BWW Reviews: Insanity or Genius? Shots In the Dark Presents NEXT TO NORMAL

Oscar Levant once said, "There's a fine line between genius and insanity." And I have to admit, when I heard that Shots in the Dark was taking on the Columbus premiere of the acclaimed 2010 Pulitzer Prize winner for drama-"Next to Normal", I wasn't sure which side of that line they'd fall on.

The script, by Brian Yorkey, is brilliant and innovative, as it describes a dysfunctional family looking through the windows of "normal" as the mother, Diana (played by Tahrea Maynard) struggles to overcome bipolar disorder, while the rest of her family, daughter Natalie (played by Marla Schulz) and husband, Dan (played by Todd Holland) struggle to keep the chaos behind their home's walls contained. The music, by Tom Kitt, is superb- hard, driving, energetic rock musical at its best, and in this case, presented by a delightfully live, though sometimes too loud, band consisting of Matthew Ebright on piano, Elisabeth Jeremica on cello, Eric Juang on drums, Jon Tilisky on violin, Paul Baker on bass, and Benjamin Canton on guitar.

The show itself, started of Act I a bit slow, perhaps due to opening night jitters. Maynard's Diana began way too cheerfully and far too complacent for the on-the-edge-of-disaster bipolar crisis that she must be, and the energy of the first few numbers suffered with lack of momentum, while Maynard, Schulz, and Holland all demonstrated early on that they were appropriately cast vocally with numbers like, "Just Another Day". However, it wasn't until Josh Kimball hit the stage hard with, "I Am the One", through the next three songs, that the energy started to feel like a rock musical.

Kimball is fantastic as ghost-son, Gabe, and not only delivers an amazingly powerful vocal performance every time he steps on stage, but is the delightfully right mix of menacingly haunting and bittersweet sorrow that gave me chills. At about that same time, Marla Schulz seemed to kick it into high gear as well, with "Superboy and the Invisible Girl", and when she is on her game, Schulz's Natalie is terrifically entrancing. Her opening number in Act II, "Wish I Were Here' is so gut-wrenchingly raw, and she commits so well that you really can't take your eyes off of her. And speaking of emotionally raw, which this whole show has to be to be done well, what Todd Holland's character lacked in depth in the first Act, he blew out of the box in Act II. Holland's subtle support in Act I gave way to a huge range of intensity in Act II as his character tries to cope with failed treatments, the loss of his wife's memory, and subsequently her commitment to him, culminating in a gorgeous rendition of the emotion-laden, "I Am the One (Reprise)" that left not a dry eye in the audience.

Maynard's character is tough to play. Diana's disconnect from her life and reality is the hallmark of her disorder, yet Maynard's challenge remains to find a translation that connects to her audience. While in Act I, her character appeared rather flat- despite a lovely, "I Miss the Mountains"- in Act II, as her character is recovering from memory loss, Maynard starts channeling the anxiety, panic, and desperation that make her character so compelling, and when she does, she is truly electrifying (unavoidable pun excused). These four lead characters harmonize incredibly well together and they really put on a standing ovation caliber show throughout Act II.

Supporting parts of Natalie's boyfriend, Henry (played by Matt Kuntzman), and Dr. Fine, (played by Eric Neuwenschwander) were sung well enough, but were largely unremarkable roles, especially disappointing was the lack of chemistry between Henry and Natalie, which made the whole relationship way more awkward than it already was.

There are still glitchy moments with sound going in and out, sloppy lighting cues, and a band/vocals balance that is sometimes out of whack, but with a simple set, and a tremendously talented cast that not only handles said glitches without a pause, but clearly leaves their hearts and souls on the stage, Shots in the Dark is certainly "Better Than Before", and gets this one right. If you were questioning Director Christopher Johnson's sanity, take my word for it, "It's Gonna Be Good". Better yet, come down and "Make Up Your Mind" for yourself.

Shots In The Dark presents "Next to Normal" at the Columbus Performing Arts Center at 549 Franklin Ave., Columbus 43215, with performances on Thursday, 8/15 at 7:30pm, Fridays (7:30pm), Saturdays(7:30pm), and Sundays(2:30pm; 2pm and 7pm on 8/17) through August 17th. Please go to: http://www.shotsinthedarkitc.com/nexttonormal.htm for additional information and tickets.

PHOTO CREDIT: Shots In The Dark

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