16y/o Jimmy Award Winner is Bway's Next Evan Hansen- Page 2

[sing_dance_love]

Posted: 11/13/18 at 10:49am

Edit: the above posters answered before me. 

Updated On: 11/13/18 at 10:49 AM

[MauraLovesMusicals]

Posted: 11/13/18 at 10:53am

that makes much more sense. wish my school wasn’t athletic based or that could be a cool thought.

[CedricOates]

Posted: 11/13/18 at 12:10pm

At 16, my voice was nothing like it is now. Or even from my junior to senior year of hs. What if he has a voice drop mid run

[Bwayfan292]

Posted: 11/13/18 at 12:14pm

CedricOates said: "At 16, my voice was nothing like it is now. Or even from my junior to senior year of hs. What if he has a voice drop mid run"

I was thinking the same thing, my voice dropped again during my senior year or HS. Is that why teenagers are not usually cast in broadway shows? 

[CedricOates]

Posted: 11/13/18 at 12:35pm

Bwayfan292 said: "CedricOates said: "At 16, my voice was nothing like it is now. Or even from my junior to senior year of hs. What if he has a voice drop mid run"

I was thinking the same thing, my voice dropped again during my senior year or HS. Is that why teenagers are not usually cast in broadway shows?"

It makes sense in my head. The teenage body is very hit or miss. My cousin had a full on beard and his voice hasn’t changed since he was fifteen. Some develop really early and stop. I graduated high school, and then hit puberty. If i were a producer, i would stray away from casting teenagers in roles that are very heavy, like Evan Hansen, because at any point they could give out. Either vocally, or put on weight. 

My little opinion is that there are college graduates right out of musical theatre majors that can easily pass for high schoolers and have been training for this sort of career and yet they put a bet on someone who can potentially not vocally perform the role 6 months from now. Not hating on who they cast, but it’s a bet. And because of the fandom and all ... a big bet.

[singer234]

Posted: 11/13/18 at 12:56pm

They weren’t as hard sings, but Alexandra Socha/Gerard Canonico were going on for Wendla and Moritz around 17 years old I believe. Jenn Damiano was 16 when Next To Normal opened which certainly was not an easy sing. It’s hard but not totally unheard of...at this level of difficulty though that’s tough. Though the producers will have him training nonstop w Liz Caplan I’m sure.

[Nycat63]

Posted: 11/13/18 at 4:01pm

InTheBathroom1 said: "It seems like that because it is. States/Regions have their own programs that give out awards for Best Actor/Actress in that specific region. Of course, the school has to pay fees and such to be a member and be reviewed by a team of panelists. The winners from the state go to the Jimmys and then the winners are selected there. And I think it's important to note that DEH was a sponsor of this year's program. My guess is that they were planning on casting a Jimmy person from the start.



Also important to note that at least in Wisconsin, participating schools must be less than 90 miles from the state's capital which eliminates a lot of schools."

Just FYI Wisconsin has two regional competitions  - the Jerrys (recently renamed from the Tommys bc of Tom Wopat allegations) and Center Stage.  The first includes Madison, Milwaukee etc and the second is northern WI.  

I watched the livestream of the Jimmys and was blown away by his “I Love Betsy” - he is made for Broadway (at least someday - I hope for his sake this doesn’t turn out to be too much right out of the gate).  To me he also reads younger than 16 so it’s an interesting choice.  Regardless, he has something very special and I wish him all the best!!!

 

 

 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 11/13/18 at 5:41pm

I think it is great that a teenager is actually playing...a teenager.  Although I thought his acting was fine, the actor cast as the foster son (I think he was supposed to be 15) in Torch Song appeared to be about a decade too old for the role, and I personally found very jarring.

I agree with everyone else that I hope he gets plenty of training on protecting his vocal cords because, if he is up to the talent demands of playing Evan Hansen, imaging the potential future he has.

