A letter that was never meant to be seen, a lie that was never meant to be told, a life he never dreamed he could have. Evan Hansen is about to get the one thing he’s always wanted: a chance to finally fit in. Dear Evan Hansen is the deeply personal and profoundly contemporary musical about life and the way we live it.
DEAR EVAN HANSEN
Reviews
The message of hope and the notion that we are all connected has clearly resonated with audiences, and that's something worth celebrating.
Along with fabulous music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, the story works and gels wonderfully. It reminds us how being a teenager was a special, chaotic, a once in a lifetime experience that most of us don't need to repeat.
My wife left the show lukewarm to the story — the whole notion of lying and the construction of the house of cards really bothered her. It nagged at me, but I found the overall messages of the show to be quite powerful: the importance of not forgetting people, the importance of seeing people, the importance of listening to people, the importance of telling the truth of what is going on in your lives to those around you. I saw the message this show imparted about the damage that can be done to not only you, but to your friends and family, if you construct that house of cards to protect you. I saw the power of the love of a family to heal.
...this show resonates with a lot of people, especially teens and young adults and that makes this reviewer happy; especially because it's an original musical and not a retread of some old '80s movie. We need more voices like this and in that this is a success. Despite its flaws, it's a worthy show and thankfully it's one with tunes you'll find yourself humming long after you leave the theatre.
Featuring an exceeding well-written book by Tony Award winner Steven Levenson, a rocking and emotional score by Academy Award and Tony-winning composers Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, and brilliant direction by four-time Tony Award nominee Michael Greif, “Dear Evan Hansen” will grab you by the heartstrings as each of the characters are brought into crystal clear focus by the talented cast whose voices soar and complement each other with exquisite harmony, thanks to Music Director Austin Cook whose 10-piece band enhances each of the 16 songs reflecting the struggle to exist in our modern online age where secrets and lies can become reality in a matter of seconds.
This show is a winner. If you have a big heart, you will love the title character played exquisitely by Ben Levi Ross. Michael Greif's direction is fast paced with smooth staging. There are several other marvelous performances including those of Jessica Phillips, Chritiane Noll and Aaron Lazar.
The first time I saw the show, I was so blown away by the performances, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul's tuneful score, and Michael Greif's brisk direction that I barely noticed the show's huge, glaring flaw: Evan Hansen is deeply unlikeable, and so is nearly everyone around him. It's shockingly easy not to notice this while watching the show. The show's book, by Steven Levenson, is filled out nicely by moments of deep pathos and necessary lightness, creating a complex world for the actors to play in, which they do adeptly under Greif's direction.
Dear Evan Hansen is a very high quality show all-around, from the performances to the music to the very modern set and projection design (David Korins and Peter Nigrini), which shows a never-ending stream of tweets and texts and Facebook statuses, creating an ironic backdrop of constant connection for a show that is all about the anguish of feeling terribly alone. And regardless of where you decide Evan's moral compass falls, the message of the show is an important, hopeful one.
‘DEAR EVAN HANSEN' A BEACON OF HOPE FOR A WORLD THAT NEEDS IT
I remember when the now, six Tony-winning musical Dear Evan Hansen, first appeared on my radar when it inconspicuously opened Off-Broadway at Second Stage Theatre in 2016. Within a short time, the musical started creating a profound buzz followed by a winning a profusion of theatre awards. Then just the next year the musical was on Broadway and the rest is history. As a native of the West Coast this musical was experienced in a second-hand fashion from watching clips on YouTube, listening to the soundtrack and even reading the playscript once it was released, but this did not do the musical justice.
...the miracle that is Dear Evan Hansen, the justifiably praised Tony-winning show which began at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles last Friday — the second stop of it's first of possibly five or six national tours to come. Even without a great score by Pasek & Paul, this justifiably crowd-pleasing juggernaut is poised to become the new Hamilton... I dare anyone not to get misty-eyed sometime during the show. It's one of the most haunting depictions of teenagers — and their unassailable confusion, chaos, and disconnection — that I have ever seen in the theater.
