On my own,pretending he's beside me

March 1-12  5 hours
My Mentor gave me homework the last time I saw him. He had asked me to watch/listen to 'Next to Normal.' Since, this musical is a Rock Musical, it didn't exactly feel like homework to me. It was my forte. It opens with a great opening song called 'Just Another Day' it gave me goosebumps. Then again, every time I hear a new musical, I get those tingles. I was introduced to the Goodman family. Diana was the character that most intrigued me. She was the mother  in the household. No type of anti feminism here but, the fact that her husband Dan was the one who was starting the day, made it sort of seem as if there is something up with Diana. Later on, we find out that she has been suffering with bipolar disorder with hallucinations. This struck a chord with me. Diana had kids. We mostly see her daughter Natalie. Later on, we find out that her son had died and Diana has been hallucinating about her. She then goes for a treatment that would rid her of the memories of him. Eventually, she remembers, and her husband finally admitted it too. That their son, Gabriel, was dead.
Natalie didn't really pull me as a character, her struggle was interesting. But I wasn't really a fan of the whole teenage love with Henry.
In the end, the songs were powerful. The characters were beautiful. The show became one of my dream shows to do. It strengthened my reasoning for pursuing theater arts.