Verity Hunt-Ballard, Natalie O'Donnell, and More Join Australian Cast of DEAR EVAN HANSEN

Following an exhaustive national search, Sydney Theatre Company and Michael Cassel Group have revealed the spectacular array of Australian theatre icons and dazzling newcomers who will star in the Australian premiere of DEAR EVAN HANSEN premiering at STC's Roslyn Packer Theatre from October 12. 

And, following incredible audience demand since the Sydney season was announced, the producers can now reveal the production will also tour nationally. 

An instant hit on Broadway for its deeply personal and profoundly contemporary take on life and the way we live it, DEAR EVAN HANSEN will celebrate its Australian premiere in Sydney on 12 October 2024, before playing seasons in Melbourne from December 2024, Canberra from February 2025 and Adelaide from April 2025. 

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. They are joined by newcomer Georgia Laga'aia who steps into the role of Zoe Murphy, with Harry Targett as Connor Murphy. Carmel Rodrigues plays in the role of Alana Beck, and Jacob Rozario is Jared Kleinman. Rounding out the cast are Lawrence Hawkins, Jessica Kok and Ariyan Sharma.

The performer taking on the role of Evan Hansen will be announced in August. 

"I'm thrilled with the cast we've assembled to bring a brand-new production of Dear Evan Hansen to life.” Director Dean Bryant said. “A combination of the country's best singing actors will join the most electric new talent we've got, selected from the thousands of passionate young performers we saw during the casting process. An incredible mix of heartbreaking drama and pounding rock musical, I can't wait for the public to experience the show across Australia over the next year."

DEAR EVAN HANSEN was called a “breathtaking knockout of a musical” by The New York Times and won six Tony Awards, including Best Book by writer Steven Levenson. It features music from the Grammy, Tony, Olivier, and Academy Award-winning geniuses Benj Pasek and Justin Paul and a story that journeys to the heart of being a teenager with a tenderness and wit that will set your heart alight.

“It is a very unique honour to be granted the opportunity to take a beloved Broadway production and create something entirely new for an Australian audience and I know this cast will take Dean's extraordinary vision and blow audiences away all over Australia,” Producer Michael Cassel said. “I am delighted that we are now able to share it with even more audiences as we take this life affirming story to Melbourne, Adelaide and Canberra.”

DEAR EVAN HANSEN is the raw, moving and inspiring story of a socially anxious highschooler who is suddenly thrust into the spotlight when he inadvertently invents an important role for himself at the centre of a tragedy.

In a brand-new production reimagined by Helpmann Award-winning director, Dean Bryant, DEAR EVAN HANSEN is an empowering experience for anyone who's ever considered themselves on the “outside, always looking in”.

DEAR EVAN HANSEN marks the second time Sydney Theatre Company and Michael Cassel Group have partnered to present world-class theatre. In 2022, the two companies presented the phenomenally successful Melbourne transfer of THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY which went on to premiere in London's West End in 2024 starring Succession's Sarah Snook.

Anne Dunn, Executive Director and Co-CEO, Sydney Theatre Company said “Sydney Theatre Company is delighted to partner with Michael Cassel Group as co-producer to bring this acclaimed musical to Australian stages for the first time. Having resonated so strongly with audiences on Broadway and in the West End, it's a thrill for us to premiere this brand-new Australian production of DEAR EVAN HANSEN here at STC before it tours Australia”.

