DEAR EVAN HANSEN Plot Question **SPOILERS**

[PatrickDC]

Posted: 3/18/17 at 9:01pm

Usually, 95% of the time, I prefer Act 1 to Act 2 of a musical or play. Not the case with DEH. I was more engaged trying to figure out how the rouse would be found out and resolved. This reminded me of the films Fargo and A Simple Plan, where one small action, fueled by the protagonist’s lust for some value or fortune, sets things spiraling out of control. The speed that things happen today online is dizzying. To say the production was relevant to the trouble some people get into online is putting it lightly. It's also amazing to me what people put online for all the world to see forever. But I digress.

One issue I had was why didn't Jared spill the beans? He doesn't like Evan and is only friends with him because their moms are friends and so his mom will pay his car insurance. But with a secret as big as Evan’s I didn't buy Jared just going with it AND even helping Evan by crafting the emails. I get that Jared’s character was needed so Evan could more easily voice his feelings. But he is seeing a therapist, why not use the therapist sessions to let Evan tell us what he’s feeling? Or bring Connor's ghost back more often for more conversations. 

This is a minor quibble. As someone who had very few true friends growing up the production resonated very strongly with me. It challenged me to revisit my past, which I'm completely fine with, now, in my fifth decade. I liked it greatly, and I'll continue to think of its themes themes for quite awhile. 

[macnyc]

Posted: 3/18/17 at 9:56pm

I think if Jared had spilled the beans, he would have been implicated as an accomplice. He helped Evan craft the fake emails, so he has as much reason as Evan does to not invite scrutiny. 

 

Now, why Alana didn't reveal the deceitful doings, I don't know. 

[cascade]

Posted: 3/18/17 at 10:27pm

Jared does threaten to "out" Evan, and Evan points out that people will hate Jared for pretending to be a dead kid (to which Jared sputters out a "F*CK you" and leaves). So he doesn't say anything to protect his own reputation. It's also implied that despite what he says, Jared himself doesn't really have many friends at school outside of Evan.

As far as Alana goes, I assumed she never found out the truth. The last notable thing she does is post the "suicide" note online and seems to believe it validates Evan's version of events. And we learn from Zoe that the Murphys never revealed the truth. The only people who know everything are Evan and his mom, the Murphys, and Jared.

[PatrickDC]

Posted: 3/18/17 at 10:39pm

I didn't care at all for the character of Alana, the stereotypical overachiever with the college application 50 pages long. I get she is meant to serve as a counterpoint to Evan, Connor, and all the loners. But I found her annoying. 

[wendy72]

Posted: 3/18/17 at 10:56pm

That was actually the only part of DEH that didn't work for me. It seemed highly improbable that he would finish out high school with neither Jared or Alana revealing his secret. It doesn't make any sense. 

[dramamama611]

Posted: 3/19/17 at 1:54am

I understood Alaina much more the 2nd time I saw it (hated her the first time at 2nd stage)  She too is invisible, despite all her achievements, she's still not popular or with the in crowd.  She over achieves and talks about it to fill a void.

I agree that she doesn't know.

As for Jared, he SAYS he has a life outside of Evan, but he doesn't -- he just thinks he has more going on than Evan, so treats him badly

[PatrickDC]

Posted: 3/19/17 at 2:17am

Thank you, dramamama. I hadn't realized that about Alana. I guess that's what drives a lot of young people to overachieve...to be heard and loved. She makes sense to me now. 

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 3/19/17 at 9:38am

wendy72 said: "That was actually the only part of DEH that didn't work for me. It seemed highly improbable that he would finish out high school with neither Jared or Alana revealing his secret. It doesn't make any sense. "

 

Alana never found out so that's a full stop right there. Your post, and the reasoning it is based on, is now completely invalid. 

[dramamama611]

Posted: 3/19/17 at 10:04am

PatrickDC said: "Thank you, dramamama. I hadn't realized that about Alana. I guess that's what drives a lot of young people to overachieve...to be heard and loved. She makes sense to me now. 

