Third time’s the charm…

Next to Normal, Booth Theatre

January 11, 2010

7pm performance

Okay, so sue me.  The first time I saw N2N (that’s text-speak for Next to Normal), I gave it a mixed-to-good review.  I liked the score, but some of the staging and lyrics bothered me.  Fast forward one year and a cast change later and voila! - me likey.  What a difference in-tune singing makes to show enjoyment.  Fast forward to last night (almost another year later) and I might have to concede that it’s one of the best new productions of the past few seasons.  Granted, those seasons also gave us Shrek, Spider-man, 9 to 5 and the middling to hideously bad revivals of Guys and Dolls, Bye Bye Birdie and West Side Story.

One of Trish's old college friend was in town for an audition, so I recommended he see N2N knowing it’s scheduled to close at the end of the week.  The tiny booth is the perfect house for such a small show and I'd imagine it loses some of the intensity and intimacy in a huge 2,000-seat touring house.  Finding a pair of discount tickets mid-orchestra, I decided to join Josh and get some good, cathartic, crying time in for the week.  Though my opinion of the show’s quality has changed over the years, I’ve always ended up bawling through that last act.  

Marin Mazzie was on fuego Tuesday night!  She sounded fantastic.  And the high note at the end of “So Anyway I’m Leaving” (which she botched the first time I saw her) was gorgeous and effortless.  She’s really grown into the role and I find her portrayal much more satisfying than the balls-to-the-wall performance of the original Diana, Alice Ripley.  What the hell happened there?  Ripley’s definitely got some permanent vocal damage happening in that throat.  Sad, since no one can touch her Violet (Sideshow recording).   I just find Mazzie’s Diana more nuanced and complex.  Ripley was just crazy all the time. 

Jason Danieley, Mazzie’s real-life husband was in the zone as well.  I’m not a fan of his voice, he’s got a weird vibrato that never seems to open up naturally, but the closing Gabe scene was pretty incredible.  I was all verklempt. 

Kyle Dean Massey is totally hot and completely adequate as Gabe.  He just doesn’t have the same innocent, boyish quality of original Gabe, Aaron Tveit (can’t wait to see him in Catch Me if you Can).  I mean, Gabe shouldn’t remind you of a gay porn star.  And talk about gratuitous nudity.  Is there any real point to his opening shirtless scene other than to satiate horny theatre queens?  Not that I’m complaining, but come on.

I also saw N2N during its puberty off-Broadway at Second Stage after it had just changed its title from Feeling Electric (thank God they cut that title song - it was pretty lame).  So technically, I’ve seen the show 3.5 times.  In it’s off-Broadway incarnation, the show was uneven but obviously showing much potential.  If anything, N2N is the poster child for thoughtful, slow development of new works.  Hear that Spider-man?  Pushing opening night again?  Really?