Anything but Normal

Next to Normal Court Theatre 23 Jun 23 🌟🌟🌟🌟1/2

When you read in the program before the show starts that it contains drug use, self harm and confronting therapeutic methods you know that there are a lot of laughs in store. The show centres on a family of four and the mothers mental decline, so it’s pretty heavy going in places but there are moments of humour along the way to break the mood. The music is upbeat and quite rocky. The band that Richard Marrett had put together were absolutely excellent but sadly I felt the sound balance was off meaning the voices of the cast were at times difficult to hear. The set was brilliant with multiple layers being expertly used and there was also excellent video use on the multiple screens on stage. This show has a small cast of six, so there is nowhere to hide. Three of the cast were outstanding and three were very good. The son and daughter played by Joel Granger and Laurel Gregory excelled in their roles both in their acting and vocals. Darryl Lovegrove as the father was also fabulous. The pivotal role of the mother was played by the alternate Cherie Moore and there seemed to be a small miss in chemistry between her and the rest of the cast. She was really good but something was missing for me. The audience was subdued throughout the performance with minimal applause, but that was a result of the subject matter rather than the performances. The Court put on excellent productions and this was no exception. A brilliant night out.