PPAC Receives Olivier Award for Best New Musical for Co-Producing DEAR EVAN HANSEN

J.L. "Lynn" Singleton, President and CEO of the Providence Performing Arts Center (PPAC) has announced that PPAC has received the 2020 Olivier Award for Best New Musical for Dear Evan Hansen. The 2020 Olivier Award winners were announced during an awards ceremony on October 25, 2020; PPAC received the physical Olivier Award this past week.

PPAC is part of the Independent Presenters Network, a consortium of 40 leading touring presenters in North America. The IPN is a co-producer of Dear Evan Hansen. As part of the IPN, PPAC also won a 2016 Tony Award for Best Musical for Dear Evan Hansen.

"As one of the co-producers of Dear Evan Hansen, PPAC is honored to be a recipient of the prestigious Olivier Award. Dear Evan Hansen's story and music have left a mark on audiences across the globe, and the Olivier Award reflects this," said Singleton. "The messages of Dear Evan Hansen resonate with audiences now more than ever and we are proud to be part of this incredible production and look forward to hosting the show on our stage later this spring."

The Laurence Olivier Awards celebrate London theatre and are Britain's most prestigious stage honors. Olivier Award winners are chosen by a professional panel, comprised of industry professionals, theatre luminaries, and members of the public. The panel is overseen by the Society of London Theatre (SOLT).

For the 2020 awards, any new production that opened between February 19, 2019 and February 22, 2020 in a theatre were eligible for consideration. The theatre panel makes a long list of productions and individuals for consideration and are submitted to SOLT members. Members' votes are collated with those of the panelists to create the list of nominees. In the Second Stage, the overall shortlist of nominees is voted on by both members and panelist to produce the winners.

Dear Evan Hansen makes its highly anticipated and long-awaited Providence premiere April 5 - 10, 2022. Tickets are on sale now at the PPAC Box Office, online at ppacri.org and by phone at 401.421.ARTS (2787). Box Office hours are Monday through Friday, 10A to 5P; Saturday, 10A to 2P; and two hours prior to curtain time(s) on performance days.


Dear Evan Hansen features a book by Tony Award-winner Steven Levenson (Fosse/Verdon), a score by Grammy®, Tony® and Academy Award® winners Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (La La Land, The Greatest Showman), and direction by
four-time Tony Award nominee Michael Greif (Rent, Next to Normal).

North American tour casting includes Stephen Christopher Anthony in the title role.
Jessica Sherman plays 'Heidi Hansen', Claire Rankin plays 'Cynthia Murphy', and John Hemphill plays 'Larry Murphy.' Nikhil Saboo and Stephanie La Rochelle round out the Murphy family (as Connor and Zoe, respectively), with Alessandro Costantini as 'Jared Kleinman' and Ciara Alyse Harris as 'Alana Beck' completing the on-stage company.

The cast also includes Sam Primack (as the Evan alternate) along with understudies
Alaina Anderson, Haile Ferrier, Matthew Edward Kemp, Coleen Sexton, Daniel Robert Sullivan, Kelsey Venter, and Julian Diaz-Granados.

Dear Evan Hansen opened at the Music Box Theatre to rave reviews on December 4, 2016, where it has broken all box office records and struck a chord with critics and audiences alike. It went on to win six 2017 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, the Drama League Award for Outstanding Musical Production, two Obie Awards, a Drama Desk Award, two Outer Critics Circle Awards and two Helen Hayes Awards. The show launched its First North American Tour at the Buell Theatre in Denver, Colorado in October 2018 and has since performed in more than 40 cities across North America playing for more than 1.5 million audience members. The West End Production of Dear Evan Hansen opened at the Noël Coward Theatre in November 2019 and recently won the 2020 Olivier Award for Best New Musical, along with two other Olivier Awards. The show's now-iconic blue polo and arm cast are part of the permanent collection of the National Museum of American History in Washington, DC.

The Grammy Award-winning 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 - and went on to win the 2018 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.

Dear Evan Hansen, produced by Stacey Mindich, features scenic design by
David Korins, projection design by Peter Nigrini, costume design by Emily Rebholz, lighting design by Japhy Weideman, sound design by Nevin Steinberg, and hair design by David Brian Brown. Music supervision, orchestrations and additional arrangements are by Alex Lacamoire. Ben Cohn is the Associate Music Supervisor. Vocal arrangements and additional arrangements are by Justin Paul. Danny Mefford is the choreographer. Casting by Tara Rubin Casting/Xavier Rubiano. Sash Bischoff, Adam Quinn and Danny Sharron are the Associate Directors. Judith Schoenfeld is the Production Supervisor. US General Management 101 Productions.

For more information, please visit DearEvanHansen.com.

Photo credit: Caitlyn DiPompo