Little Lark of London

After a run at the Donmar Warehouse in 2023, Next to Normal, directed by Michael Longhurst, has transferred to the West End, arriving over a decade after the show first opened on Broadway in the United States. The show, with music by Tom Kitt and book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey, is “an intimate exploration of family and illness, loss and grief.” Caissie Levy stars as Diana Goodman, a woman with bipolar disorder who is trying to keep herself and her family happy, though it quickly becomes clear that everything is not going as planned.

Levy is a force of nature as Diana, going from her moments of manic joy to outbursts of sadness within seconds, truly making the audience feel like she is bringing them on her character’s emotional journey. At some points I found myself having to look away from the stage, completely overwhelmed by her emotions, only proving the power that Levy wields on stage. 

She is joined by Jamie Parker, who plays Diana’s wife, Dan, who is trying to keep the family together through all of the struggles they have gone through. While Dan plays less of a role in the first act, Parker truly shines in the second act as the consequences of his actions begin to catch up to him, leading to a reprise of one of the earlier songs in the show that had the audience in tears along with Parker. 

Jack Wolfe is brilliant as Gabe, the mischievous son of the family who is constantly moving around the stage, typically hovering around his mother, desperately trying to shield Diana from the rest of the world. I particularly love the moments in which he appears on the second floor of the set, watching the action from above, peering down before choosing his moment to come in and interrupt the scene. Gabe’s sister, Natalie, played by Eleanor Worthington-Cox, appears as a kind of reflection of Diana, showing what she may have been like in her youth when she was falling in love with Dan and having dreams of her own. 

Henry, Natalie’s love interest, is played by Jack Ofrecio, who plays the character as sweet and calm in comparison to Worthington-Cox’s anxious and avoidant Natalie. His American accent is not the greatest, but he works as Henry to win both Natalie and the audience over with his charm and his old-fashioned ability to make a bong out of an apple. The doctors who try to help Diana with her bipolar disorder are all portrayed by Trevor Dion Nicholas, who has an absolute scene-stealer in the form of him turning into a rockstar, courtesy of Diana’s imagination but brought to life by Nicholas’s fantastic performance!

The set, designed by Chloe Lamford (who also designed the costumes for the show) brings audiences into the home of the Goodmans, a white and bright house with two floors. The band remain on the second floor, typically behind screens as videos are projected (designed by Tal Rosner) to emphasise some of the more “unreal” moments happening in the character’s minds. The characters themselves are almost always in constant movement (directed by Ann Yee), either going around the house and moving furniture as the turntable whirs or running up and down the stairs when no longer needed in a scene. It’s very well done and truly makes the house feel lived in, with the family inside as familiar with the layout as the back of their hands.

The highlight of the show is its music, with powerful songs including Levy’s heartbreaking “I Miss the Mountains,” Worthington-Cox’s beautiful “Everything Else” and Wolfe’s rock star moment of “I’m Alive.” The band, Nick Barstow (Piano), Matt French (Drums), Jo Nichols (Bass Guitar), Huw Davies (Guitar), Shelly Britton (Violin/Synth) and Dom Pecheur (Cello) are brilliant and help bring the story to life, performing on the second level of the Goodman’s “home,” often hidden behind screens and appearing as shadows as the characters move around them throughout the show. 

There are, however, a few moments that keep Next to Normal from being a five-star show. There is a moment early on in which Diana throws out the word “twat,” an odd choice that pulled me out of the opening number as the show is based in America and the actors are putting on American accents. The sound design makes it difficult to understand the lyrics when multiple people are singing at once, which takes away from the impact of more powerful songs like “My Psychopharmacologist and I” and “Better Than Before.” There is also the fact that Next to Normal is transferring from a much more intimate theatre in which you truly felt like you were entering the Goodman house, a feeling that is impossible to replicate on the classic West End stage.

Ultimately, Next to Normal is a powerful musical about mental health, grief and hope, if a little less impactful in a larger theatre than the original production at the Donmar. The actors, particularly Levy, give some spectacular performances that will leave audiences emotional in the best ways. 

Next to Normal runs from 18 June to 21 September at Wyndham’s Theatre. For more information and to book tickets, click here.

Photo Credit: Marc Brenner