A PRESCRIPTION FOR GREAT THEATER
Ray of Light Theatre has once again delivered a production that hits hard and sings even harder. With 25 years of tackling socially relevant musicals—whether a classic, a pop culture hit, or something in the current zeitgeist— the 2008 Pulitzer Prize-winning Next to Normal is a perfect fit for the company.
Roeen Nooran
Now playing at the Victoria Theatre in the Mission District, this rock musical about mental illness, grief, and family dysfunction feels more urgent than ever in a post-COVID, post-truth world. Everyone feels a little off-kilter these days as the future seems uncertain with everything we used to take for granted either changing or being taken away. Today, people openly talk about depression and anxiety, therapy and medications are shared with friends and on social media, whereas a generation ago these were taboo, secret topics. Not so easily discussed is the hidden pain of living with a neurodivergent condition, not to mention the effects on family members.
Maia Campbell
Under the weight of such heavy subject matter, lesser productions might crumble—but director Jenn Bevard rises to the occasion with power and extraordinary understanding.
Anne Warren Clark
The heart of this production is Anne Warren Clark’s mesmerizing portrayal of Diana Goodman, a seemingly typical suburban mother with bipolar disorder. Clark commands the stage, capturing the raw ambiguity of a woman whose treatment options are as disorienting as her illness. Her voice aches with raw vulnerability and steely resolve, drawing us into a journey with no clear path forward.
Maia Campbell, Roeen Nooran, Albert Hodge & Anne Warren Clark
At rise, Diana going about her domestic chores at home. As she’s singing about her perfect life (“Just Another Day”), her activity speeds up to a frenetic pace. She ends up on her kitchen floor still trying to make sandwiches and smiling through her tears, shattering any illusion of normalcy. Her husband Dan, daughter Natalie, and son Gabe look sadly horrified.
Anne Warren Clark & Cast
It’s soon revealed, in a mix of dialogue and song, that this isn’t the first time. A visit to her doctor reveal that this episode is one of a recurring series of events; Diana is taking a whole series of medications that, while appearing to control her mood swings, come with a variety of side effects. The meeting sets off a chilling duet, “Who’s Crazy/My Psychopharmacologist and I,” in which Diana and Dr. Fine sing past each other—the doctor’s praise for the latest meds clashing with Diana’s pleas for relief.
Anne Warren Clark & Courtney Merrell
As Diana weighs the prospect of electroconvulsive therapy, the stakes grow higher. Should she ditch her medications in pursuit of feeling again, or try a treatment with its own unknowns? For a woman who feels trapped in her own body, there are no easy answers. Every path comes with costs, and the ripple effect on the family is profound.
Albert Hodge
Albert Hodge’s Dan is quietly devastating: a husband desperate to hold his family together even as he crumbles under the weight of caretaking; it’s heartbreaking to witness him trying to smile through his pain singing “Who’s crazy, the one who’s half gone? Or maybe, the one who holds on?” Maia Campbell adroitly skitters between resentment and longing as Natalie, who tunes her parents out, shielding herself in withdrawn isolation with academics until her classmate Henry (Andrew Cope) breaks through her defenses with warmth and gentle persistence; he sees something in her that she can’t see in herself—like any adolescent who is ashamed of her parents, she resists any attempt for him to meet them.
Andrew Cope & Maia Campbell
Roeen Nooran’s Gabe offers a tender, sometimes haunting counterpoint—his loyalty entwined with secrets that ripple through the household. Courtney Merrell is dynamic in her dual roles, first as the clinical Dr. Fine whose upbeat testimonials clash with Diana’s anguish, and later as Diana’s ever-patient psychiatrist guiding her toward a fateful decision. Ms. Clark as Diana draws the audience in as we all anxiously await an outcome we know will be difficult and could forever change the family.
Anne Warren Clark & Courtney Merrell
Brian Yorkey’s incisive book and lyrics and Tom Kitt’s propulsive score pulse with honesty, and under music director Jad Bernardo and his sextet (seen behind Matt Owens’ extraordinarily fractured house set), the ensemble navigates the show’s many tonal shifts—from heart-rending ballads to blistering rock anthems—without missing a beat. Next to Normal is neither easy nor escapist theatre, but for those willing to lean into its intensity, it offers a cathartic, unforgettable journey.
photos by Ben Krantz Studio
Next to Normal
Ray of Light Theatre
Victoria Theatre, 2961 16th Street (between Mission and Capp)
two hours plus intermission
ends on June 21, 2025
for tickets ($20-$70), visit ROLT
