The critically acclaimed Broadway musical, “Dear Evan Hansen,” is simply a must-see. It premiered July 10, 2015 in Washington, D.C. and among the nine Tony awards it was nominated for, it took home six including Best Musical, Best Score and Best Actor in a Musical.
Though this musical appeals to all audiences, any person with anxiety must see it. You will laugh, you will cry, but you will also be enlightened and comforted. It will take you on a roller coaster of emotions.
Evan Hansen, the character entitled, may seem like just a shy teenager who has trouble making friends at school and is an outcast. However, he actually suffers from social anxiety disorder. Ben Platt, the actor who plays Evan Hansen, embodies the mental and physical persona of anyone with anxiety; helplessness, hunched posture, nail-biting, stuttering, etc.
Platt never skips a beat in terms of keeping character throughout the 11 songs he sings in the musical, three of which are heartbreaking solos. During these solos, he expresses his loneliness, shame and hopelessness.
These songs voice everything from how anxiety can eat a person alive, to the light of hope that is always there.
Teenagers with anxiety, parents of children with anxiety or anyone who has ever felt lonely can relate to this musical.
Millions of people suffer with anxiety and depression, and those who are suffering must remember they are not alone and they must “let that lonely feeling wash away,” as one of lyrics echoes in the song “You Will Be Found.”
Platt claims he suffers from mild anxiety himself, making him even more relatable and vulnerable to audiences. He is emotionally accessible; every person watching feels what he is expressing on stage.
The most important takeaway from “Dear Evan Hansen” is no one is invisible nor forgotten; there are always people who love you. That pain in your heart and that pain in your stomach goes away.
The play ends with one of my favorite quotes: “…Today is going to be a good day and here’s why. Because today, no matter what else, today at least, you’re you. No hiding. No lying. Just you. And that’s enough.”