Still, none of their joint ventures was on Broadway, though individually each boasts a roster of Broadway, Off-Broadway, and regional credits. As they tell it, acting together on Broadway had been a long-standing dream. The two actors love lighthearted fare, they say, but were seeking meaty, serious roles, citing "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" as a project they'd love to do as a couple. So when the chance to take on Diana and Dan—roles originated by Alice Ripley and Brian d'Arcy James—in "Next to Normal" came their way, they leapt. In the Tom Kitt–Brian Yorkey musical, Mazzie plays a tormented, bipolar wife, and Danieley is the unhappy, care-giving husband trying to maintain normalcy in a household gone awry.
"Some of our closest friends thought our doing this was daring," says Mazzie. "They worried about us. But that's because of what the characters go through each night, eight performances a week." Danieley says doing the show with Mazzie is wonderful for many reasons, particularly being "able to grow together as artists, to learn from one another in performance."
Back Stage: As real-life husband and wife, what do you bring to Diana and Dan?
Marin Mazzie: We've been together for 14 years. We can be so open emotionally with each other and feel safe. Jason is such a safety net. He takes such good care of me in life, and that has seeped into the way he takes care of Diana. That's touched me very deeply.
Back Stage: Some actors might feel it's easier to be intimate with a stranger on stage.
Mazzie: You're right. But that's not an issue for us.
Jason Danieley: Of all the actresses I'd ever want to work with on stage, it would be Marin—not because she's my wife but because of who she is as an artist. That's what puts her at the top of my list. The fact that we're husband and wife adds to whatever project we might choose.
Back Stage: Did any of the acting challenges emerge from being a couple offstage?
Danieley: The hardest acting challenge is keeping a lid on my emotions. Maybe it's harder for me as Marin's husband in that whenever Marin is speaking as Diana, it's hard for me not to be concerned for her. I infuse myself into every role I play. Jason is concerned for Diana, and Jason is concerned for Marin. Also, pushing away issues—doing really unhealthy things onstage—and knowing as husband and partner in life that this is not the best way to go about it is also very challenging.
Back Stage: Has playing these roles affected your offstage relationship?
Danieley: In a positive way. It has held up a mirror for us to reflect on ourselves as partners. I look at Dan and see how he deals with a situation, and I wonder, Am I doing it? And if I am, maybe I should reconsider it. It also makes us reflect on the relationships of people around us.
Mazzie: Doing this play has made our relationship stronger. Because of the emotion I go through onstage, it's hard to let that go. Maybe that's made me a little more emotional at home. I'm emotional anyway.
Danieley: Because of the subject matter and the depths we go to each night—that makes us somewhat more vulnerable.
Back Stage: Do you rehearse with each other privately?
Mazzie: We learn the roles separately, but we may run lines together.
Danieley: Going home in the car after a performance, I might say we have to tighten something or other, and Marin knows exactly what I'm talking about.
Mazzie: We don't have to explain things to each other.
Danieley: We have a shorthand.
Back Stage: I imagine you can give each other mutual support—if you've had a bad audition, for example—but on the flip side, is there jealousy? When one of you is working and the other isn't, how do you deal with it?
Mazzie: It's never been an issue. From our point of view, this partnership—this marriage—is the most important thing. I think Jason is an amazing talent and wonderful human being. He's so creative; his voice is so strong. And I only want that to grow and be better. If something is happening for him, I'm so happy. I can't imagine feeling, "Oh, he has a show and I don't," and feeling jealous about it. One reason I was attracted to him was his artistry.
Back Stage: How important is it to truly admire the talent of your partner?
Mazzie: If you're both artists—actors—and you don't think your partner is so talented, you're going to be in trouble.
Danieley: If you love someone, you're going to find good in that person. That person might be very talented with numbers. If you're in love with someone because that person is talented, that's a problem. What happens if that person loses his voice? Does that mean I leave you?
Mazzie: I believe, for a young acting couple, respect for your partner's talent has to be taken into consideration.
Back Stage: When only one of you is working, what does the other do?
Mazzie: We run our house, our business, and our lives. We have a house upstate that we love. It's a huge project.
Danieley: I have a band. While Marin was doing "A Streetcar Named Desire" at Barrington Stage last year—the theater is 40 minutes from our house—I had concerts with my band. I also worked on our website and Facebook pages, media things. There's always something to do.
Mazzie: I'd come home from rehearsal. He'd cook dinner for me and help me run lines in the hot tub.
Back Stage: What advice would you give two young actors thinking of marrying each other?
Danieley: Make sure you really love each other. There are so many showmances that go on. You're on tour for a year, and you're attracted to someone, and you may think that's the person for you. But you're not looking at the bigger picture. Are you really compatible? Is this a person you can really relate to? Or is this a person you're relating to only now?
Mazzie: We were a showmance.
Danieley: No, we were not. We met doing a show, but we were in New York and had lives and careers. A showmance is "Let's have fun while we're on the road."
Mazzie: When we decided to get married, we took that commitment and the marriage vows seriously. We share priorities and values. Morally, ethically, and politically, we're very much on the same page.
Marin Mazzie
-Has appeared in such Broadway productions as "Kiss Me Kate," "Ragtime," "Passion," "Spamalot" (also in London), "Man of La Mancha," "Into the Woods," and "Big River"
-Has been nominated three times for a Tony ("Kiss Me Kate," "Ragtime," and "Passion"), among other award nominations
-Holds an honorary doctorate and has a musical theater scholarship named for her at her alma mater, Western Michigan University
Jason Danieley
-Broadway credits include "Curtains," "Candide," and "The Full Monty" (also in the West End); Encores! productions include "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" and "Strike Up the Band"
-Has received an Outer Critics nomination ("Curtains"), a Theater World Award, a Drama Desk nomination ("Candide"), and a Helen Hayes Award ("Highest Yellow")
-Has a self-titled album with his band, Jason Danieley and the Frontier Heroes