Musical: Next to Normal

I haven't seen the musical...yet. I am hoping to see it soon when it comes to town but that's not for a while, so I guess I am just going to write on what I already know about it. Next to Normal is a story about a dysfunctional family. There is a mom, Diana, played by Alice Ripley; a dad, Dan, played by J. Robert Spencer; a daughter, Natalie, played by Jennifer Damiano; and a son, Gabe, played by the hottie himself, Aaron Tveit. The whole story gets a little confusing until you find out that the son, Gabe, is actually dead and the mother is just imagining him being there. That's where the whole dysfunctional family part comes into play here. The son died when he was only a year and a half. Ever since, Diana, the mother, has been watching him "grow up", because she won't let him go. Diana is the only one in her family that has these hallucinations and she goes to therapy to discuss her problems with letting go of her son. That's where her doctor comes into play. Diana talks to Gabe as if he were really there. Diana not wanting to let Gabe go isn't the only problem, Gabe doesn't want his mother to let go, that's why he stays with her all the time. He doesn't want to be forgotten.

Then there's Natalie. Natalie and Diana don't have a good relationship because Diana is so wrapped up in staying with Gabe. Natalie was born to replace the loss of their son, so therefore, she doesn't care for her parents too much. Rather, Natalie spends most of her time with her best friend and boyfriend, Henry, played by Adam Chandler-Berat. Natalie has a really rough life and personally I feel really bad for her because her mother doesn't notice her or pay her any attention. That's when Natalie starts getting into clubs and drugs.

I don't want to completely ruin the story and get it wrong so I am going to stop there until I actually see the musical and then I will come back and add to it. But one thing I know really well about this musical is the music itself. I have the complete original Broadway cast recording version of the soundtrack and I listen to it almost everyday. This is the list of songs:
Act One:

1. Prelude
2. Just Another Day
3. Everything Else
4. Who's Crazy/My Psychoparmacologist and I
5. Perfect for You
6. I Miss the Mountains
7. It's Gonna Be Good
8. He's Not Here
9. You Don't Know
10. I Am the One
11. Superboy and the Invisible Girl
12. I'm Alive
13. Make Up Your Mind/Catch Me I'm Falling
14. I Dreamed a Dance
15. There's a World
16. I've Been
17. Didn't I See This Movie?
18. A Light in the Dark

Act Two

1. Wish I Were Here
2. Song of Forgetting
3. Hey #1
4. Seconds and Years
5. Better Than Before
6. Aftershocks
7. Hey #2
8. You Don't Know (Reprise)
9. How Could I Ever Forget?
10. It's Gonna Be Good (Reprise)
11. Why Stay?/A Promise
12. I'm Alive (Reprise)
13. The Break
14. Make Up Your Mind/Catch Me I'm Falling (Reprise)
15. Maybe (Next to Normal)
16. Hey #3/Perfect For You (Reprise)
17. So Anyway
18. I Am the One
19. Light

So as you can see, there is a pretty good selection and I'm sure anyone can find something in this soundtrack that they like. Personally, my favorites are 1. I'm Alive and the reprise 2. Aftershocks 3. Wish I Were Here. Those are just my top three. I love them all but I think those are my top favorites. If you are bored, go to YouTube and type in Just Another Day Next to Normal and click on the second video. Just wait for it...wait for it, AARON TVEIT COMES OUT SINGING SHIRTLESS!!!!! But sorry for the weird person laughing in the background. But I think Aaron's shirtlessness and sexy six pack make up for it :) And when that video leaves you wanting more, watch the video of I'm Alive. There's no shirtlessness but it's still really sexy!

Watch the videos and let me know what you think of them!

Pelekania