Natalie Joy Johnson on the Whiplash Going From LEMPICKA to NEXT TO NORMAL

Unlike most theater folk, Natalie Joy Johnson was not a diehard fan of Next to Normal, Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey’s Tony and Pultzer-winning musical about a woman struggling with bipolar disorder. Actually, “I didn’t know the show at all,” she says with a laugh. For that reason, the fan-favorite performer feels equal parts thrilled and terrified to take on the role of Diana in Barrington Stage Company’s upcoming production (running Aug. 13–Sept. 8). 

Here, the scene-stealer tells all about taking on the famously taxing role, as well as her portrayal of Suzy Solidor in last season’s short-lived but highly beloved musical Lempicka, and the whirlwind succession of both shows. 

How was it that this production of Next to Normal came your way? ‍

Well, in case you don't know, Lempicka the musical closed. We got our closing notice and then a week later, I got the audition for this. It was very much like, OK, yeah, let's go get a job. And then my callback was literally the day after we closed. 

What has your relationship been to Next to Normal prior to this point? Has Diana been a dream role? ‍

Not at all. I don't know the show. I'm a terrible musical theater person in that way. There's a handful of shows that I know really well that I'm a fan of but that I haven't been in but I usually just kind of love everything that I am in. And when this show came out, I was either on the road or too broke to see it. But of course I heard about it and I freaking love Alice Ripley. My managers said, “Hey, we think you would be right for this. You should go in for the audition.” And I was like, I actually think I might be right for this, too. She’s in her forties, a little crazy. I feel like I can relate to this one. I got some stuff to pull. 

How are you preparing for the role, especially given that you were unfamiliar with the show until now? ‍

It is a crash course. Obviously I learned the music for the audition, and that's kind of really all I knew. I've joked that I feel like I am a Trump juror in that I'm one of 12 people in all of Manhattan that don’t know [the show]. But I decided I'm going to actually lean into that and let that work for me: the fact that I don't know it means I can come at it with really my own fresh perspective. 

How different is it to play a role like this, carrying much of a show on your back, compared to what you’re better known for, which are these scene-stealing supporting roles? ‍

Well, we're about to find out! It's honestly been 24 years since I played the leading role in anything. I haven't played number one on the call sheet since college. I've been able to make a little bit of a career playing second banana, third banana, fifth banana. And I love those bananas. They're super delicious and fun. But this is just a whole different ball game. I’m a little nervous, but also very excited by it. I wouldn’t have said yes if I didn’t think I could do it. It’s exciting to have a little more responsibility—but it's also terrifying. 

What has it been like going immediately from Lempicka, in which you played a firecracker supporting role, right onto Next to Normal? 

It’s night and day. I love Lempicka so much. I've been obsessed with it since the first time I heard the music back when I did a reading at Yale in 2013, where I played four roles. After that reading, back in the day, I said to my manager, “If it ever comes back around, you must send me in for this. Susie is me.” So when they did the production at Williamstown [Theatre Festival in 2018], I had an opportunity to audition for it and I was able to get back into the fold. ‍

Are you still in touch with your Lempicka family? ‍

Of course! We all have a group text chain, and I'm going to go see Eden [Espinosa, who played Tamara de Lempicka] do her cabaret in Williamstown this weekend. It is such a bummer that the run was short, and had it been a different season, who knows how it all would've played out. But I am just so thrilled we got to do the show at all. So as sad as I am that we didn't get to do it for longer, I am so happy that we got to do it at all, that we got to bring it to the national stage and the worldwide stage, and that we now have the cast recording. I'm grateful at the end of the day that we were at least able to do it and to have a little bit of a legacy through our cast album. 

Circling back to Next to Normal, what are you most excited for audiences to experience with this production? ‍

I got to see a different show in the theater that we are going to be playing in this weekend and I'll tell you, I was up in the mezzanine and there’s not a bad seat in the house. And imagining our set up there, it is going to be so cool to see this show in such an intimate space. I am so psyched for everyone to see all of these performances because the rest of the cast is incredible. It is going to be a marathon but I am super pumped and we’re going to have a hell of a time.