What's Up, Brian d'Arcy James? The Busy Star on His Next to Normal Return

Thank goodness Brian d’Arcy James has a happy family in real life: On stage, he’s jumped from playing Laura Linney’s disgruntled husband in the Tony-nominated play Time Stands Still to an even more troubled spouse in the Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Next to Normal. As N2N fans know, James originated the role of Dan in the show’s off-Broadway premiere before bowing out to star in Shrek the Musical. But the departure of J. Robert Spencer opened the door for James to return to the hit musical—and he jumped. (In September, he’ll jump back to Linney when Time Stands Still reopens at the Cort Theatre.) After his first show at the Booth Theatre, James chatted about coming full-circle with Next to Normal.

What was the atmosphere like at your first N2N performance?
It was a great night. A lot of people were there as fans of the show, but also supporters of me because of their familiarity with the fact that I had done it at Second Stage. The fact that so many people have responded personally to this show is really moving and thrilling. I was overwhelmed.

Did fans wait for you at the stage door?
A lot of people waited. There was a big to-do [backstage] afterward that I wasn’t expecting, with producer David Stone, so people had to wait quite a long time to say “good job.” I know how extraordinary Bobby Spencer was in the show—I saw him do it—and it’s not easy when you’re a fan to assume that everything is going to be fine when someone else comes in. But thankfully, from my history and familiarity with it, the transition was smooth and there was a lot of support.

I’m sure you missed having Alice Ripley [who has been ill] in the show.
Yes, but as much as I’m looking forward to that, Jessica [Phillips, the understudy] and I have been rehearsing for a while, so it was nice to ramp into the show with Jessica, who’s extraordinary in her own right. I have a funny story: Jessica’s son and my daughter are in the same classroom at school. So the morning after we’ve done this extraordinary thing onstage, we’re slumping down the street at 8:15, dropping off our children at school. That’s the reality of life.

In your Broadway.com Q&A during the run of Times Stands Still, you didn’t mention the possibility of returning to Next to Normal.
Oh, no. I never suspected that I’d be back in the show. It came up very quickly, and the timing was good for me and good for them.

When you got the call, did you feel right away that you wanted to do it?
Immediately. As you know, circumstances didn’t allow me to do it when the show went to Washington and then to Broadway, but my connection to this material is a very deep, emotional one. The invitation to come back is a big gift that David Stone and [director] Michael Greif have given me.

The part of Dan has gotten stronger since the Second Stage production.
Tom [Kitt] and Brian [Yorkey] have done such great work on this show. Brian’s work on the book has been so deft and so economically potent. Even the smaller new lines push me in new directions, although it really isn’t something we can talk about [without giving away secrets of the show’s plot]. The new song “I’ve Been” is interesting because within it, there’s anger, there’s accusation, there’s confusion—they play with a lot of really complex ideas.

It must be cool to be reunited with your stage daughter, Jennifer Damiano.
That was another really comforting thing on the first night. As nerved up as I got about things like blocking, it was very grounding and comforting to turn around and see Jenn Damiano’s eyes looking at me. She just kills me.

Meanwhile, Times Stands Still will be back on Broadway this fall.
We start rehearsals on September 7, I think. I had every intention of taking the summer off. But if you want to find work, plan a vacation [laughs].

I’m sure your family understands!
Yeah. Immediately after [the initial run of] Time Stands Still closed, we [James, wife Jennifer Prescott and daughter Grace] went to London and Paris. I’d never been to Paris, and it was really beautiful. We left right before the volcano ash cloud went up, so we were lucky to get out—or unlucky that we had to leave. There’s nothing wrong with being stuck in Paris.

You left one dysfunctional stage relationship and now you're back in the other one. I’m assuming there’s not that kind of drama in the James household.
No. It’s much more a peaceful around here, which is good!