Ridge Roundup: It's A Family Affair with the Murphys of DEAR EVAN HANSEN

The love is real at the Music Box Theatre. Jennifer Laura Thompson and Michael Park play the heads of Murphy family, and offstage they are just as close with their stage children and the rest of the gang at Dear Evan Hansen. The hilarious duo stopped by with Richard Ridge to chat about their tight-knit clan, the road to Broadway, and so much more! Here are some of the things we learned about what it takes to build an onstage family and how Dear Evan Hansen has impacted the heads of the Murphy home.

A letter that was never meant to be seen, a lie that was never meant to be told, a life he never dreamed he could have. Evan Hansen is about to get the one thing he's always wanted: A chance to finally fit in. Both deeply personal and profoundly contemporary, Dear Evan Hansen is the new American musical about life and the way we live it.

Dear Evan Hansen opened at the Music Box Theatre to rave reviews on December 4, 2016, where it's broken all box office records and has struck a chord with critics and audiences alike. The winner of six 2017 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Dear Evan Hansenfeatures a book by Tony Award-winner Steven Levenson, a score by Academy Award and Tony winning composers Benj Pasek & Justin Paul, and direction by 4-time Tony® Award nominee Michael Greif. The Original Broadway Cast Recording of Dear Evan Hansen, produced by Atlantic Records, was released in February 2017, making an extraordinary debut on the Billboard 200 and entering the chart at #8 - the highest charting debut position for an original cast album since 1961.

The show has had an impact on the cast, as well as its audiences.

Though Dear Evan Hansen has proven to be a powerful relationship building tool for parents and teens in its audiences, performing it nightly has also had a profound effect on the actors. Michael Park described in the interview how playing this role has illuminated his own shortcomings as a parent and has inspired some necessary changes in his home. "Everything has changed." he told Richard, "It's changed the way I communicate with my kids, it's changed the way I communicate with my wife and how we deal with certain situations and I'm so incredibly grateful. It woke me."

The lessons of Dear Evan Hansen have also made their way to the classroom.

In speaking about rhe show's ability to comfort young people who may feel alienated by their peers, Jennifer Laura Thompson described the ways that the lessons of the show have leapt offstage and into the classroom. In a letter received by the cast, a pre-kindergarten teacher described how she is using the tools from Evan Hansen in a daily exercise to empower her students. Using a placard with one of the show's catchphrases, "Today is going to be a good day and here's why...", the students are made to respond to the prompt with the phrase, "Because I'm me and that's enough."

The cast formed tight bonds during their run in Washington, D.C.

If you think the cast of Dear Evan Hansen seems like a tight-knit bunch, you'd be correct. Throughout their initial run at Arena Stage in Washington D.C., the cast got close. Living in a small quarter of D.C., the cast enjoyed fun historical outings, pool parties, and nightly barbecues on the roof throughout their run, helping to form the bonds we see on stage eight times a week.

The Murphy Family planned special family outings.

When they weren't forming family ties in rehearsal, the members of the onstage Murphy family planned special outings to fortify their bonds. In addition to safe activities like a visit to the Lincoln memorial, the Murphys also had at least one hiking trip that went awry. On a hot summer day, the actors ventured into a national park for a hike. Actor Mike Faist was the only member of the Murphy clan to bring food or water, so the cast mates spent an afternoon attempting to choke down peanut butter sandwiches in the wilderness.

Check out the video to see Richard's full chat with the parents of Dear Evan Hansen to learn more!