Pulitzer, Tony Winning NEXT TO NORMAL Opening At WICA April 5

Next To Normal, the Pulitzer and Tony Award winning rock musical, written by Brian Yorkey with music by Tom Kitt, will be presented by Whidbey Island Center for the Arts for a three week run beginning on April 5.

Next To Normal was nominated for eleven Tony Awards in 2009, and won three, including Best Original Score. It also won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, being only the eighth musical to win that honor. The Pulitzer Board called the show "a powerful rock musical...that expands the scope of subject matter for musicals".

The story is about a mother who struggles with the onset of biplar disorder, and how it affects her family. It's an unusual subject for a musical, dealing with grief, suicide, and drug abuse.

The play is directed by WICA Artistic Director Deana Duncan, who said, "Next To Normal is anything but normal, because it's about an American family dealing with manic depression. But it takes us into the minds and hearts of each character, with love, sympathy and insight."

Duncan is an industry veteran who has produced or directed more than 90 plays. But she says this one is special. "The music is wonderful, and is almost continuous in the play. As a director, you're always looking for the emotional core of a scene, but here the music always gives the way to find it. What's unusual is that for such a serious subject, there's a charming variety to the musical treatment of each scene, so that it becomes a true roller coaster, with ups, downs, and sweeping unexpected turns throughout. It's one of the best scores in recent musical theater. There's a good reason it's won so many awards."

Duncan, with musical director Shiela Weidendorf, has assembled a strong cast for the production, all from the Puget Sound region. Melanie Lowey, Ken Stephens, Ada Faith-Feyman ,Josh Pulley, Alexander Matthews and Gabe Harshman topline with a live band lead by Weidendorf. Duncan's vision for WICA has always been to create top professional level theatre. Duncan adds, "The entire Seattle region is so rich in talent, and WICA is making the effort to showcase that talent at the very high bar set by our vibrant theatre community."

Next to Normal opens April 5 and runs until April 20. Tickets are available on the WICA website, wicaonline.org.