Tickets for the Sydney season are on sale now, and 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
 

Sydney

Roslyn Packer Theatre
22 Hickson Road, Walsh Bay
From 12 October 2024

Melbourne

Playhouse Theatre, Arts Centre Melbourne
100 St Kilda Rd, Southbank
From December 2024

Canberra

Canberra Theatre Centre
Civic Square, London Circuit, Canberra City
From February 2025

Adelaide

Her Majesty's Theatre
58 Grote Street, Adelaide
From April 2025

Website: dearevanhansenmusical.com.au

Michael Cassel Group

Michael Cassel Group is a leading live entertainment company formed to produce and present the world's high-quality hit musicals and theatrical productions, live entertainment experiences, marquee events and concert attractions. Michael Cassel Group produced the West End premiere of Sydney Theatre Company's acclaimed production of The Picture of Dorian Gray at the Theatre Royal Haymarket starring global superstar Sarah Snook. Current Australian productions include the return engagement of the award-winning musical Hamilton, & Juliet and the recently announced Australian premieres of Beetlejuice, MJ and Titanique as well as a brand new production of the Broadway hit Dear Evan Hansen. Michael Cassel Group is also a co-producer of MJ on Broadway. Internationally, Michael Cassel Group is the producer of Hamilton's first ever international tour which has played Manila, Abu Dhabi and Singapore and previously produced the international tour of Disney's The Lion King.

Previously Michael Cassel Group was the co-lead producer of Almost Famous and co-producer of Into The Woods on Broadway. Other Broadway and West End credits include Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical, The Prince of Egypt, Pretty Woman and The Cher Show as well as Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Mary Poppins, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Les Misérables, Kinky Boots, Singin' In The Rain and Priscilla Queen of the Desert in Australia. Concert tours and major events include The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, Celeste Barber, Not Now, Not Ever: Live on Stage with Julia Gillard, Tina Arena, Darren Criss and Lea Salonga, along with the opening celebration of the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2020 which was televised internationally.

In addition to the group's expanding theatrical interests, the company represents former Australian Prime Minister, The Hon. Julia Gillard AC, journalist and broadcaster Liz Hayes, former Olympian and global sporting administrator Lord Sebastian Coe CH, KBE, Strictly You by Sonia Kruger, best-selling author Sarah di Lorenzo, Better Homes and Gardens personalities Charlie Albone and Juliet Love and beloved Australian television presenter Sami Lukis. TixTrack Australasia, a partnership between TixTrack Inc and Michael Cassel Group, provides SaaS ticketing solutions for live entertainment and cultural organisations in Australia and New Zealand including the Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC), Queensland Museum, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Auckland Art Gallery, Bundanon Art Museum and Queensland Art Gallery and Gallery of Modern Art. Michael Cassel Group is headquartered in Sydney, with offices in New York, Singapore, London and Melbourne.
 

Sydney Theatre Company

Sydney Theatre Company (STC) has been a major force in Australian drama since its establishment in 1978.

The Company presents an annual season at its own venues, the Wharf Theatres – a 100-year-old shipping wharf-turned-theatre located on Sydney Harbour – and the Roslyn Packer Theatre at Walsh Bay, and as the resident theatre company of Sydney Opera House. The current Artistic Director,  Kip Williams, was appointed in November 2016.

Sydney Theatre Company is Australia's largest theatre company, presenting a curated program of around 700 performances a year of Australian plays, new interpretations of the classic repertoire, and the best new international writing.

STC has worked with many of Australia's internationally renowned artists including Benedict Andrews, Cate Blanchett, Wayne Blair, Rose Byrne, Toni Collette, Judy Davis, Elizabeth Debicki, Joel Edgerton, Barrie Kosky, Ewen Leslie, Deborah Mailman, Tony McNamara, Suzie Miller, Joanna Murray-Smith, Tim Minchin, Richard Roxburgh, Sarah Snook, Andrew Upton,  Mia Wasikowska, Jackie Weaver and Hugo Weaving.

The Company has toured work internationally including: The Secret River to Edinburgh International Festival and The National Theatre in London, Gross und Klein (Big and Small) and Waiting for Godot, at The Barbican; The Present starring Cate Blanchett in a landmark season on Broadway; Hedda Gabler and A Streetcar Named Desire at Brooklyn Academy of Music, Uncle Vanya at the Lincoln Center Festival and the Kennedy Center, and The Maids at New York City Center.

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