At Actors’ Playhouse, Broadway’s Evan Hansen Returns This Time as Director

The cast of “Dear Evan Hansen” at Actors’ Playhouse at the Miracle Theatre in Coral Gables. The show runs through Sunday, March 8 and is directed by South Florida native Stephen Christopher Anthony who played Evan Hansen on Broadway and in the national touring company. (Photo by Alberto Romeu, courtesy of Actors’ Playhouse)

Before he ever stepped into the title role of “Dear Evan Hansen” on Broadway, Kendall and Palmetto Bay native Stephen Christopher Anthony sat in the audience at the Music Box Theatre and was spellbound.

“I was a fan of the show before I was even a part of it,” says Anthony. “Everybody in that audience was having such a profound experience. To sit in a room of 1,000 people and go through the journey that these eight characters take — it moved me hugely.”

Now, after playing the title role on Broadway and in the company’s first national tour, he has returned to Actors’ Playhouse in Coral Gables to direct the musical and on the stage where he began his theater journey. And last year, he was musical director for Actors’ Playhouse’s “Waitress.”

Kendall and Palmetto Bay native Stephen Christopher Anthony as Evan Hansen in the Broadway national tour of the show. (Photo by Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman, MurphyMade)

He remembers performing in Actors’ Playhouse’s production of “The Secret Garden” when he was 10 years old.

“I went to Howard Drive Elementary, Southwood Middle School and the New World School of the Arts. During all that time, I was performing at Actors’ Playhouse.”

It was trips to the Coral Gables theater that sparked something.

“My parents would take me, the schools would take us to see shows there, and I was in awe of the energy — the lights, the colors, the music,” says Anthony, revealing it was his parents who encouraged him to audition.

“I was terrified. I had terrible stage fright. But the moment I stepped onto the stage for the first time, I fell in love. I was obsessed with the immediacy of the connection.”

While being part of the production of “Waitress” was rewarding, returning to helm “Dear Evan Hansen” feels like a very special moment.

South Florida’s Jeni Hacker with Logan Clinger in “Dear Evan Hansen” at Actors’ Playhouse at the Miracle Theatre. (Photo by Alberto Romeu, courtesy of Actors’ Playhouse)

“To apply everything I’ve learned over the last couple decades about detailed, thrilling storytelling and watch it come together on this stage — audiences are in for something spectacular.”

Anthony is also proud of what he’s accomplished with the show. Rather than preserving what he learned from performing in the Broadway and touring productions, he has focused on creating space for the cast to claim the material as their own.

“What was so cool about being inside the show was seeing how fluid it could be from night to night. No two performances were the same because of how intimate and personal it is. There has to be room to breathe.”

Anthony has brought some of his own touches to the musical about Evan Hansen, a 17-year-old introvert who finds unexpected popularity after creating a lie about being best friends with a classmate who suddenly dies. “I wanted to honor the original production while exploring our own version. There are moments I’ve completely reimagined. When I watch them now, I think, ‘That’s what it felt like to be in that scene.’ I’ve tried to make the visual match the emotional experience,” says the director.

The choreography honors the original Broadway show — what Anthony calls a “thrilling win.”

“We signed an agreement to use the original Broadway choreography for the musical numbers.”

Orlando native Logan Clinger as Evan Hansen in “Dear Evan Hansen” at Actors’ Playhouse at the Miracle Theatre. (Photo by Alberto Romeu, courtesy of Actors’ Playhouse)

However, because Actors’ Playhouse has a completely different set design, some adjustments had to be made. “We’ve honored it, adapted it and created some new things out of it.”

Finding the right ensemble to bring his vision to life took time.

“We spent about six months casting. It was difficult because these characters are not prescriptive. It’s much more about their emotional life than finding a ‘type.'”

He found his Evan in Logan Clinger, originally from Orlando, who just finished a national tour playing Pugsley in “The Addams Family.”

Clinger recalls that Anthony came to a tour stop to meet him in person before casting him, something unusual since the director had to go out of his way to make the meeting happen.

“I sent in a tape after my agent told me about the role. Then we had a Zoom call.”

He was surprised when Anthony wanted to meet face-to-face. Anthony explains: “We contacted Logan’s agents and asked if he’d be willing to meet at the theater where he was on tour. I brought a pianist, and we spent about a half hour working on the material together.” Anthony knew he had found his Evan.

Clinger is making his Actors’ Playhouse debut in a role that he says “just fits.”

“I wasn’t really into musicals, but I remember when I first heard the album for ‘Dear Evan Hansen,’ I was about 12 and it had a profound impact on me,” says Clinger. He says the character highlights parts of his own personality. “I have my own anxieties, and I talk a lot with my hands. That will come through in the character.”

For Heidi Hansen, Evan’s mother, they chose Stacie Bono, who has her own Florida connections. She last appeared in “White Christmas” at Gulfshore Playhouse in Naples and recently had a stint on Broadway in the musical “Parade.”

Logan Clinger and Stacie Bono in “Dear Evan Hansen” at Actors’ Playhouse at the Miracle Theatre. (Photo by Alberto Romeu, courtesy of Actors’ Playhouse)

“I was raised in Sarasota,” she says. “We moved to Florida when I was two, and until I left for college at 18, I was a Sarasota girl.”

Her path to the stage started early, too.

“I came out of the womb singing, my mother would say — much to the dismay of my siblings, because I was off pitch a lot when I was younger. But I always had a love of singing.”

Even with its serious subject matter, Bono insists that “Dear Evan Hansen” is far from unrelentingly dark.

“It’s actually a very funny show. There’s a lot of humor and a lot of love in it,” she says.

Working with Anthony has been a way for Bono to flex her emotional acting muscles as Heidi Hansen, Evan’s single mother who is loving but imperfect in raising her socially anxious son.

“(Stephen) knows the show inside and out because of all his time with it and his in-depth acting work on it,” she says. “It’s such a joy to work with a director who wants to get into the nitty-gritty.”

For Anthony, all of these details are what will make Actors’ Playhouse’s production of “Dear Evan Hansen” a memorable night of theater.

“When we were rehearsing with eight actors in a room with fluorescent lights, it was already magical. Now, with this team of designers and a live orchestra of eight stellar musicians, audiences are in for a visual feast. They’ll have a great time and walk away having important conversations. I’m really proud of what we’ve done here.”

WHAT:  “Dear Evan Hansen”

WHERE:  Actors’ Playhouse at The Miracle Theatre, 280 Miracle Mile, Coral Gables

WHEN:  8 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday; 3 p.m. Sunday. Matinee also 2 p.m., Feb. 18. Through Sunday, March 8. 

COST:  $50, $60, and $70, weekdays; $65, $75, and $85, weekends.

INFORMATION: 305-444-9293 or actorsplayhouse.org.

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com.