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 11/13/18 at 5:55pm

Bwayfan292 said: "CedricOates said: "At 16, my voice was nothing like it is now. Or even from my junior to senior year of hs. What if he has a voice drop mid run"
I was thinking the same thing, my voice dropped again during my senior year or HS. Is that why teenagers are not usually cast in broadway shows?"


I wonder how long his contract is? My first instinct is that they've signed him for 4-6 months and the producers could offer him an extension if it's going well. It's an intense part, but I have faith that this team is working to make sure he's in top form –– vocally, physically, mentally, and educationally.

[dwirth]

Posted: 11/14/18 at 12:22am

Good for the show to cast an actual teenage boy to go along with actual teenage girl opposite him. due to the glories of YouTube I have previously watched the Jimmy awards from this year and have to say with all respect to how talented he is for a 16 year old, i was far more impressed by other candidates - just as I have been with other non-winners from other years (though Noblezada was great...).

on the other hand, his co-star Mallory Bechtel with spectacular as a 13 year old also on YouTube.. and 14/15/16/17 - just poised and fantastic. but based on who they often pick for the Jimmy award winner she wouldn't have won that or gotten close had she been involved - she's too good.


But I'm not a professional casting director..

Updated On: 11/14/18 at 12:22 AM

[Sarah329]

Posted: 1/17/19 at 7:43pm

Im not sure if this is the board to ask this, but is Andrew doing the full 6 shows a week? (I mean, I cant see why he wouldnt but I thought I saw an article that said he was only doing 5, I probably misread it though)

[LesWickedly]

Posted: 1/17/19 at 8:31pm

According to the official website, hell be doing 5 a week, having Tuesday night off as well. This is very smart of them and will hopefully ensure his health.

[chelseaburnside]

Posted: 1/30/19 at 3:09pm

Is anyone here going to be at the show tonight? Would love to hear reviews

[Wick3]

Posted: 1/30/19 at 3:16pm

I agree. Would love to hear what people think. I really wish him the best! I see a lot of the premium tickets are now regular priced on telecharge ($179) and who knows it may be on TKTS. 

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 1/30/19 at 4:28pm

I’m also looking forward to reports from tonight. I have one open slot (Saturday, 2/16, evening) remaining for my upcoming work trip and if reports are strong I’ll probably opt to see this over other remaining options.

[RWPrincess]

Posted: 1/30/19 at 5:55pm

I'm also curious about tonight. I've been following Andrew on Instagram and Twitter and he seems to have a great personality. If anyone is interested, he also has his own Youtube channel and did a fantastic cover of Michael in the Bathroom from Be More Chill.

On another note, since he is a minor, I'm guessing he has a child guardian there with him. Does that also mean Michael Lee Brown or another understudy would be there as a backup? 

Updated On: 1/30/19 at 05:55 PM

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 1/30/19 at 11:53pm

Anyone there tonight?

[DiscoCrows]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 12:06am

Curtain Call/Bows on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtGqDO37GQI

[treblemakerz]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 12:11am

I'm so thrilled for him. He's a family friend of someone I know so I'll finally be getting around to seeing DEH just for his performance. I hope he had a fantastic debut!!

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 12:14am

Looking forward to reports!

[HGorn]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 11:23am

https://www.newsday.com/entertainment/theater/andrew-barth-feldman-dear-evan-hansen-1.26624365

[BwayGeek2]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 11:25am

That's amazing for him!

[HeatherAV]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 12:31pm

I saw on Michael Park's twitter that Michael was so engrossed in Andrew's performance that he (Michael) made a mistaken in Break in a Glove.  Does anyone know what happened?

[Fosse76]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 1:39pm

"His Broadway debut marks the first time an actual teen has starred in the teenage title role of the Tony Award-winning musical"

They make it sound like the show's been around for decades with dozens of actors having previously played the role.

[JBC3]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 1:47pm

No, they made a factual statement about what has actually happened.