Montgomery Theatre, Sheffield – until Saturday 24th October 2026
Reviewed by Claire Moore
3***
Established in 1989 as part of Woodseats Operatic Society, Splinters Theatre Group has been giving young performers aged 16 to 30 the opportunity to take to the stage for more than 35 years. Now the company brings the award-winning musical Dear Evan Hansen to Sheffield.
The story follows Evan Hansen, a lonely teenager who struggles with anxiety and making friends. When a misunderstanding leads to a lie that quickly gets out of hand, he suddenly finds himself at the centre of attention. But with his newfound popularity come some difficult choices and increasingly serious consequences.
With a book by Steven Levenson and music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, Dear Evan Hansen explores friendship, family, loneliness and the pressure to belong.
Taking on the title role is a big responsibility, but Josh Fishburn handles it extremely well. His mannerisms capture Evan’s awkwardness and anxiety, and he holds the audience’s attention during some powerful scenes. He also has an impressive singing voice and made the character very believable. You can understand how someone with Evan’s insecurities could find themselves caught up in such a complicated situation.
There are some other excellent performances too. Madison Bland is impressive as Zoe Murphy, combining convincing acting with a beautiful, well-controlled singing voice. Ruby Harker also stands out as Alana.
The cast works brilliantly together, especially during the larger ensemble numbers when almost everyone is on stage, weaving between one another in some cleverly choreographed sequences. Props are moved smoothly between scenes, allowing the action to flow without interruptions.
The back screen is an effective touch, showing just how overwhelming and relentless social media can be. As messages and online reactions build, you get a real sense of how quickly things can escalate and how difficult it must feel to escape from it all.
It’s also great to have a live band accompanying the production. On the opening evening, there were moments when the music made it a little difficult to hear some of the lyrics, which was a shame given how important the songs are to the storytelling. Hopefully, that’s something that will settle as the run continues.
What I found most moving was how easy it was to feel sympathy for Evan, despite the mess he creates. His actions come from a mixture of insecurity, loneliness and a genuine desire to help, even if he goes about it in completely the wrong way. Being a teenager these days can’t be easy, with so much pressure and very little opportunity to switch off from it all. Dear Evan Hansen raises some important issues about mental health and the need for connection. They’re conversations we need to keep having, and this talented young company does a wonderful job of bringing them to the stage.