Poster by Ella Dubey
Announcing our premiere production, in partnership with the
South Asia Institute!
NEXT TO NORMAL, with book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey and music by Tom Kitt, explores how one suburban household copes with crisis and mental illness. Winner of three 2009 Tony Awards, including Best Musical Score and the 2010 Pulitzer Prize, Next to Normal was also chosen as "one of the year's ten best shows" by critics around the country, including The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, Rolling Stone and The New York Times.
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.
Director's Note
I was born to Mandhir Singh Suri and Jasneet Kaur Sabharwal in 1999 in New York City. After immigrating here from India, my parents started trying to have children. They lost their first-born when she was born. I was their second-born.
Growing up as a Sikh Punjabi woman, I often struggled to balance the opinions of the Western world and the values of my South Asian culture, especially in regards to mental health. I watched my mom experience extreme panic attacks, my brother get diagnosed with OCD, and my father struggle with suicidal depression. In first-generation/immigrant households, talking about mental health means that you are “crazy.” I was the first one in my family to seek therapy for my own needs, and soon enough my family and I began to deal with our trauma by utilizing methods from both Indian and American culture.
When I first saw “Next to Normal” at the San Diego Musical Theatre, I felt like I was watching my family on stage—even with its all-white cast. The musical touched on topics of Depression, Bi-Polar disorder, Schizophrenia, Anxiety while highlighting the strength within us to cope with these diseases with the support of family, friends, and medicine.
Now, as a Chicago-based actor, director, and producer with numerous theatre productions under my belt, I am thrilled to put on the world premiere Next to Normal with a completely South Asian cast to showcase the realities of my South Asian household, the tragedy of ignoring your trauma, and the light that comes from accepting both love and pain as a package deal.
The show goes up during Mental Health Awareness month. Our production will partner with mental health organizations in Chicago to host talkbacks after the show. My purpose for directing/producing art is to push audiences to consider perspectives outside of their comfort zone in order to build a more collaborative society. Through this experience, I am building a vibrant artistic community and giving voice to a much needed dialogue for my South Asian culture. I have always been stunned by the lack of professional opportunities within this industry to showcase South Asian culture and talent. There are currently no Broadway musicals featuring South Asian characters, and professional opportunity within this field for my community is scarce. I want to not only create space for South Asian artists to advance their careers but also illuminate South Asian culture in a historically white industry.
This show is my dream come true. It will serve as a love letter to theatre, Chicago, and ultimately, my family.
Sincerely,
Hershey Kaur Suri
