0:00 The stigma surrounding mental illness has decreased a lot in recent years, better representations of people with mental illnesses have helped. And one place where good representation is happening is in theater, specifically musical theater. In the last decade, many musicals have shifted their focus from big numbers and bright colors to favor showing darker, more emotional stories. One of these musicals is Next to Normal, which debuted on Broadway in 2009. It's this particular show that gave my sister Francesca the representation she needed. The show's main character is a woman named Diana, who lives with manic depression and it tells the story of how her illness affects her and her family. For Francesca, who was diagnosed with depression four years ago, the show has stuck with her and helped her begin to work through her own experiences. 0:55 It was one of the first instances where I ever felt like it might be written by somebody who actually understood the situation. The first time I heard it, I kind of like heard it. And I was like, Wow, that was really cool. But a few times after I went back and listened to it, it started kind of hitting home, I guess. But there is a moment in particular in one of the songs where it was like, Oh, my gosh, like whoever wrote this they get it because I've never heard it said out loud in that sort of a way. 1:35 You don't know what it's like to live that way {singing}. 1:45 But I don't know what I've done. 1:49 Brandon Schwartz, the president of the Ryerson musical theatre company has worked in and around musicals since he was five years old. He was able to offer an actor's perspective of what goes on behind the scenes when characters with mental illnesses are brought to life on stage. 2:07 Yeah, I think it's a lot of research. Because just I think the way that that that concept kind of works with playing character, who's dealing with mental illness, it's impossible to really bring that level of truth to the character where you've, you're speaking from experience. So it's a lot of research a lot of second hand conversations, learning about it and doing the best because right, the actor's job is to bring as much truth to the character as possible. 2:38 It's a way to sort of discuss these emotions and these experiences in a way that allows you to be as dramatic as you need to be and sort of blow things out of proportion. But to express these feelings in a space where people are open and receptive to them, and they're willing to understand, and they want to hear your story. 3:05 When we write shows, or direct shows, or portray characters who are dealing with these issues, and we jump into them as people. Before we jump into them as people with mental illness, they get better represented. 3:22 I spoke to psycho therapist, Matt Cahill, about how good and bad representations of mental health issues affect people. He worked for 20 years in the television and film industries before studying psychotherapy and knows that bad depictions can create stigma and hurt those with mental illness. 3:41 It's not helpful if our portrayals of mental health are treated as some sort of affliction. I think anyone who has struggled with mental health issues, has probably picked up on the fact that there are people out there who will say, Well, you know, you're just weak, or you're, you know, you're just you need to be harder on yourself, or, you know. That somehow having a mental health issue, you're somehow fragile. 4:21 Thing about is, I think a lot of people say, Oh, I understand what you're going through, or like, you know what, it's gonna be fine. Like, just if it's something that's happening to you, hearing other people say, even though you know, it's coming from a good place, and you know, that they're actually trying to get it. Occasionally, you can't help but feel angry. Because it's happening to you. And you really, like how could they ever possibly get it. And if they can't get it, then they can't know how difficult it is. 5:08 When people who are living with mental illness see themselves in shows or in characters, they get a chance at being represented and to connect to a story that reflects their own life. For Francesca, hearing her own experiences described in a musical helps her to live with her mental illness. And she hopes that other people in similar situations to hers will give the theater a chance to represent them too. In Toronto I'm Isabella Perone.