So Kaci and I have been obsessed with Next to Normal for 2 months now. But obsessed doesnt really cover it. Passionate is more like it. Kaci saw N2N on Broadway last year, and when she found out it was on tour, she wanted to see it, partly because the actress who originated the lead, Alice Ripley, is reprising that role in the tour. So the closest the tour was coming was St. Louis. So we went. I had no idea what to expect; I'd never heard any of the music, had no idea what it was about really. And initially, I was just blown away by the music. It was like nothing I'd heard before. I probably spent a good portion of the show just watching the musicians, who were in different places on the stage. But the story was fantastic, and I fell in love, and started listening to the soundtrack non-stop. Unfortunately, Alice Ripley's understudy was in for her when we saw the show in St. Louis. So we decided to go to Minnesota and see it again. So we bought tickets in advance for the Saturday night show, but ended up going to the Friday night show and both performances on Sunday also, because the Ordway is awesome and has $30 student rush tickets. And it was absolutely amazing. We got to meet some of the cast after two of the shows, get some autographs and pictures. And I fell even more in love with the show, with the characters.
Just over 2 weeks ago, Kaci and I both got tattoos on our feet that have the phrase "There will be light", which is from the closing song of the show. Mine also says "let it shine" which is also from the song. After listening to that song over and over, and seeing the show 5 times, I realized how amazing that song truly was, and how much it relates to my life. Not just to having a positive attitude and always searching for happiness, but it ties in with my favorite bible verse, Matthew 5:14-16: "You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others that they may see the good you do and give glory to our Father in heaven." This is the theme of my life. Let your light shine. And I've been wanting a tattoo having to do with that for a long time, but never could come up with anything that seemed right. Then I listened to this song. "There will be light. Let it shine." Perfect.
3 days after we got our tattoos, we decided to go see Next to Normal in Ohio. So we left a week ago Friday at 11 pm, drove 13 hours, saw the show 4 times, slept a total of 11 hours, then drove the 13 hours home. And it was darn close to life-changing. I cried through every performance we saw. Bawled the entire time. The show always brings me to tears, but never as much as this time. Maybe because we were in the front row for three of the shows, and I could see the raw emotions on the actors' faces, see Alice Ripley, Asa Somers and Emma Hunton crying real tears. Maybe because I have a tattoo that ties me more closely to the show. Maybe because I've spent more time with the music now and have a deeper connection. But it was absolutely beautiful. By the end of the weekend, some of the cast knew us. The merchandise girls remembered us from Minnesota. We met Pearl Sun, who's Alice's understudy, and chatted with her a bit. We chatted with Preston Sadleir and Asa Somers at the stage door about their brilliant performances as Henry and Dan, which made us cry every time. And they remembered us the next day; Asa waved to us from the stage after curtain call and shook our hands after the last show we saw, and Preston thanked us for coming and chatted with us again. They're real people who appreciate fans who love the show. And it was amazing to see that. And to be able to thank them for all that they do.
Next to Normal is a hard show. It's about a woman (Alice Ripley as Diana) who struggles with bipolar disorder, depression, and delusional episodes, and how this all effects her husband Dan (Asa Somers), her daughter Natalie (Emma Hunton), and her son Gabe (Curt Hansen). It also addresses Natalie's struggle for a normal life with her new boyfriend Henry (Preston Sadleir), and Jeremy Kushnier plays Diana's rockstar of a psychiatrist. The show is deeply emotional, covering so many levels of the family's dysfunction and so many real issues that everyone struggles with. And it's also very hard to deal with. It brings out emotions that some might rather keep hidden away, shows problems that maybe a lot of families pretend dont exist. But they do exist, and N2N is one story of how a family might deal with those problems, from drug use to suicide to just struggling to get through each day. And it hits home with me in so many ways. So its hard to watch. But its beautiful at the same time, and makes me realize that there is always light.
Which is why I love this song. It's the final song of the show, and I cry almost every time I listen to it. See the show if you can. It's absolutely amazing. There will be light.
Natalie:
We need some light.
First of all, we need some light.
You can't sit here in the dark.
And all alone, it's a sorry sight.
It's just you and me.
We'll live, you'll see.
Dan:
Night after night,
We'd sit and wait for the morning light.
But we've waited far too long,
For all that's wrong to be made right.
Diana:
Day after day,
Wishing all our cares away.
Trying to fight the things we feel,
But some hurts never heal.
Some ghost are never gone,
But we go on,
We still go on.
And you find some way to survive
And you find out you don't have to be happy at all,
To be happier alive.
Natalie:
Day after day,
Give me clouds, and rain and gray.
Give me pain, if that's what's real.
Dr. Madden and Natalie:
It's the price we pay to feel.
Dr. Madden and Diana:
The price of love is loss,
Dr. Madden:
But still we pay.
Dan and Dr. Madden:
We love anyway.
Gabe:
And when the night has finally gone.
And when we see the new day dawn.
We'll wonder how we wandered for so long, so blind.
The wasted world we thought we knew,
The light will make it look brand new.
So
All:
Let it
Let it
Let it
Let it
Let it
Shine, shine, shine.
Day after day (day after day),
We'll find the will to find our way.
Knowing that the darkest skies will someday see the sun.
Dan:
When our long night is done,
Dan and Natalie:
There will be light.
Diana:
(There will be light.
There will be light.)
All:
There will be light.
When we open up our light.
Sons and daughters, husbands, wives.
Can fight that fight.
There will be light.
There will be light.
There will be light.
There will be light.
