A NEW MUSICAL THAT
JUST MIGHT RIP YOUR HEART OUT
Preston Max Allen’s new musical Never Better at Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre is an emotionally raw folk-punk musical. It sometimes struggles with forward motion but makes up for that shortcoming with overflowing heart.
Ismael Garcia, Travis Shanahan, Emma Samuelson
First, I want to celebrate Theo Ubique for their dedication to developing new musicals. This is the third consecutive year in which Theo placed a new work in its opening production slot. New work cannot reach it’s finished form without getting in front of an audience. When you go to see new work, you can expect some rough edges, but you get to be a part of the artistic process because how you respond matters. Not to mention, you get to see development in action! You never know where this show may end up, and you can say you saw it first.
Emma Samuelson & Jess Alexander
Never Better previously received its first developmental reading as part of the 2016 New York Musical Festival, produced by NYMF and Megan Kingery, and directed by Portia Krieger. Songs from Never Better have also been featured in concerts at several New York venues including Lincoln Center, 54 Below, Joe’s Pub, the Laurie Beechman Theatre, and online at Broadway on Demand, but Theo Ubique gives Never Better its first production.
Jess Alexander
Never Better follows Davy (Emma Samuelson), a depressed college sophomore, as she learns the symptoms she thought were just a cold may be a life-changing illness. Unable to face that possibility and with little hope for her future anyway, Davy starts down a dangerous spiral. Her roommate, April (Melody Murray), and definitely-not-boyfriend Carter (Shawn Smith), fight for Davy when she won’t fight for herself.
Emma Samuelson and Melody Murray
Allen writes grief and depression with touching honesty and vulnerability, and Samuelson brings that honesty to life. Not holding anything back, Samuelson’s performance as Davy is electric. giving us a beautifully authentic character. Landree Fleming’s direction brings out these raw moments by giving them the space and stillness they need to reach into your chest and rip your heart out.Ismael Garcia, Travis Shanahan, Emma Samuelson
Liz Bollar
Allen’s music, with orchestrations by Evelyn Ryan, is instantly memorable, and tonally reminiscent of music from Next to Normal by Tom Kitt. The first two songs of the show, “Headspace” and “Fall Away”, start the musical off on the right foot, especially in Samuelson’s capable vocal cords. Samuelson has the kind of voice that carries raw emotion right out front. You can hear what they’re feeling as they sing.
Emma Samuelson
The cast is full of strong musicians with an ensemble doubling as the band tucked away in Eleanor Kahn’s vibrant set design. Each has a starring moment to step out from behind their graffiti covered shields to embody someone in Davy’s story — a beautiful way to make use of an ensemble.
Travis Shanahan, Shawn Smith and Jess Alexander
Where Never Better struggles is in the momentum. After an accelerating start, a montage of google searches taps on the breaks. From there, the urgency falls away to make space for some exposition-heavy scenes with April. Though Murray gives an earnest performance as April, many of April’s scenes are spent providing context for her character, but don’t forward the central plot. These scenes feel like leftovers from a previous draft in which April’s trauma played a larger role. Scenes with Carter are more related to Davy’s plot, but they fall into a different trap. Davy is trying very hard to avoid taking action, which naturally makes her a very passive character. It makes sense for what she’s going through but poses a challenge for the plot of a musical. Passive characters naturally slow things down. Carter tries to push against her passiveness to get her to do something, anything, but Davy stays static.
Ismael Garcia & Emma Samuelson
Allen tries to make up for his passive protagonist with a very active secondary character — Aynsley (Liz Bollar) is a very pushy nurse practitioner. Unfortunately, Allen pushes Aynsley outside the boundaries of realism, making her come off as a little bit unhinged in her efforts to make Davy do something. If this were real life, I imagine she’d lose her license.
Shawn Smith & Emma Samuelson
Even with its meandering middle section, Never Better is a very promising new musical. The very real portrayals of mental health and grief are worth celebrating and certainly worth seeing. I would recommend bringing Kleenexes and referring to the website for trigger warnings if you need them. I find it hard to imagine you could leave unmoved. I hope Allen continues to develop this work, and someday we all get to see the new and improved version.
Shawn Smith, Jess Alexander, Emma Samuelson & Ismael Garcia
photos by Time Stops Photography
Never Better
Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
Thurs-Sat at 7:30; Sun at 6 (dark Sept. 20)
Mon at 7:30 (industry night Sept. 23); Wed at 7:30 (understudy performance Sept. 25)
ends on October 13, 2024
for tickets ($45), visit Theo U
for more shows, visit Theatre in Chicago