Every member of the ensemble shines in his or her own way, particularly Marrick Smith, who is not onstage often as Connor but steals the show every time he is. - GO!
If this musical is ultimately about mental illness, note that Evan took himself off his anxiety meds. If it's about suicide and its effects, note that the possibility of Evan's attempt is dusted over. If it's about forgiveness, we don't see the how and when, and the why is reported to us by somewhat unreliable sources. But if the musical is intended to bring young audiences to the theater, and to encourage discussion, it has and will continue to meet that goal.
The company at the Ahmanson is exceptional in vocally and emotionally demanding roles. ...The complicated events of Steven Levenson's book risk being drowned out by the even greater complexity of the light and sound show (lighting by Japhy Weideman, sound by Nevin Steinberg), and by the fragmentation of Peter Nigrini's restless projections dancing all over David Korins' movable scenic design.
Either way “Dear Evan Hansen” pulls at your heart and delivers on every front. It's even the kind of show you should take your teenagers to (as long as you're comfortable talking about suicide and anxiety and drugs - you know, modern life?). If you can get a ticket, don't miss this one.
The cast is splendid in their roles and the songs soar filling the entire theatre, yet the story line fails at the end with its weak consequence for such a selfish plot by a teenage boy.
With a wonderfully insightful and intelligent book by Steven Levenson and a breathtaking score for the ages by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (Oscar and Golden Globe-winning composers of La La Land), to simply say experiencing Dear Evan Hansen provides an amazing journey of the heart and soul is a terrible understatement. It offers the kind of message capable of changing a life if heard at a time such as this, a time when it's so desperately needed to help encourage and empower the young people of today and aid in the survival of this next generation soon to be challenged in ways we cannot even possibly imagine.
If you have seen the musical Dear Evan Hansen and are a fan, you might not want to read any further because I will be challenging most things that you hold dear about the show. I am sure to be one of the very few dissenting voices in my appraisal of this behemoth star-making musical...Steven Levenson's book is so full of holes it's like a giant piece of Swiss cheese. I understand that sometimes you have to suspend disbelief, but that is usually reserved for tales of science fiction/ fantasy or plots with serial killers having more lives than Garfield...Dear Evan Hansen might be the Facebook musical we all didn't know we wanted or needed.
The message of hope and the notion that we are all connected has clearly resonated with audiences, and that's something worth celebrating.
Along with fabulous music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, the story works and gels wonderfully. It reminds us how being a teenager was a special, chaotic, a once in a lifetime experience that most of us don't need to repeat.
My wife left the show lukewarm to the story — the whole notion of lying and the construction of the house of cards really bothered her. It nagged at me, but I found the overall messages of the show to be quite powerful: the importance of not forgetting people, the importance of seeing people, the importance of listening to people, the importance of telling the truth of what is going on in your lives to those around you. I saw the message this show imparted about the damage that can be done to not only you, but to your friends and family, if you construct that house of cards to protect you. I saw the power of the love of a family to heal.
...this show resonates with a lot of people, especially teens and young adults and that makes this reviewer happy; especially because it's an original musical and not a retread of some old '80s movie. We need more voices like this and in that this is a success. Despite its flaws, it's a worthy show and thankfully it's one with tunes you'll find yourself humming long after you leave the theatre.
Featuring an exceeding well-written book by Tony Award winner Steven Levenson, a rocking and emotional score by Academy Award and Tony-winning composers Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, and brilliant direction by four-time Tony Award nominee Michael Greif, “Dear Evan Hansen” will grab you by the heartstrings as each of the characters are brought into crystal clear focus by the talented cast whose voices soar and complement each other with exquisite harmony, thanks to Music Director Austin Cook whose 10-piece band enhances each of the 16 songs reflecting the struggle to exist in our modern online age where secrets and lies can become reality in a matter of seconds.
This show is a winner. If you have a big heart, you will love the title character played exquisitely by Ben Levi Ross. Michael Greif's direction is fast paced with smooth staging. There are several other marvelous performances including those of Jessica Phillips, Chritiane Noll and Aaron Lazar.