 

"

Glad to help!  Just my thoughts!

[wendy72]

Posted: 3/19/17 at 11:48am

Liza's Headband said: "wendy72 said: "That was actually the only part of DEH that didn't work for me. It seemed highly improbable that he would finish out high school with neither Jared or Alana revealing his secret. It doesn't make any sense. "

 

Alana never found out so that's a full stop right there. Your post, and the reasoning it is based on, is now completely invalid. 

 

"

Well, she suspected he was lying and had found some pretty damning inconsistencies in his story. It just seemed unrealistic that both her and Jared let it go and never did anything with the information they had (or, in Alana's case, suspected). When he acknowledges how gracious it was that the parents never spilled his secret, I wish he had acknowledged that his two peers also hadn't. It just felt unrealistic to me since they were both also teens eager for attention. It didn't ruin the show or anything, it just stood out to me.

[PattyO'Furniture]

Posted: 3/19/17 at 12:58pm

wendy - I like that you use "peers" instead of "friends".  They are not friends.  Ironically for me, I think Jared is the one who comes closest to true, honest friendship (I found him annoying @ the onset but endearing by "Good for You" and Evan's spurning of Jared made Evan even more well-rounded for me.).  

I think she does suspect but that Evan's desperate sharing the suicide note reroutes her suspicions, or suspends them at least - and I think she moves on, excited to be the one with the power of passing it along, of being in the middle of it all, the messenger.  By the time she recognizes (or would eventually recognize) the truth, I think the "newness" and "in-ness" of the whole situation would've grown cold, and she'd be launching into her college career anyway.  She doesn't care about Connor; she cares about the attention and self-validation she receives for making others believe she did, IMO.  It made sense to me.  

And I think it makes sense that Jared does not tell: if he tells on Evan, he tells on himself; he reveals to others, and maybe to himself, just how many friendships he actually has.  I think he kind of moves on as well instead of doubling-down w/ his reality.    

[clb10162]

Posted: 3/19/17 at 1:16pm

PattyO'Furniture said: "wendy - I like that you use "peers" instead of "friends".  They are not friends.  Ironically for me, I think Jared is the one who comes closest to true, honest friendship (I found him annoying @ the onset but endearing by "Good for You" and Evan's spurning of Jared made Evan even more well-rounded for me.).  

I think she does suspect but that Evan's desperate sharing the suicide note reroutes her suspicions, or suspends them at least - and I think she moves on, excited to be the one with the power of passing it along, of being in the middle of it all, the messenger.  By the time she recognizes (or would eventually recognize) the truth, I think the "newness" and "in-ness" of the whole situation would've grown cold, and she'd be launching into her college career anyway.  She doesn't care about Connor; she cares about the attention and self-validation she receives for making others believe she did, IMO.  It made sense to me.  

And I think it makes sense that Jared does not tell: if he tells on Evan, he tells on himself; he reveals to others, and maybe to himself, just how many friendships he actually has.  I think he kind of moves on as well instead of doubling-down w/ his reality.    

 

"  I think you make an important point.  In the real world, internet memes, gifs, whatever, have a very short shelf life.  People quickly forget and just move on to the next thing.

 

[wendy72]

Posted: 3/20/17 at 8:52am

Fair and thoughtful points! 

[GhostXmasPast]

Posted: 3/20/17 at 9:59am

As for Jared in DEH - as the plot unfolds it - to me - became obvious that he was also very low on the social ladder in his school - and was happy to use the Connor Project to improve his own standing.  At one point by he actively seeks to write himself into the fictional. Narrative.  Which does make him a full "co-conspirator."  

The only difference between Jared and Evan was that Jared - early on - was able to use his natural bluster and bs to leverage his own meager successes into a step or two up the "ladder" - happy to remind Evan - and Connor - that they were "beneath" him.  In fact - one could argue that Jared's own direct confrontation with Connor - "school shooter chic" - actually facilitated Connor's final downward spiral.

In total - one would feel that for Jared - seeing gravity pull Evan back into place - while keeping his own participation - was a suitable outcome.