'Next To Normal' in the Wright State Dlab

Hiya! My name is Sam Evans (she/her) and I’m a senior Musical Theatre Major at Wright State University. A couple of friends and I have been conceptualizing and planning a production of Next To Normal! And this year, thanks to the help of our teachers, peers, and many others, it’s finally happening!

The Cast and Creative include:

Andres Martinez

Blaise Duncan-Bevans

Eion Collins

James Newton

Sam Evans

Shannon Lane

Taylor Greny

We feel passionate about this musical because Next To Normal doesn't merely entertain; it challenges, it confronts, and it invites audiences to empathize with the struggles faced by the characters. The musical's raw and unflinching depiction of mental health issues allows our cast to connect on a personal level, fostering a sense of shared understanding and compassion among them.

Something that makes Wright State so wonderfully unique is the Jubilee Directing Lab, a fully operational theatrical space reserved for student-produced work. All year long, the students here can exercise their creative minds and muscles with all of their training to put on cabarets, concerts, staged readings, dance pieces, comedy nights, fully produced plays and musicals, and much more. If you can dream it—and get the money together—you can do it!

Next To Normal will be presented through a special arrangement with the company Musical Theatre International. MTI is one of the world’s leading theatrical licensing companies, making it possible for theatres to purchase the rights to perform an incredibly extensive catalog of shows.

We are beyond grateful to have this opportunity to share our interpretation of this beautiful piece with you, but with that, we need your help! The costs to license the show aren’t small, and being just a few college students, we have to work extra hard to gather it together. We’re also paying an additional license to stream the show, so if you donate from afar there will be a way for you to watch what you’re paying for! The show itself isn’t just the license, either; another portion of these funds will be going to compensation for our music director, backstage help, costume pieces, and set dressing.

To put on a musical, anywhere and in any way, is no small feat especially one such a pronounced story about grief, love, and unforeseen circumstances. A small synopsis of the show from MTI:

Dad's an architect; Mom rushes to pack lunches and pour cereal; their daughter and son are bright, wise-cracking teens, appearing to be a typical American family. And yet their lives are anything but normal because the mother has been battling bipolar disorder for 16 years. Next to Normal takes audiences into the minds and hearts of each character, presenting their family's story with love, sympathy, and heart.

Every little bit counts and any donation at all means the world to us. And if you can’t donate, please share with as many people as you can! We hope you’ll support our little dream Thank you so much! ❤️