mean time I'm stuck with that song in my head... Which I guess is not a bad thing.

Viscountess, I think you may need to close your browsers (maybe even restart the computer) and try again. Sometimes these steamed-music clips gets a hang-up, and a reboot is the only way to fix it. Hope you get it to work!

operafantomet wrote:

phantomphan1992 wrote:It's working for me.

And wow. Absolutely beautiful!

Isn't it, though? Heidi G. Broch is, in the right roles, a fantastic performer. She adds many levels to her characters. Can't wait to actually see her in the role. In the mean time I'm stuck with that song in my head... Which I guess is not a bad thing.

Viscountess, I think you may need to close your browsers (maybe even restart the computer) and try again. Sometimes these steamed-music clips gets a hang-up, and a reboot is the only way to fix it. Hope you get it to work!

After a bunch of tries, I finally got it. Thanks for the help!

She sounds very good, but I'll have to say the guy playing Gabe stole my heart. He's phenomonal.

Viscountess wrote:

operafantomet wrote:

phantomphan1992 wrote:It's working for me.

And wow. Absolutely beautiful!

Isn't it, though? Heidi G. Broch is, in the right roles, a fantastic performer. She adds many levels to her characters. Can't wait to actually see her in the role. In the mean time I'm stuck with that song in my head... Which I guess is not a bad thing.

Viscountess, I think you may need to close your browsers (maybe even restart the computer) and try again. Sometimes these steamed-music clips gets a hang-up, and a reboot is the only way to fix it. Hope you get it to work!

After a bunch of tries, I finally got it. Thanks for the help!

She sounds very good, but I'll have to say the guy playing Gabe stole my heart. He's phenomonal.

He's really fantastic.

Glad you guys liked Frank Kjosås. He is one of Norway's up and coming musical stars, and has hordes of teenagers chasing him. I didn't like him in the past, but he was excellent in "Peter Pan" (title role) and he floored me as Judas in "Jesus Christ Superstar".

Anyhow, I scored two tickets for a sort of preview of "Next to Normal" in Oslo. It's not a preview as such, but a presentation of the musical with a few musical numbers. I hope there'll be some presentation of the design/designer, too, as I like what he has done in the past. He did the funky Les Mis on the way-too-tiny stage last year, and did wonders.

Be sure to let us know how it is.

Also, and this was announced a few days ago, but Alice Ripley is performing her last show on Broadway the same day as Brian D'Arcy James and will play Dianna in the US tour.

Still waiting for an announcement for a Dallas stop.

Was at the Det Norske Teatret presentation yesterday, and it was, in a word, fantastic!

One, the auditorium was packed. In advance we got food + beverage, and also a promo CD (which I alas haven't gotten around to listen to yet). Inside I managed to grab a seat on row 7 and had an excellent view.

The full cast was on stage, plus 2/3 of the orchestra. They presented themselves, and started with the opening number "Just another day". It sounded really, really good, especially as they managed to keep the nuances and didn't drown the lyrics. Tons of applause.

The theatre manager (I think? I should know this...) told how he went to see "Next to Normal" on Broadway some time ago, and was shaken to his core. In a good way. He decided his theatre just had to do this musical, and worked on this until they had achieved the right. He was proud of them being the very first theatre in Europe to do it, or actually the first beside B'way.

The fan club of Frank Kjosås (Gabriel) was present, and he got thunderous applause after performing "I'm alive". Which, admittedly, he did extremely well.

They were still in rehearsals, and ensemble wise they had only gotten to page 17 (or so they claimed). So the musical director invited us to join in on a half finished number and see it progress. I don't know if this "progress" was rehearsed or actually happened, but it was great to hear the complex number "It's gonna be good" gradually fall into place.

More chatting, this time presentation of the set model. At first I thought it looked suspiciously like the "doll house" of "Mary Poppins" (though not fold-out style), in three floors. But the use of it is somewhat different. Basically, there will be various furnitures in stage front, where the action take place. In the background (though only about 8 meters back) is the "doll house", and a specific room will be lit to indicate where the action takes place (even though the actors are stage front). But they can also move inside the house. Both house and furnitures are all white instead of realistic, and the orchestra will be in the nurs... I mean third floor.

They finished off with "I miss the mountains", in one of the best renditions I've heard. The Norwegian version they have in their official site is nice, but more low key. Live Heidi G.B. poured her soul into it, which gave me goose bumps.

And then they finished off by giving away 12 tickets to opening night, drawn based on seat numbers.

I was majorly impressed with the concept of the presentation, and I loved hearing the feedback from the audience. I don't think too many were familiar with the musical on forehand, but I'm sure 90% of those present end up buying tickets. The applause, the laughter and the general comments were just so positive.

I'm glad. As I've said several times before, this is an exceptional show and deserves as large an audience as possible.

On another note, replacements for Alice Ripley and Brian D'Arcy James have been announced.

Link

There are lovely clips on YouTube from the Norwegian production presentation. Official clips!

