NEXT TO NORMAL at Castle Craig Players

The Goodmans seem like a perfect family. The only problem is that sometimes mother Diana is, well a little too happy. Her husband Dan worries all the time. Her daughter Natalie seems awfully intent on getting that scholarship to Yale so she can leave home. And her son Gabe, well thats another story entirely. A musical about the devastating toll of mental illness on a contemporary suburban family might seem odd, but NEXT TO NORMAL turned out to be one of Broadways biggest hits. This modern rock musical won three Tony Awards in 2009 and the Pulitzer Prize for its heartbreaking, humorous and unflinchingly authentic look at a suburban family struggling with the effects of one family members bipolar disorder. Each characters journey is punctuated by powerful music scored by Tom Kitt (AMERICAN IDIOT). NEXT TO NORMAL is, in the words of The New York Times, much more than a feel-good musical; it is a feel-everything musical.