All performances in the intimate and beautifully restored 150 seat SEVERANCE THEATRE at the Cal ARTS Academy, 1401 N. Wishon Avenue, unless noted otherwise. | Google map Next to Normal July 13-29, 2012 Dan Pessano Theater at Clovis North Week 1: Fri/Sat at 8pm, Sun at 7pm and Sat/Sun at 2pm Week 2 & 3: Thurs thru Sat at 8pm, Sun at 7pm and Sat/Sun at 2pm In 2010, the Pulitzer committee lauded Next to Normal as “a powerful rock musical that grapples with mental illness in a suburban family and expands the scope of subject matter for musicals.” Inventive, emotional, and thrilling, Next to Normal follows manic depressive housewife Diana Goodman as her illness spirals out of control, wounding both herself and her family. After Diana and her daughter Natalie, husband Dan and son Gabe deal with suicide, grief, drug abuse, and the damaging effects of electroshock therapy, it seems that life will never be normal. A Little Night Music September 7-23, 2012 Week 1: Fri/Sat at 8pm, Sun at 7pm and Sat/Sun at 2pm Week 2 & 3: Thurs thru Sat at 8pm, Sun at 7pm and Sat/Sun at 2pm Based on Ingmar Bergman’s comedy “Smiles of a Summer Night,” A Little Night Music is one of the most brilliant musicals ever created by Stephen Sondheim. Featuring the hit “Send in The Clowns,” it delves into the affairs of a middle-aged lawyer, recently married to a volatile woman half his age, and the actress with whom he once had a fling. A Year with Frog and Toad November 30 - December 16, 2012 Week 1: Fri/Sat at 8pm, Sun at 7pm and Sat/Sun at 2pm Week 2 & 3: Thurs thru Sat at 8pm, Sun at 7pm and Sat/Sun at 2pm Willie Reale’s musical follows two great friends, the cheerful and popular Frog and the rather grumpy Toad through four fun-filled seasons. Waking from hibernation in the spring, they proceed to learn life lessons, including a most important one about friendship and rejoicing in the attributes that make each of us different and special.