Those who love the theatre will certainly have heard how much of an impact the Tony Award-Winning musical ‘Dear Evan Hansen’ has made globally. Now, South African fans will finally get the chance to watch this production as Showtime Management and How Now Brown Cow Productions confirm that the production will be coming to both Cape Town and Johannesburg next year.
The local production will premiere at Artscape, Cape Town from 12 February to 9 March 2025 and then at Montecasino’s Teatro, Johannesburg from 15 March to 13 April 2025.
This brand-new reimagined production of ‘Dear Evan Hansen’ is an empowering experience for anyone who’s ever considered themselves on the ‘outside, always looking in’. A deeply personal and profoundly contemporary take on life and the way we live it, ‘Dear Evan Hansen’ is a show that grabs your attention immediately, enchants you with its characters and songs, pulls you through emotional turbulence, and leaves you cheering and wanting to go back for more.”
The winner of six Tony Awards (including Best Musical), the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theatre Album, and an Olivier Award for Best Musical, Dear Evan Hansen features a book by Tony Award-winner Steven Levenson (Fosse/Verdon), and a score by Grammy, Tony and Academy Award winners Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (Dogfight, La La Land, The Greatest Showman).
All his life, Evan Hansen has felt invisible. But when a tragic event shocks him and his community, this socially anxious awkward high school student becomes the centre of a rapidly evolving controversy and resulting spiralling complex situation. Presented with the opportunity of a lifetime, to finally “belong”, Evan inadvertently grabs the chance to create an important role for himself by not telling the whole truth. He transforms from a “nobody” to the central figure in a heartbreaking drama that explores adult themes of mental health, loneliness, and the human need for connection. As the truth evolves, Evan faces his web of lies and how everyone around him has been affected.
“We are delighted to co-produce a non-replica version of this internationally acclaimed musical with How Now Brown Cow Productions,” says Hazel Feldman from Showtime Management. “From the set to the design elements including costumes, lighting and sound to the top-class creative team and soon-to-be announced multi-talented cast, Dear Evan Hansen combines the finest South African talents on and off stage to tell a compelling, sensitive and endearing story set to moving show-stopping songs.”
The musical’s creative team includes Greg Karvellas (Director); Charl-Johan Lingenfelder (Musical Supervisor); Niall Griffin (Set, Lighting & Costume Designer); Kurt Haupt (Musical Director); Louisa Talbot (Choreographer) and David Classen (Sound Designer). Additional members of the production team are: Shelly Lothian (Resident Director) Alistair Kilbee (Technical Director) and Frances Moerdyk (Wardrobe Supervisor).
“We are thrilled to be partnering with Hazel Feldman and her dynamic Showtime Management Team to bring this multi -award-wining, moving and powerful story to South Africa. We can’t wait to welcome you to experience this relevant and relatable piece of musical theatre!” says Julie-Anne McDowell and Daniel Galloway of How Now Brown Cow Productions.
‘Dear Evan Hansen’ is a powerful ‘drama musical’ that explores the human experience in life as we know it. The storyline delves into those universal themes of acceptance and the complexities of growing up, navigating the highs and lows; challenges and temptations; laughter and heartbreak of adolescence and adulthood.
Tickets for the local production of ‘Dear Evan Hansen’ are on sale at Ticketmaster now.
