PicksInSix Review: Dear Evan Hansen - Paramount Theatre
The Struggle to Feel Less Alone.
PicksInSix® Review | Guest Contributor | Kaitlyn Linsner
We are chronically online. Profit-maximizing algorithms fuel our social media compulsions. Phones serve as digital pacifiers to distract us from discomfort, inconvenience, and simple boredom. Poor teenagers face a growing mental health crisis thanks in large part to excessive screen time. How strange yet commonplace it is to feel isolated in a world where you can connect with others via email, text, a phone call, FaceTime, TikTok, you name it.
Amidst this shared experience backdrop, “Dear Evan Hansen” touches on relatable and noteworthy topics like distorted online realities, loneliness, grief, self-acceptance, and navigating mental health struggles. But, to me, despite its overwhelming appeal, the musical format does not serve the message well. This is not a critique specific to Paramount Theatre’s new staging of “Dear Evan Hansen” directed by Jessica Fisch which is the first produced by any Chicago-area theater since the musical’s national tour. Rather, this is a critique of a plot that fails to take a deep and constructive look at issues that need that level of care and attention. Especially considering the entire story centers on Evan Hansen (Cody Combs) exploiting the suicide of a high school classmate for social clout.
What could have been a heartfelt dark comedy or biting satire is instead a confusing, sometimes funny, but mostly serious, journey through arguably misplaced sympathies for a historically beloved, socially anxious protagonist who lies with good intentions. Perhaps that is the point of “Dear Evan Hansen.” For the audience to explore moral complexities and the gray spaces of loss, compassion, and forgiveness through song and dance. How much of this meaning, though, is a projection of the audience’s own desire to connect and be seen?
The music and lyrics by Benk Pasek and Justin Paul do offer some resonating emotional depth, and the Paramount Theatre company sings each anthem beautifully, namely in “You Will Be Found.” The production’s notable performances include Evan (Combs) in the powerful and revealing “Words Fail,” Zoe Murphy (Isabel Kaegi) in the honest and raw “Requiem” and Evan’s mother Heide (Megan McGinnis) in the tender and heartfelt “So Big/So Small.” Heide ultimately saves Evan from his unraveling and McGinnis’s display of strength and vulnerability in the difficult moments is inspiring.
The impressive and digitally-heavy set by scenic designer Andrew Boyce, lighting designer Greg Hofmann and projections designer Anthony Churchill elevates the narrative and does well to display the chaos of our tech-driven lives. Director Fisch’s staging also aptly places the characters in the foreground to bring us closer to real life and the tangible experiences not available on the internet.
All in, Paramount's “Dear Evan Hansen” is polished, entertaining, and highly recommended for those who love this musical and want to experience it again and for those interested in seeing a talented company deliver an emotionally charged and bittersweet performance. For everyone else, depending on who you bring along, be prepared for a frank discussion on the way home.
Editor’s Note: Paramount’s content advisory: This show contains mature and potentially triggering content centered on mental health issues and teenage suicide. If you or someone you know is facing mental health struggles, emotional distress, alcohol or drug use concerns, or just need someone to talk to, the caring counselors at 988 Lifeline are available for you. Call or text 988, or chat at 988lifeline.org. You are not alone.
GUEST CONTRIBUTOR | KAITLYN LINSNER serves as an Assistant Attorney General in the Public Utilities Bureau of the Office of the Illinois Attorney General.
PHOTO | Boris Martin
Paramount Theatre
presents
Chicago Regional Premiere
Dear Evan Hansen
23 East Galena Boulevard
Aurora, IL
through March 22, 2026
WEBSITE
TICKETS
For more reviews, visit: Theatre In Chicago
PicksInSix® is a registered trademark of Roxbury Road Creative, LLC