Dear Evan Hansen | |
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Music | |
Lyrics |
|
Book | Steven Levenson |
Premiere | July 10, 2015: Arena Stage, Washington, D.C. |
Productions | 2015 Washington 2016 Off-Broadway 2016 Broadway 2018 First US tour 2019 West End 2023 Argentina 2023 Finland 2023 Israel (cancelled) 2024 Second US tour 2024 UK tour 2024 Australia 2024 Austria 2024 Germany 2024 Czech Republic 2024 South Korea 2024 Panamá 2024 Brazil 2024 Singapore 2024 Poland 2024 Netherlands tour |
Awards | Tony Award for Best Musical Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical Tony Award for Best Original Score Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album Drama Desk for Outstanding Lyrics Obie Award for Musical Theatre Drama League Award for Outstanding Production of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Production Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical Laurence Olivier Award for Best Original Score or New Orchestrations |
Dear Evan Hansen is a stage musical with music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, and a book by Steven Levenson.[1][2][3] The musical follows Evan Hansen, a high school senior with social anxiety, "who invents an important role for himself in a tragedy that he did not earn".[4]
The musical opened on Broadway at the Music Box Theatre in December 2016, after the show's world premiere at the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. in July 2015, and an Off-Broadway production at Second Stage Theatre from March to May 2016. The show closed on September 18, 2022.
The show received critical acclaim. At the 71st Tony Awards, it 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.
A film adaptation was directed by Stephen Chbosky and co-produced by Marc Platt, the father of Ben Platt, who reprised his performance in the title role. Released by Universal Pictures on September 24, 2021, it was a box-office disappointment and received negative reviews from critics. This, along with soft ticket sales caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, became the leading factors that would cause both the Broadway and West End productions to close.[5]
The show continues to be performed worldwide, with Music Theatre International holding the licensing rights, which have yet to be made more widely available to the general public as of February 2022.[6]