The first time I saw the show, I was so blown away by the performances, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul's tuneful score, and Michael Greif's brisk direction that I barely noticed the show's huge, glaring flaw: Evan Hansen is deeply unlikeable, and so is nearly everyone around him. It's shockingly easy not to notice this while watching the show. The show's book, by Steven Levenson, is filled out nicely by moments of deep pathos and necessary lightness, creating a complex world for the actors to play in, which they do adeptly under Greif's direction.
Dear Evan Hansen is a very high quality show all-around, from the performances to the music to the very modern set and projection design (David Korins and Peter Nigrini), which shows a never-ending stream of tweets and texts and Facebook statuses, creating an ironic backdrop of constant connection for a show that is all about the anguish of feeling terribly alone. And regardless of where you decide Evan's moral compass falls, the message of the show is an important, hopeful one.
‘DEAR EVAN HANSEN' A BEACON OF HOPE FOR A WORLD THAT NEEDS IT
I remember when the now, six Tony-winning musical Dear Evan Hansen, first appeared on my radar when it inconspicuously opened Off-Broadway at Second Stage Theatre in 2016. Within a short time, the musical started creating a profound buzz followed by a winning a profusion of theatre awards. Then just the next year the musical was on Broadway and the rest is history. As a native of the West Coast this musical was experienced in a second-hand fashion from watching clips on YouTube, listening to the soundtrack and even reading the playscript once it was released, but this did not do the musical justice.
...the miracle that is Dear Evan Hansen, the justifiably praised Tony-winning show which began at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles last Friday — the second stop of it's first of possibly five or six national tours to come. Even without a great score by Pasek & Paul, this justifiably crowd-pleasing juggernaut is poised to become the new Hamilton... I dare anyone not to get misty-eyed sometime during the show. It's one of the most haunting depictions of teenagers — and their unassailable confusion, chaos, and disconnection — that I have ever seen in the theater.
Every member of the ensemble shines in his or her own way, particularly Marrick Smith, who is not onstage often as Connor but steals the show every time he is. - GO!
If this musical is ultimately about mental illness, note that Evan took himself off his anxiety meds. If it's about suicide and its effects, note that the possibility of Evan's attempt is dusted over. If it's about forgiveness, we don't see the how and when, and the why is reported to us by somewhat unreliable sources. But if the musical is intended to bring young audiences to the theater, and to encourage discussion, it has and will continue to meet that goal.
The company at the Ahmanson is exceptional in vocally and emotionally demanding roles. ...The complicated events of Steven Levenson's book risk being drowned out by the even greater complexity of the light and sound show (lighting by Japhy Weideman, sound by Nevin Steinberg), and by the fragmentation of Peter Nigrini's restless projections dancing all over David Korins' movable scenic design.
Either way “Dear Evan Hansen” pulls at your heart and delivers on every front. It's even the kind of show you should take your teenagers to (as long as you're comfortable talking about suicide and anxiety and drugs - you know, modern life?). If you can get a ticket, don't miss this one.
The cast is splendid in their roles and the songs soar filling the entire theatre, yet the story line fails at the end with its weak consequence for such a selfish plot by a teenage boy.
With a wonderfully insightful and intelligent book by Steven Levenson and a breathtaking score for the ages by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (Oscar and Golden Globe-winning composers of La La Land), to simply say experiencing Dear Evan Hansen provides an amazing journey of the heart and soul is a terrible understatement. It offers the kind of message capable of changing a life if heard at a time such as this, a time when it's so desperately needed to help encourage and empower the young people of today and aid in the survival of this next generation soon to be challenged in ways we cannot even possibly imagine.
If you have seen the musical Dear Evan Hansen and are a fan, you might not want to read any further because I will be challenging most things that you hold dear about the show. I am sure to be one of the very few dissenting voices in my appraisal of this behemoth star-making musical...Steven Levenson's book is so full of holes it's like a giant piece of Swiss cheese. I understand that sometimes you have to suspend disbelief, but that is usually reserved for tales of science fiction/ fantasy or plots with serial killers having more lives than Garfield...Dear Evan Hansen might be the Facebook musical we all didn't know we wanted or needed.