Jessica Phillips News

AT THIS PERFORMANCE… returns featuring Standbys and Understudies from BE MORE CHILL; HADESTOWN; DEAR EVAN HANSEN; MEAN GIRLS; CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY and HOLIDAY INN on MONDAY, MAY 6TH at 7 PM.

There's terrific acting in the touring cast, even if the singing voices waver from Platt to flat. We get an incredibly convincing Evan in Ben Levi Ross (an understudy for the same role on Broadway). He interprets the character as nervous, nerdy, and unknowingly funny. It's an excellent performance...

Over 150 musicians stood together at Dante Park, directly across from Lincoln Center, to demonstrate solidarity with their colleagues on strike at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. A group of thirty brass musicians from the Metropolitan Opera, the New York Philharmonic, and the New York City Ballet performed, conducted by Joseph Alessi, Principal Trombone of the New York Philharmonic. The Local 802 AFM musicians spanned every genre from Broadway to classical to indie, and the musicians were joined by their fellow union members from Actors' Equity, American Guild of Musical Artists, IATSE Local One, IATSE Local 764, the New York City Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO, SAG-AFTRA NY, and the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.

Is an assumption not corrected, an invention born out of best intentions, a fabrication of truth that gives solace to a grieving family, still wrong? What if the lie unintentionally metamorphosizes into a voice for the silent, hope for the hopeless, a place where the invisible feel seen? On Tuesday night, April 9, the audience at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts was left pondering those questions during the emotional nuanced three-hour performance of the six-time Tony Award-winner in 2017 (including best musical), DEAR EVAN HANSEN.

AT THIS PERFORMANCE... returns featuring Standbys and Understudies from BE MORE CHILL; CHOIR BOY; ONCE ON THIS ISLAND; THE OTHER JOSH COHEN; SUPERHERO and SWEENEY TODD on MONDAY, APRIL 8TH at 7 PM.

Dear Evan Hansen, today's going to be a good day and here's why... That's how the juggernaut of a little show that could, opens. Nearly 427,000 hashtags later, DEAR EVAN HANSEN is not only a phenomenon but literally part of America's cultural heritage. Artifacts from the show, still running on Broadway, were accepted into The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History collection last fall, a decision which Curator Ryan Lintelman says was a no-brainer. 'It has this freshness to it that helps people to connect to these issues of social media and the internet, of depression and anxiety, and how you present yourself in a world that's increasingly digital,' he said. DEAR EVAN HANSEN tells the story of Evan, an awkward, self-conscious, and lonely teen. He is encouraged by a doctor to write affirmation letters to himself, one of which is intercepted by an outcast named Connor in the school computer lab. After Connor commits suicide, Connor's mother finds Evan's letter. Evan then finds himself entangled in a lie that was never meant to be told, living a life he had only imagined. DEAR EVAN HANSEN opened on Broadway in 2016 and won six 2017 Tony Awards, including Best Musical. And rightfully so. This is the right show for right now, a commentary on a media age that connects us virtually, but often, imprisons and cripples us socially.

Stephen DeAngelis continues his ongoing salute to Broadway and Off-Broadway Standbys, Understudies and Alternates with its next edition of AT THIS PERFORMANCE... to be held on Monday, March 4th at The Green Room 42.

Good morning, BroadwayWorld! Get a start to your Tuesday morning by reading the latest from around the Broadway World!

BroadwayWorld had a chance to catch up with Dear Evan Hansen's touring Heidi Hansen, Jessica Phillips while the show was at their Chicago tour stop! Check out highlights from our Q&A below!

February 23rd is going to be a great day, and here's why: Jessica Phillips, who plays Heidi Hansen on the national tour of the Tony-winning Dear Evan Hansen, is taking over BroadwayWorld's Instagram Story for a two-show day in Chicago! Words fail to describe how excited we are, so be sure to tune in to see all of these friends on a perfect day.

'Dear Evan Hansen' is currently playing at the Curran in San Francisco, following its tour stops in Denver, Los Angeles, and Arizona. Let's see what the critics are saying about the recent tour stops...

