[UPDATE: And here's The Review from Chronicle Theatre Critic Robert Hurwitt.]
Smash Broadway success next to normal started its run at SHN’s Curran Theatre yesterday.
And the flash reviews are in.
From Orchestra Row M:
Next to Normal is intense … so is Alice Ripley’s performance. How does this chanteuse mash up singing with crying? The same confusing way you’ll endure at times uncomfortable emotional voyeurism of a family’s breakdown and rebirth. You might also want to seek therapy after the show … and that’s a good thing.
And the Twitter:
“Amazing night of theater: “Next to Normal” from @ in SF. Intense, emotional, sometimes difficult, but the score, lyrics, & cast are WOW.”
This is the straightest-from-Broadway straight from Broadway show we’ve had in a long time, right?
Check out the deets, below.
It’s the role of a lifetime for star Alice Ripley, of course.
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Bonus: The San Francisco affiliate of the non-profit National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) is co-sponsoring NAMI Awareness Night on February 11th. See about that after the jump.
“The musical opened on Broadway in April 2009. It was nominated for eleven 2009 Tony Awards and won three, Best Original Score, Best Orchestration and Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical for Alice Ripley. It also won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, becoming just the eighth musical in history to receive the honor. The previous musical to win the Pulitzer was Rent, in 1996, which was also directed by Michael Greif. In awarding the prize to Kitt and Yorkey, the Pulitzer Board called the show “a powerful rock musical that grapples with mental illness in a suburban family and expands the scope of subject matter for musicals.”
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Next to Normal – NAMI Night Combats Stigma about Mental Illness:
February 11th event supports NAMI aid to individuals and families
affected by mental illness
Launching a public awareness campaign to break the silence and combat the stigma
about mental illness, the San Francisco affiliate of the non-profit National Alliance on
Mental Illness (NAMI) is co-sponsoring NAMI Awareness Night, with the national
touring company of the award-winning musical Next to Normal. The performance,
scheduled for February 11, 2011, 8:00 p.m. at San Francisco’s Curran Theatre, will
feature an after-show session with some of the Next to Normal cast, as well as
information about NAMI’s free educational and support programs for both family
members and consumers dealing with mental health issues.
Awarded the 2010 Pulitzer Prize, and three Tony awards, the Broadway musical Next to
Normal is both a gripping drama and an inspiring musical about the effects of mental
illness on the family. Audiences witness an authentic portrayal of a family coping with
the mother’s bipolar disorder, the complex problems they face, and the prospect of
healing and reconciliation. “The Next to Normal NAMI Awareness Night is a rare
opportunity to communicate NAMI’s mission of improving the lives of individuals and
families affected by mental illness, “ says Gifford Boyce-Smith, M.D., President of the
Board of the San Francisco Affiliate of NAMI. “The challenge for us is still overcoming
the stigma and ignorance surrounding mental illness disorders and encouraging the
public at large to take advantage of our services. NAMI Awareness Night will both
increase public awareness of crucial issues and help us to grow our programs to address
the backlog of those waiting to enroll. “
Tickets for the February 11th Next to Normal NAMI Awareness Night are priced at
$90.00, reserved for the mezzanine section of the theatre, and are available by Internet
sale only at: https://tickets.shnsf.com under the special “NAMI” promotion code.
For more information, contact the Next to Normal NAMI Awareness Night
information line: 415/474-4079, or namisf@fsasf.org
