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<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"><span style="color:rgb(255,0,0)">•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••</span><br></span></p><p class=""><b><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">Well done
NEXT TO NORMAL at Beck</span></b></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">Roy Berko</span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Palatino;color:black">(Member, American Theatre Critics Association, Cleveland Critics
Circle)</span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">There is a
recent trend for Cleveland area professional theatres to couple with local
university drama programs.<span style>
</span>Cleveland Play House has married itself to both Cleveland State
University and Case Western Reserve’s MFA programs.<span style> </span>Cleveland Public Theatre and Oberlin College have such an
agreement.<span style> </span>The connection between
Beck Center and Baldwin Wallace’s nationally ranked musical theatre program,
has resulted in not only allowing BW students to appear on a professional stage,
and the expansion of the acting pool for Beck, but the production several top
notch shows. </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"><br></span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">Last year
Beck-BW parlayed to produce the mesmerizing SPRING AWAKENING, which received
The Cleveland Critics Circle—2012 best musical production award, and garnered
Victoria Bussert recognition as the best director of a musical.<span style> </span>This year, Bussert, again is staging a
winner with NEXT TO NORMAL, which stars former and present BW students and a
university faculty member.<span style> </span></span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino">NEXT TO NORMAL, with book
and lyrics by Brian Yorkey and music by Tom Kitt, is a unique musical which
addresses loss, death, suicide, drug usage, and the ethics of modern psychiatry.<span style> </span></span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino">It won three 2009 Tony
Awards and the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.<span style> </span></span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:6pt"><span style="font-family:Palatino">The Pulitzer Board
credited the show with “expanding the scope of subject matter for musicals.”</span><span style="font-family:Palatino"></span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino">The story concerns Diana Goodman, a suburban
American housewife, who has been diagnosed as having a form of bipolar disorder
coupled with what might be schizophrenia.<span style>
</span>The question comes as to whether the condition is hereditary or was
induced by a trauma early in her marriage.<span style> </span>Together with her husband, Dan, she fights to keep her mind
and their family on some sort of “normal” path.<span style> </span>Maybe not normal, but “next to normal.”<span style> </span>After extensive therapy Diana decides
to stop taking the pills, cuts off all mental health help, including the
electroconvulsive therapy that caused her short-term amnesia.<span style> </span>This decision leads to an unsettling
conclusion.</span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino">The play brings up many questions, questions
usually presented in a dramatic, rather than musical form.<span style> </span>Yorkey’s book is so well developed that
the singing enhances the actions, rather than being an interlude from the
development of the dramatic tension.<span style>
</span>Questions include:<span style> </span>Is being
happy the same as happiness?<span style> </span>Is
there a way to treat mental illnesses?<span style>
</span>Is losing one’s memory good or bad?<span style> </span>Can someone put mind over matter and succeed in controlling
psychotic instances?<span style> </span>Is mental
illness in the brain or in the soul?</span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">NEXT TO
NORMAL is the type of show that Bussert does best…quirky, compelling, requiring
creativity and strong talent.<span style> </span>The
script and her cast are up for the requirements.<span style> </span>The singing voices are marvelous, the acting is generally of
high quality, the pacing is excellent, the show’s meaning shines clearly.</span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">Highlight
numbers include “<i style>He’s Not Here</i>,” “<i style>I Am the One</i>,” “<i style>How Could I Ever Forget</i>,” “<i style>It’s
Gonna Be Good</i>,” and “<i style>I’m Alive</i>.” </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">Chris
McCarrell, a BW senior, displays a strong singing voice and totally inhabits
the role of Gabe, the son.<span style> </span>With
his boyish good looks and performance abilities he is Broadway ready!<span style> </span>He is a physical and talent flashback to
Rex Nockingust, a BW grad who went to NY and took over the lead in THE
FANTASTICS.<span style> </span>(Too bad the role of
PIPPIN in the Broadway revival is already cast.)</span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">Katherine
DeBoer generally has a nice grasp on the role of the mentally ill Diana, making
her a real person with overwhelming psychological issues.<span style> </span>Her singing voice is strong, her lyric
interpretations excellent.<span style> </span></span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">Suspending
Diana from the set during the Electro Convulsive Therapy scene, rather than
placing her on an operating room table, created an interesting conundrum.<span style> </span>Was she supposed to be a symbol of
psychiatric crucifixion, a victim of mental health S&M, or was this a
necessity caused by the set design?</span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">Scott Plate
is impressive as the emotionally stifled, yet well meaning Dan, Diana’s
husband.<span style> </span>He has a fine voice and
sings meanings not just words, thus creating dialogue out of lyrics.</span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">Caroline
Murrah creates in daughter Natalie a confused, obsessive teenager, desperate
for love and acceptance.<span style> </span>Though
her voice is strident at times, her overall song interpretation is good. </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">Phil Carroll
is spot on as both Dr. Madden, Diane’s rock star psychiatrist and Dr. Fine, a
traditional mental health professional.<span style>
</span>As with the others in the cast, his singing voice is excellent.</span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">Ellis Dawson,
who sings well, stays on the surface as Henry, Natalie’s boyfriend.<span style> </span>It’s hard to accept him as a real
person.</span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">Jeff Herrman
has created a stage design of wooden scaffolding which, while attractive and
properly symbolic (hundreds of prescription bottles decorate the set), makes
for some awkward staging.<span style> </span>The
actors are constantly ducking under the second level, which distracts from the
action.<span style> </span></span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">Nancy Maier’s
band is excellent, backing up rather than drowning out the very important
lyrics.</span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">David Zody’s
choreography generally worked, but was overly obvious and repetitive in the
convulsive therapy segment.</span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">Though the
sound system worked well, one must question why in this very small theatre,
where no patron is more than five rows away from the stage, and the cast having
trained voices, microphones were needed.<span style>
</span>The electronic sound distracted from the reality of the production. </span></p>
<p class=""><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"> </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:6pt"><i style><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: NEXT TO NORMAL, a
combined Beck Center and Baldwin Wallace University production, is well
done.<span style> </span>This is the type of show
that should result in sold out houses.</span></i></p><p class="" style="margin-bottom:6pt"><i style><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"><br></span></i></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:6pt"><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black">NEXT
TO NORMAL is scheduled to run through April 21 at Beck Center for the
Arts.<span style> </span>For tickets and information
call </span><span style>216-521-2540 or </span><a href="http://www.beckcenter.org/"><span style>http://www.beckcenter.org</span></a><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"><span style> <br></span></span></p><p class="" style="margin-bottom:6pt">
<br><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"><span style></span></span></p><p class="" style="margin-bottom:6pt"><span style="font-family:Palatino;color:black"><span style><span style="color:rgb(255,0,0)">••••••••••••••••••••••••••••</span><br>
</span></span></p>
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