Both profoundly moving and profoundly disturbing, DEAR EVAN HANSEN is one of the most deeply troubling musicals I've seen. I left DEAR EVAN HANSEN with a swirl of mixed emotions. The musical is a meditation on social media and how it makes the social isolation and challenges of high school all the more difficult.

Stephen DeAngelis continues his ongoing salute to Broadway and Off-Broadway Standbys, Understudies and Alternates with its next edition of AT THIS PERFORMANCE… to be held on Monday, February 4th at The Green Room 42, Green Fig, Fourth Floor, Yotel NYC, 570 Tenth Avenue (at 42nd Street), New York, NY 10036 at 7 PM. On this very special evening, the series will reach the milestone of having celebrated the talents of over 1000 diffeent peformers in its history. Hosted by series Producing Artistic Director and Casting Director Stephen DeAngelis, the popular series allows performers to showcase their versatility and share anecdotes about their experiences.

After a shaky start (sorry to all you folks who got bumped from the Wednesday performance) the 2017 Tony Award winner, "Dear Evan Hansen" is here at the Paramount. Now, I managed to catch this phenomenal show on Broadway when it was still in previews, so I got to see the original cast. The cast I'm sure all you fans of the show are familiar with from the cast recording from having listened to it over and over again. Well not to worry, as much as I loved the originals, this cast is just as sublime and not a carbon copy but putting in their own spin on this incredible story and characters.

2018 has given South Florida a fun cornucopia of live theatre, from the Southeastern premiere of Freaky Friday at Slow Burn to the national tour of Hamilton at the Broward Center. Since 2019 is already well underway, here is a look at what South Florida theatre has to offer this year.

A powerful, emotionally-riveting, dynamically-staged original stage musical, DEAR EVAN HANSEN is a truly incredible, phenomenal show that I happily admit-in just a few years of its existence-has quickly become one of my favorite Broadway musicals of all time. Not only does it feature gorgeous, memorable songs from Oscar winners Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, it also has a simple but notably layered and impactful book by Steven Levenson that encourages deeper, meaningful discourse long after the end of the show. Even more remarkable is that the show presents a troubled but empathetic title character that demands so much from the extraordinary Ben Levi Ross-the actor tasked to bring him to life-that you are left in awe at his performance's sheer tenacity and brilliance. Thankfully, it has finally arrived at Orange County's Segerstrom Center for the Arts, where the Tony Award-winning musical's first national tour continues its much-too-brief two-week engagement through January 13, 2019 in Costa Mesa.

KeyBank Broadway at the Paramount is thrilled to announce the winner of six 2017 Tony Awards Dear Evan Hansen will play The Paramount Theatre for a limited two-week engagement from January 23 February 2.

As with each passing season, 2018 proved to be another exceptional year for theater not only in Souther California in general but also in Orange County---my home base. This year, the OC finally welcomed the debut of what has become this century's most awarded and most renowned stage musical ever about the Founding Father etched regally on the 10 dollar bill. Meanwhile, So. Cal. enjoyed a powerful surge of new stage works that explored Asian-American experiences, a positive step forward in the presentation of diverse voices we seldom hear from on the stage. A pair of touring musicals---both opening in the O.C. in early 2019---made such an impact in their Los Angeles engagements for me personally that I had to include them in my list, even though I have not 'officially' reviewed the productions for print. With that said, here is my 'Best of 2018' from Orange County and adjacent locales nearby---a mixture of outstanding shows and brilliant performances that made a lasting, memorable imprint in my theatergoing experience this year.

'Dear Evan Hansen' is currently playing at the Curran in San Francisco, following its tour stops in Denver, Los Angeles, and Arizona. Let's see what the critics are saying about the recent tour stops...

Speaker-designate Nancy Pelosi attended Dear Evan Hansen, at the Curran in San Francisco on Saturday, December 22. Following the performance, Leader Pelosi met with the cast.