“[The] audience shares in the intimate exhilaration of discovery.”– Peter Marks, The Washington Post
“Miss Peil commands our respect in an astonishing performance.” – Jayne Blanchard, The Washington Times
“An utterly absorbing new play ... challenging and emotionally satisfying.” – Michael Toscano, TheaterMania.com
Website >
Jane Fonda's Blog >
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NEXT TO NORMAL wins three Helen Hayes Awards
Alice Ripley, Outstanding Lead Actress, Non-Resident Production
Aaron Tveit, Outstanding Supporting Performer, Non-Resident Production
Next to Normal, Outstanding Non-Resident Production
[Note: confused about the non-resident status of Next to Normal? So were we. Check out David Dower's blog post > for more information.]
"Will Broadway have the smarts and taste to anoint "Next to Normal" the best new musical of the year? It's not premature to suggest that for originality, ingenuity and sock-it-to-'em emotionality--not to mention the future of sophisticated American musicals--"Next to Normal" would be the box to check off on voters' ballots." -- Peter Marks, The Washington Post
full review >
"No show on Broadway right now makes as direct a grab for the hear--or wrings it as thoroughly--as "Next to Normal" does...brave, breathtaking musical. Ms. Ripley is giving what promises to be the musical performance of the season." -- Ben Brantley, The New York Times
full review >
"one of the most adventurous and satisfying musicals of the season...an impressive achievement" -- Michael Kuchwara, The Associated Press
full review >
"A serious, substantial, dignified and musically sophisticated new American work, intensely staged by Michael Greif" -- Chris Jones, The Chicago Tribune
full review >
"Next to Normal is way beyond ordinary...more than a triumph--it's next to wondrous." -- Joe Dziemianowicz, The New York Daily News
full review >
"Next to Normal is incongruously, sometimes agonizingly beautiful...Broadway audiences have been hungering for original musicals, so it's no surprise that Next to Normal is beginning to garner Tony buzz." -- Melissa Rose Bernardo, Entertainment Weekly
full review >
"an amazing emotional journey bless by a luminous performance from Ripley...simply outstanding." -- Dan Bacalzo, TheaterMania
full review >
"Unveiled last year at off-Broadway's Second Stage, and polished in December to a smashing finish at Washington's Arena Stage, the show opened last night at the Booth Theatre as a prime example of the power of rock to tell heart-rending stories--and of the value of reworking a musical until you get it right. In concert with director Michael Greif, composer Tom Kitt and lyricist Brian Yorkey have pulled off an astonishing feat, turning a musical that early on suffered from debilitating identity problems into one that now sings in its own consistently ravishing voice. This transformation was evident at Arena, where Kitt and Yorkey did away with some jarringly snarky songs that undermined the sensitive narrative. The Arena incarnation, which Monday night received three Helen Hayes Awards, establishes an exciting new formula for shows in need of temporary, revivifying shelter." -- Peter Marks, The Washington Post
"In its Off Broadway premiere last February, Next to Normal was exhilarating, emotional and unstable...Kitt, Yorkey, and director Michael Greif (Rent) kept making adjustments. As Dr. Fine (Louis Hobson) tells Diana when he alters her drug regimen: "So we'll try again, and eventually we'll get it right." Last December, the team mounted a substantially revised Next to Normal at Washington, D.C.'s Arena Stage (the version that now appears as Broadway's Booth Theatre)." -- Melissa Rose Bernardo, Entertainment Weekly
"When "Next to Normal" opened off-Broadway last season, many of us were left perplexed by composer Tom Kitt and librettist Brian Yorkey's hard-driving score. Several memorable songs and scenes didn't add up to a memorable show. Rather than abandon his Broadway aspirations, "Wicked" producer David Stone made the extraordinary decision to send "Next to Normal" out of town to work out its kinks. A well-received run at Washington's Arena Stage and $4 million later, "Next to Normal" has its Broadway opening with major rewrites and new songs replacing old ones. The result is a better show..." -- Jeremy Gerard, Bloomberg.com
"When "Next to Normal" played at Off-Broadway's Second Stage last year, Brian Yorkey's book and lyrics lacked the character complexity necessary to tell his ambitious story satisfactorily. Yorkey, composter Tom Kitt, and director Michael Greif went back to work, and Washington, D.C.'s Arena Stage admirably gave the show a second chance. The well-recieved reworked version has now been brought to Broadway." -- Erik Haagensen, Back Stage
Read the Associate Press Story entitled "Musical Next to Normal takes unique path to reach Broadway" here >
Website >
Purchase Tickets >
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coming to Broadway October 2009 at the Roundabout Theatre!
“Carrie Fisher sure can dish it. And we’re only too happy to take it.” – Peter Marks, The Washington Post
“Entertaining as all hell. … It sets the Lincoln Theatre rocking with delighted laughter.” – Trey Graham,
Washington City Paper
“In all likelihood, word of mouth will keep the theatre packed every night that she is here. It’s tempting to recount here her outlandish experiences [but] do yourself a favor and hear it from her.” – Gary McMillan, DC Theatre Scene
“Carrie Fisher’s Wishful Drinking is a solid evening (or afternoon) of entertainment.” – Doug Krentzlin,The Examiner
“Her ad-libbed interaction with the audience is hysterical.” – Jon Rochetti, The DC Traveler
“It’s a treat to listen to Miss Fisher; her erudition and palpable love of words and language are expressed in husky, clipped cadences.” – Jayne Blanchard, The Washington Times
“Glib and hilarious.” – Chris Klimek, The dcist
“I hadn’t laughed so hard in a long while. It was a great performance.” – Yelp.com
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