Next to Normal: Aaron Tveit to return to the role of 'Gabe'

Original cast member Aaron Tveit will return to the role of 'Gabe' on 7 Sep 2009 in Tom Kitt's and Brian Yorkey's Tony Award-winning musical, Next to Normal.

Tveit took a leave of absence from the show to star in the World Premiere production of 'Catch Me If You Can,' which played at Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre this summer. Kyle Dean Massey, who stepped into the role of 'Gabe' during Tveit's absence, will play his final performance on 6 Sep 2009.

Tveit received the 2009 Clarence Derwent and Helen Hayes awards for his performance in Next to Normal. His other Broadway credits include 'Wicked' (Fiyero) and 'Hairspray' (Link) and national tour credits include 'Rent' and 'Hairspray'. � He can be seen in the upcoming film 'Howl' opposite James Franco and in the film 'Ghost Town,' as well as in the recurring role of 'Tripp Van Der Bilt' on the CW's 'Gossip Girl.'

Directed by Michael Greif (Rent, Grey Gardens), the musical currently stars Alice Ripley (Diana), J. Robert Spencer (Dan), Kyle Dean Massey (Gabe), Jennifer Damiano, Adam Chanler-Berat and Louis Hobson.

Winner of three Tony Awards including 'Best Score' 'Best Orchestrations' and 'Best Actress in a Musical' (Alice Ripley), Next to Normal, opened at the Booth Theatre on 15 Apr 2009, following previews from 27 Mar 2009, and is currently selling tickets through to 3 Jan 2010.

The musical opened to mixed, but mostly good reviews: "It has rhythm and angst and unexpected harmonies. What is doesn't have is a story that I can believe." (newyorktheatreguide.com); "a work of muscular grace and power" (New York Times); "more than a triumph - it's next to wondrous" (New York Daily News); "close to good may not be enough" (New York Post); "easier to admire than love." (Bloomberg); "powerful, riveting and not to be missed" (The Record); "touches your heart and gets under your skin" (NY1).

Next to Normal is a contemporary musical that explores how one suburban household copes with crisis, and shows how far two parents will go to keep themselves sane and their family's world intact.

Next to Normal features set design by Mark Wendland, costume design by Jeff Mahshie, lighting design by Kevin Adams, and sound design by Brian Ronan.

The musical is being produced on Broadway by David Stone, James L. Nederlander, Barbara Whitman, Patrick Catullo, and Second Stage Theatre.

Next to Normal opened at Off-Broadway's Second Stage Theatre on 13 Feb 2008 and was significantly reworked in a subsequent out-of-town run at Washington D.C.'s Arena Stage, where it opened on 10 Dec 2008.

The musical's unusual trajectory from a New York Off-Broadway premiere to an out-of-town regional theatre engagement and then back to Broadway is unprecedented.