NEXT TO NORMAL Opens at Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre 2/22

Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre will be collaborating with other local theatre companies to present a production of the new musical Vanities as well as the tour of the Tony Award winning next to normal.

Vanities will be presented by A Contemporary Theatre and the 5th Avenue February 4- April 3 2011 at ACT. The musical's score is by David Kirshenbaum with a book by Jack Heifner, and is based on his own play of the same name.  Vanities follows the lives of three high-school cheerleaders over a decade. It has had several previous productions, including one Off Broadway at Second Stage.

next to normal was initially developed at Seattle's Village Theatre as Feeling Electric. The national tour will be in Seattle Feb. 22-March 13, 2011, at the 5th Avenue Theatre.  next to normal is a rock musical with book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey and music by Tom Kitt. Its story concerns a mother who struggles with worsening bipolar disorder and the effect that her illness has on her family. 

The musical won 2009 Tony Awards for Best Original Score for Tom Kitt (music) and Brian Yorkey (lyrics), Best Orchestration for Michael Starobin and Tom Kitt, and Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical for Alice Ripley. The show was nominated for a total of 11 Tony Awards, including Best Musical.  It then played at the Arena Stage in Crystal City, VA from November 2008 to January 2009 and opened on Broadway in April 2009.

Subscriptions are available by calling (206) 625-1900 or by visiting http://www.5thavenue.org/.