The Aussie premiere of Dear Evan Hansen confirms cast + announces national tour

When Sydney Theatre Company and the Michael Cassel Group announced that they were teaming up for the Australian premiere of Dear Evan Hansen (as part of STC's bumper 2024 Season) musical theatre fans right across the country collectively lost their minds. An instant hit on Broadway for its profoundly contemporary take on life and the way we live it, the Aussie production opening in October 2024 is the first original staging of the musical to be licensed since it was originated. 

It's already been a huge week for showbiz in Sydney, with an esteemed crowd turning up to the inaugural Time Out Sydney Arts & Culture Awards on Monday night (we're still recovering!), the first performances of the Sydney Lyric Theatre's exclusive return season of Hamilton hitting the stage, and an extravagant cast reveal for the Down Under debut of Titanique (the cult-hit musical parody of Titanic).

While the lion's share of the Dear Evan Hansen cast was announced in June, one crucial role was still yet to be confirmed – and that would be *the* Evan Hansen, the character originated by Broadway legend Ben Platt. Well, the wait is over. Rising star Beau Woodbridge has today been announced as the lead in the upcoming tour. An Aussie boy, Woodbridge began his career at a young age, playing key roles in mainstage musicals before moving to London to study Musical Theatre at the prestigious Royal Academy of Music, where he has recently performed the role of Melchior in Spring Awakening. As a kid, Woodbridge played Gustave in Love Never Dies, Michael Banks in Mary Poppins for the New Zealand tour, Jeremy in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and Louis in The King And I. 

Speaking about the exciting announcement, Beau said: “Evan has been a dream role of mine since I was lucky enough to see the original Broadway production when I was 14. I was just in awe of the show because you feel so connected to the characters in this story and I can’t wait to bring that experience to audiences in Australia with our company."

Woodbridge is joined by a cast of Aussie theatre icons and promising newcomers. Multiple award-winning performer Verity Hunt-Ballard, who first won Australia’s hearts as the world’s favourite nanny in the original Australian production of Mary Poppins, will play Evan’s mother Heidi Hansen. Music theatre icon Natalie O’Donnell, who starred as Donna in Mamma Mia! before joining the Australian company of Come From Away, will star as Cynthia Murphy; while legendary theatre star Martin Crewes plays her husband Larry Murphy.

Newcomer Georgia Laga’aia steps into the role of Zoe Murphy – and yes, that name looks familiar because she is one of the eight children of Jay Laga’aia: legend of the stage, film, and also Play School. Georgia's sister Catherine’s name has also been in the news recently, as she just casually landed the lead role in Disney’s live-action version of Moana. (Talk about a talented family!) Meanwhile, Carmel Rodrigues plays the role of Alana Beck, following her critically-acclaimed turn as Tracy Turnblad in Hairspray. Harry Targett also joins the cast as Connor Murphy, and Jacob Rozario is Jared Kleinman. Rounding out the cast are Lawrence Hawkins, Jessica Kok and Ariyan Sharma. 

Word to the wise, if you haven’t got around to watching the 2021 movie adaptation of Dear Evan Hansen, don’t do it. Platt reprised his iconic role for the screen, but the general consensus from critics is that the actor had aged out of convincingly playing a teenager by the time they got around to making the film. It goes down as one of the many screen-to-stage adaptations that doesn’t quite capture the magic of the original. 

So, how lucky are we that we get to experience Dear Evan Hansen live in this original new staging? With Dean Bryant at the helm – the same director behind STC and MTC’s incredible co-production of Fun Home, the Tony Award-winning musical based on Alison Bechdel’s queer graphic memoir – this raw tale of teen angst and tragedy is in safe hands. 

Dear Evan Hansen will celebrate its Australian premiere at the Roslyn Packer Theatre in Sydney from October 12, before playing seasons in Melbourne, Canberra and Adelaide.

Tickets for the Sydney season are on sale now. The Melbourne, Adelaide and Canberra seasons will go on sale later this year. A waitlist for the tour and tickets for the Sydney season are available at dearevanhansenmusical.com.au.

An earlier version of this article was published on June 24, 2024.