Today is going to be a great day, and here's why: "Dear Evan Hansen" is the most authentically awkward and affecting tale to hit Broadway this season.
Led by the spectacularly anxiety-ridden Ben Platt, "Dear Evan Hansen" details the social plight of a nervous and lonely high school senior who longs for a friend. Evan's mother, Heidi (Rachel Bay Jones), pushes him to attend therapy, where he is advised to write letters to himself. In hopes that this method will help him cope with his anxieties, the therapist tells Evan to begin each letter with, "Dear Evan Hansen, today is going to be a great day, and here's why..."
When one of these letters accidentally falls into the hands of antisocial and alienated high school stoner Connor (Mike Faist) in the computer lab, Evan begs for it back, but Connor refuses by stuffing it in his pocket. Noticing that nobody has signed the cast on Evan's arm, Connor mockingly scrawls his name across it and runs off, leaving a distraught Evan hoping that his secret crush on Connor's sister, Zoe (Laura Dreyfuss), which was detailed in the stolen letter, is not revealed to her.
Connor subsequently commits suicide a few days later, and the stolen letter is found in his pocket. When his parents find the letter addressed to Evan, they run to him for solace, in the hopes that Connor and Evan had a semblance of a friendship. Wrought with grief, they berate Evan about the meaning of the letter, which ended with, "Would anybody even notice if I disappeared tomorrow?"
Evan is then faced with an intense moral dilemma that sends him spiraling: Should he tell the truth to Connor's family; the letter was simply a therapy exercise and Connor was just as much of an outcast at school as they suspected? Or should he allow the family to believe that there was more beneath the surface, that a friendship was secretly forged between the two?
The show's official website tantalizes by vaguely describing the plot as "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."
Enough to send anybody into crisis mode, this brilliant show touches on dark themes of teenage suicide, social anxiety and loneliness. Boasting an extremely modern score by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul ("Dogfight," "La La Land"), the feel of the show is edgy and cool. With a pop sound as innovative as "RENT" and the beautifully haunting undertones of "Next to Normal," the show is sure to please a younger audience. The song "You Will Be Found," the Act I finale that leaves the audience stunned in their seats and dripping with tears, proves that Pasek and Paul are some of the most promising, upcoming musical theatre greats.
The small cast is a mix of Broadway veterans and newbies, led by the spectacular Ben Platt as the title character. In a brilliant interpretation that strays far from being a generic high school loner, Evan's social anxieties manifest themselves through fidgeting, stuttering, and downcast cloudy eyes. Platt strikes an ideal balance with Evan's ticks, enough to make him feel believable, yet not too much that it distracts from the heart of the show.
Joining Platt in ranks of breakout performances is Broadway-newcomer Will Roland, who portrays Evan's nerdy and sarcastic "family friend" Jared. As comic relief from the otherwise heavy show, Roland's snarky delivery allows the audience to laugh through sniffles and tears.
The performances of the entire eight person cast fit together seamlessly, with refreshingly honest relationships. Perhaps one of the most heartbreaking moments of the show is mother Heidi (Rachel Bay Jones) singing "So Big/So Small" to Evan, a song revealing her inner torment of being a single working mother who's also struggling to get a degree by attending nighttime classes. Their seemingly unconventional life is underscored by deeply honest and relatable feelings of inadequacy and familial strife. In this song in particular, the simple staging of Platt and Jones siting on a single couch onstage highlights Jones' raw, stirring vocals.
At times the performances get so intensely personal you feel the need to look away, but the actors draw you right back in. The cutting candidness makes it a hard show to watch, but the honesty is what makes it so brilliant. At pivotal points, the audience deeply feels Evan's discomfort and pain, a testament to the collaboration between both Platt and director Michael Greif ("RENT," "Next to Normal").
"Dear Evan Hansen" will leave you feeling wholly content. The complex story, though by nature seems like it would leave the audience feeling down, does anything but. It is a cathartic piece that sparks vital conversations about family, friendships, and alienation. Though a bit less showy than some other shows currently on Broadway, "Dear Evan Hansen" is a great introduction to modern musical theatre for all ages.
The show is everything an audience could want from a night at the theatre. It is difficult, true, realistic, and biting. A commentary on social media and being a teenager, "Dear Evan Hansen" is sure to leave you seeing parts of yourself onstage. This is the show for anybody who has ever wondered, "Will I ever be more than I've always been?"
