Most theatregoers know the story of Dear Evan Hansen, as it was a tremendous success on Broadway for six years in a row and was also a film and a book. I saw the film in 2021 during Covid, which made the topic even more poignant, especially as teenagers and students around the world were still in lockdown-isolated from their peers, college students far away from their parents and siblings, and many having depression.
At the 71st Tony Awards, the show was nominated for nine awards, winning six, including Best Musical, Best Book, Best Score, Best Actor for Ben Platt, and Best Featured Actress for Rachel Bay Jones.
The musical follows Evan Hansen, a high school senior with deep insecurities, anxiety speaking with strangers, and depression whose social anxiety leads him into a fantasy world where he invents a story about a non-existent friendship with a drug addicted Connor Murphy whose suicide gets him deeper and deeper into an entanglement with the deceased student’s parents, their daughter Zoe, who Evan pines for, his mother Heidi, who is overly attached to her son without giving him space to grow out of his “condition” and into a full-fledged human being. Two acquaintances are brought into Evan’s ruse from school, both opportunistic for different reasons. Flynn for gaining attention on social media and friendships not yet made, and Jared for money, “anything for a side hustle”.
The extremely talented cast of the Zach performance includes:
- Evan Hansen: Evan Jennings
- Heidi Hansen: Leslie McDonel
- Connor Murphy: Dominic Pecikonis
- Zoe Murphy: Eugenia De la Garza
- Cynthia Murphy: Tracy Jai Sweeney
- Larry Murphy: Rudy Martinez
- Alana Beck: Flynn Jungbin Byun
- Jared Kleinman: JP Lopez
- Evan Hansen Understudy: Will Mallick
Vocally, the ensemble is exceptional. The harmonies are tight, the range impressive, and the emotional delivery consistently grounded. The cast’s musical talent was a rare confluence of vocal harmonies. After a while, I had hoped for more musical variety, but that was not the intention of the original director. Through repetitiveness in style and a limited number of songs, I got bored. Just because they sang a number three times didn’t make the message stick or increase my attraction. This approach diluted the message.
Directed by Producing Artistic Director Dave Steakley with musical direction by Allen Robertson, Dear Evan Hansen runs through May 17, 2026 at The Topfer at Zach Theatre. For tickets https://www.zachtheater.org/tickets/pdps/dear-evan-hansen/
photos by AxelB Photography
Lead photo: Connor (l) and Evan
second photo: Evan with the Murphy family