Next to Normal asks us all what exactly is normal? Through the heart-wrenching story of Diana Goodman, a mother who has had bipolar disorder for the past sixteen years,  our existing standards of normality are challenged. What appears at first to be an ordinary family is completely dysfunctional and it is soon revealed that Diana has been hallucinating about her son who died when he was only a few months old. Natalie, her daughter who enters into a relationship while coping with her mother’s condition, is torn by her parents’ neglect. The father, Dan, tries everything he can to keep the family together.

Diana is completely oblivious to Dan’s wishes and does nothing to keep the family together. Her head is filled with thoughts of only her son. This obsession leads her to dismiss Natalie’s problems when she prioritizes her son first. The family calendar is always filled with reminders for her non-existent son. Because of a hallucination of her son, Diana even flushes her medications. After undergoing ECT treatment, Diana loses her memory. Everything seems to be normal until her memories (and her halluciations) return. Through the struggle to reach normality, the family finally realizes that it is perfectly acceptable to be next to normal.

Next to Normal began playing on Broadway at Booth Theater on March 27, 2009. It was originally played Off-Broadway in 2008 at Second Stage Theater. The musical, originally called Feeling Electric, made its transition to Broadway in early 2009, reaching a wider public.