'Dear Evan Hansen' is a mil about a young boy lyg about his iendship wh a ceased classmate. Yet many thought was about a bullied gay teenager.
Contents:
- WHY DID PEOPLE THK DEAR EVAN HANSEN WAS A GAY MIL?
- EW TALKS YA: REVIEWS OF A BTERSWEET GAY ROM-, THE DEAR EVAN HANSEN NOVEL, AND MORE
WHY DID PEOPLE THK DEAR EVAN HANSEN WAS A GAY MIL?
Gay wrer Benj Pasek discs how the novelizatn of the mil expands on LGBTQ them and a muny of support. * is dear evan hansen a gay story *
(Please e back when you’re done.) Search the terms “Evan Hansen gay.” And then scroll to your heart’s ntent. You’ll fd no shortage of people the procs of disverg, as the Broadway mil–turned–major motn picture heads for theaters everywhere on Friday, that Dear Evan Hansen is not a queer story—that the tular Evan Hansen is not some sad, gay kid gettg bullied and ridg out high school the bathroom at lunch. Yet this pervasive notn, that Evan is gay, lgers on, years sce the Broadway blockbter’s but.
The entire plot hg on the dience buyg to the ia that he is anx and weird but not gay. Baked to the song are both homophobic unrton and the lgerg notn that perhaps Connor and Evan doth prott too much.
There are supposed jok about how life whout Connor was “rough” or “hard,” and the even more blatantly homoerotic le, “Our iendship go beyond/ Your average kd of bond/ But not bee we’re gay/ No, not bee we’re gay/ We’re close but not that way/ The only man that I love is my dad.” It’s also worth notg the role of Evan Hansen has been played by a strg of out gay actors. (Ben Platt, the OG Evan and star of the film, is, fact, currently datg another former Evan, Noah Galv.) Which is not at all to suggt gay actors n’t play straight, but this public knowledge and stg pattern certaly do ltle to shape the narrative away om the ia that “this is a gay story.”.
EW TALKS YA: REVIEWS OF A BTERSWEET GAY ROM-, THE DEAR EVAN HANSEN NOVEL, AND MORE
* is dear evan hansen a gay story *
But ’s unfair to say that to watch Dear Evan Hansen and fd gay subtext is like readg tea leav for a hidn sign.
Makg Connor nonilly queer only nfirms what so many fans and crics of the show knew herently, and what a zilln other people on Twter felt about the show whout really ever engagg wh the material beyond the surface: Dear Evan Hansen is, ep down, as gay a story as they e.
“The gay inty—you’re livg a world where the world is basilly tellg you that you’re not enough. And the end of the show is really a msage for anyone who feels that way.” Dear Evan Hansen traffics gay stereotyp and experienc, g them for s own benef to make Evan as othered om his classmat as possible (as othered as a whe man ever n be, that is). LGBTQ fans are wele to fd themselv him, while ternalized homophobia keeps the verse suatn, a straight dience member relatg to a gay character, om beg a realy the show nsirs.