JUST ANOTHER DAY (Nok ein dag): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HaEfKeTZGYM
I MISS THE MOUNTAINS (Eg sakna fjella): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BAmqgDVST2g

I very much love this musical, every song is brilliant. I was sad however when I went I got Alice's understudy (Jessica Phillips) but she was fantastic. Hoping to see Alice during the tour when it reaches Pittsburgh though.

Seeing a preview of "Next to Normal" in Oslo tonight. They have open previews with highly discounted tickets. I'm very much looking forward to this. A couple of friends have seen it already, and they rave about it, from cast to sets to book to music. 3 hours until it starts... I'm very hyped!

Saw a preview of "Next to Normal" in Oslo yesterday.

't was fantastic. Admittedly I had half a bottle of wine before entering the theatre. But I honestly don't think it was the wine. It was the musical itself. I bawled like a baby in much of the first act. I laughed and cried. It was almost embarrassing. The scenes with the son were in particular fantastic.

Second act was a bit slower in pace, maybe because there were more focus on the relationship between husband and wife, and lots of heavy decisions to make. So second act was less fantastic, but at the same time it's a solid piece of theatre.

The creators were there, and I overheard one of them saying "15 minutes into it and I had forgotten all about the language barriere". Which don't surprise me. The cast was utterly fantastic. Heidi Gjermundsen Brock was at her very best, the role of Diana seems to have been created for her (I know it isn't, duuuh). Lots of understated acting, and a rich, clear voice. Frank Kjosås as the son was also gold. He's got a spooky stage presence,t hat bloke, and a voice to match it. The rest of the cast might not have been as prominent, but they were all just so good. Wonderful, wonderful.

The sets were, as the US original, a minimalistic house with "open" walls and roof-to-floor poles. But unlike the US design, this house was all white and more Scandinavian Design in appearance. The lower floor also had an extended floor in the middle, where the main room of the house were. In the back and ceiling there were various light effects (again like in the US), and it was used effectively with various colour schemes matching Diana's mood. The sides of the stage (where lights and speakers are) were covered up by a similar white surface, looking like neighbor houses. Pic here:
http://www.detnorsketeatret.no/Portals/0/Bildearkiv/N2NI.jpg

More pics here, click to enlarge:
http://www.detnorsketeatret.no/DesktopModules/BildearkivCategoryDetails/tabid/165/Bcid/180/Default.aspx

If I were to say something negative, it would be that this theatre has a nasty habit of letting the orchestra overpower the singers in rocky songs. I've experienced this in so many of their musical productions, and I wonder why they let it happen. It's not that I mind the sound level. But in musicals were the lyrics are vital (like here) it ruins the otherwise seamless storytelling, especially when the songs are unfamiliar to people. It's first and foremost theatre, with the addition of music. Tone down the orchestra, if necessary.

That said, this is a fantastic production of a fantastic musical. Bravo! And yes, I'll definitely see it again.

OMG, the Norwegian production of "Next to Normal" is getting rave reviews all over the place! I think these might be the most euphoric reviews I've read... For those who understand Norwegian, here are some:

http://www.vg.no/musikk/artikkel.php?artid=10036168
http://oslopuls.aftenposten.no/kunst_scene/scene/article427851.ece
http://www.nrk.no/kanal/nrk_klassisk/1.7274221

I was present at the opening night, albeit sitting on the very last row, and the audience was on fire. What an atmosphere!

And apparently STING were there... Anyone knows what kind of connection he has to the musical? I doubt he would hop on the plane to Oslo and see a musical in Norwegian unless there's some sort of link.
ETA: turns out he was in Oslo for a symphony concert of some sort, PLUS that he's collaborating with one of the composers on a new musical. That explains a lot...

Saw the Oslo production again tonight. Stopped by the theatre a few minutes before show start, and scored a good ticket.

So was this different than last time? Not so much. But one positive change was that the vocals were a lot clearer this time, I wonder if they in fact has toned down the orchestra. There were also more chemistry between the daughter and boyfriend this time around, which improved what I last time found to be a tad slow scenes.

Mother and son was, if possible, even better than last time around, they seem to have perfected their roles. The last scene of the first act, where they interact in a dreamlike sequence set to a lullaby, is goddamn beautiful. Wonderful choreography there, and wonderful interaction.

The audience were on the silent side, but rose to their feet immediately when the applause started. So people apparently liked what they saw and heard.

I seriously hope this musical hits West End soon. I would love to see/hear it in English, and I'm not heading for the US anytime soon... Besides, God knows West End needs a musical like this... OK, I say this as a MAJOR Phantom fan: but one musical that's run for 24 years, plus a God-awful sequel, plus THREE Les Mis versions, plus two fun but fluffy musicals based on movies, plus two jukebox musicals... It wouldn't hurt to introduce "Next to Normal"!

Draumegut og ho du ikkje kan sjå (Superboy and the Invisible Girl)
Ein draumedans + Finns ei verd (I Dreamed a Dance + There's a world)

Whooops, a bootleg or two slipped out there. I had to remove the links. It wasn't even my music!

Red Death