Reviews

Next to Normal by Tom Kitt, Brian Yorkey

cplayer's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad fast-paced

4.5

thebookandfilmcorner's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

lilly71490's review

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

thoroughlymodernreviewer's review against another edition

5.0

Next to Normal, the award winning script of the Broadway musical of the same name, is perhaps one of the most extraordinary scripts I’ve ever read. When it comes to reading the scripts of musicals, a lot of the time some of the emotion is lost by just seeing the words on the page. That is not the case with Next to Normal. Just reading the words, with no help from the soundtrack or anything else, still moves me to tears.

The story is a poignant one about a mother with bipolar disorder, struggling with the death of her son 16 years ago. You’ll get lost inside the relationships between her and her family as they all cope with the mental illness. It’s written beautifully, and with excellent research and respect for those who suffer from the disease. At no point does it come off feeling like a gimmick, but an accurate representation of life.

ewynn610's review against another edition

1

ifoldpagecorners's review against another edition

dark reflective sad

5.0

fandomjaxxox's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

readwithria's review against another edition

emotional sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

I love this musical. It's so emotionally raw, and the music is incredible and adds a lot of depth to the characters. The layering is beautiful, the characters are compelling, and I cried a bunch at the end. I will definitely be seeking this show out again.

alexg52's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Mental illness

Minor: Child death

phillyhufflepunk's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0