Dear Evan Hansen Breaks Box Office Record for Highest Grossing Week at the Des Moines Civic Center
DES MOINES, IA — Des Moines Performing Arts announced today that the First National Tour of Dear Evan Hansen has broken the box office record for the highest-grossing week of an eight-performance engagement at the Des Moines Civic Center. The production grossed $1,975,473.50 during the show’s February 5–10, 2019 engagement. This breaks the eight-performance week record previously set in December 2016 by Beautiful: The Carole King Musical which grossed $1,342,003.
“We bring the best of Broadway to the Civic Center stage and our presentation of Dear Evan Hansen marked the show’s Midwest premiere,” said Jeff Chelesvig, President and CEO. “Touring Broadway productions understand Des Moines delivers a loyal following of Season Ticket Holders, Donors, and devoted Broadway patrons. These are the people who guarantee the best of the best keep coming to the Des Moines Civic Center.”
Touring Broadway productions are an expensive art form to produce and present. The expenses include the wages of many local professionals necessary to make the magic happen behind the scenes. In total, DMPA employs 571 full and part-time employees. The Willis Broadway Series contributes approximately $30 million in local economic development annually.
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The winner of six 2017 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Dear Evan Hansen features a book by Tony Award-winner Steven Levenson, 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).
Declared “one of the most remarkable shows in musical theater history” by the Washington Post’s Peter Marks, Dear Evan Hansen opened at the Music Box Theatre to rave reviews on December 4, 2016, where it’s broken all box office records and struck a chord with critics and audiences alike.
In addition to winning six Tony Awards, Dear Evan Hansen has won numerous other awards, including the 2017 Drama League Award for Outstanding Musical Production and for the off-Broadway production, two Obie Awards, a Drama Desk Award, and two Outer Critics Circle Awards and two Helen Hayes Awards. The Broadway production recently celebrated its two-year anniversary with a special donation to the Smithsonian, where the show’s iconic blue polo and arm cast will now be part of the permanent collection at the National Museum of American History in Washington D.C.
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. A Deluxe Album of the Grammy-winning cast recording, with six bonus tracks including “Waving Through a Window” performed by pop star Katy Perry, was released digitally by Atlantic Records on November 2, 2018.
A special edition coffee table book authored by Levenson, Pasek and Paul, Dear Evan Hansen: through the window (Grand Central Publishing / Melcher) is now available, offering an in-depth, all-access look at the musical, including never-before-seen production photos and cast portraits, behind-the-scenes stories, and a fully annotated script by the authors.
In addition to the touring production and the record-breaking Broadway production, Dear Evan Hansen will launch its first international production in Canada, in March 2019 at Toronto’s Royal Alexandra Theatre, followed by a production in London at the Noël Coward Theatre later in 2019.
Dear Evan Hansen 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. U.S. Casting by Tara Rubin Casting/Xavier Rubiano. Sash Bischoff, Adam Quinn and Danny Sharron are the Associate Directors. Judith Schoenfeld is the Production Supervisor. 101 Productions, Ltd. is the General Manager.
The touring production of Dear Evan Hansen is produced by Stacey Mindich. The co-producers are Mickey Liddell, Hunter Arnold, Caiola Productions, Double Gemini Productions, Fakston Productions, Roy Furman, Harris Karma Productions, On Your Marks Group, Darren Bagert, Roger & William Berlind, Bob Boyett, Colin Callender, Caitlin Clements, Freddy DeMann, Dante Di Loreto, Bonnie & Kenneth Feld, FickStern Productions, Eric & Marsi Gardiner, Robert Greenblatt, Jere Harris and Darren DeVerna, The John Gore Organization, Mike Kriak, David Mirvish, Eva Price, Zeilinger Productions, Adam Zotovich, Ambassador Theatre Group, Independent Presenters Network, and the Shubert Organization, in association with Arena Stage, Molly Smith and Edgar Dobie, and Second Stage Theatre, Carole Rothman, and Casey Reitz. Wendy Orshan and Jeffrey M. Wilson are Executive Producers.
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For more information about Dear Evan Hansen, please visit DearEvanHansen.com or DMPA.org.
About Des Moines Performing Arts
Des Moines Performing Arts is a private not-for-profit organization celebrating 40 seasons of presenting the performing arts to Iowa and the surrounding states on four stages in Des Moines – the Civic Center, the Stoner Theater, the Temple Theater and the newly renovated outdoor space, Cowles Commons. Des Moines Performing Arts is a presenter of major Broadway and educational touring companies, performers and groups, and is home to many local and regional groups, including the Des Moines Symphony. All performances of the Broadway Series are supported by Willis Auto Campus. All performances at the Temple Theater are supported by Prairie Meadows. All performances of the Family Series are supported by Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield. For more information, visit DMPA.org.