Musical "Dear Evan Hansen" - Review
Review of musical “Dear Evan Hansen” by photographer and culture writer, Amanda Rosenblatt
Times Union Center 1/27/22 - 1/30/22 - link for tickets
Review of musical “Dear Evan Hansen” by photographer and culture writer, Amanda Rosenblatt
Times Union Center 1/27/22 - 1/30/22 - link for tickets
Pictured - @CatalinaOnAir
The FSCJ Artist Series continuously brings notable productions to the Jacksonville stage. The most recent being Dear Evan Hansen, a moving and thought provoking view into the complexities of the human condition. The title character, an awkward and anxious teen, is encouraged by his mother to follow through with the writing prompt assigned by his therapist in hopes of changing his outlook. “Dear Evan Hansen” is the opening of each of his letters to himself, with a goal to add positive affirmation throughout his day. This is until one of his letters lands in the hands of a misunderstood teen that takes his life. Once his parents find Evan’s letter with the teen, the story ensues.
Through Evan’s story the audience is brought back to the emotional highs and lows of high school, now fueled by social media and our desire to be connected, sometimes overwhelmingly connected. Those highs and lows have audience members snickering at juvenile jokes and reaching for tissues moments later.
The writing is both witty and moving, able to touch all of the hot spots of human emotion, reaching everyone in the audience uniquely. The story is underlined by musical numbers that are original yet familiar, think acoustic-rock from the early 2000’s. Overall the performance is worth it’s nearly 3 hour run time, broken up with an intermission about halfway through. There are a few more days to snag tickets to see Dear Evan Hansen at the Times Union Center. Don’t miss this musical while it is in town!
