Lili Thomas: Touring America with Dear Evan Hansen

Broadway Star Coming to Washington Pavilion

April 18-23

Buy Tickets at WashingtonPavilion.org

DearEvan Hansen is one of the most talked about theater productions, with a nationwide tour currently underway. The show comes to the Washington Pavilion in Sioux Falls April 18-23.

With classical musicians for parents, it isn’t a surprise that Lili Thomas chose a career in the performing arts. However, the Dear

Evan Hansen actor says that, even with that upbringing, her parents didn’t set specific expectations about her future.

“My parents were pretty keen on having me find my own way artistically,” Thomas says. “They didn’t push me to follow their exact steps. I was a curious child, so they let me just explore.”

Thomas was born in Boston, where her father served as co-founder and artistic director of the Boston Chamber Music Society. The family also spent time in Baltimore before landing in New York when Lili was about 9 years old. She recalls being an “animated” child.

“I’m sure my parents wondered where I came from,” she laughs. “They were classical musicians, and I was this loud, vibrant child who was always putting on skits for them.”

Her first role came in the second grade, playing the lead role in her school’s production of Snow White.

“My mom came to pick me up the day of auditions, and I was crying,” remembers Thomas. “She assumed I hadn’t gotten a part. I told her that I got Snow White. When she asked why I was crying, I sobbed ‘because I didn’t get the evil queen!’ So, from a young age, I guess, I had a love for a good character role.”

Growing up, Thomas recalls many times when her parents’ friends would mention auditions for this show or that show, but her mom would say “no.”

“It was really important to my parents that I learned how to be a person first,” says Thomas. “And now that I’m a mom myself, I am so grateful to my parents for that. I see how valuable it is for kids to have normalcy and routines and to develop the skills and traits they’ll need later on as they choose their career path.”

Ultimately, Thomas did focus on drama and musical theater and earned her degree from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. Along the way, she developed skills in singing, dancing, acting and playing several instruments.

All of those skills came in handy when she landed a role in an off-Broadway production of The Hello Girls, a story about the women serving as telephone operators during World War I.

“I’m a bit of a history nerd,” admits Thomas, “so to put history and theater together in such a collaborative show was just amazing to me. We learned so much about the actual story of these women. There were just ten of us in the cast and we were the orchestra. We all accompanied each other. They became my family that I still talk to regularly, and this was a show that I really needed at that point in my life. It was special.”

Thomas took time away from performing to raise her two children, and it was during that time she saw the original cast production of Dear Evan Hansen

“Here I was, a new mom, and then there’s this show with mother characters written with such depth and complexity,” she recalls. “They were succeeding, they were failing, they were trying their best. It was cool to see the industry writing parents like this. So then, here we are years later, and there was an opportunity to audition for this national tour.”

Thomas plays Cynthia Murphy, one of the mothers in the show. If you haven’t seen Dear Evan Hansen , you’ll find no spoilers here. Suffice it to say that Thomas was drawn to the role because of the opportunity to portray some of the real-life difficulties of parenting.

“It’s a really important show for families, especially those with middle or high schoolers. There’s a character that each audience member can relate to. You can see yourself in these characters and understand the importance of personal connection. That’s really something we learned during COVID, right? Connection is important. You are not alone.”

Although being part of a nationwide traveling tour is busy and can be exhausting, Thomas says the cast tries to experience the cities they visit.

“Of course,” she says, “it always depends on how you are feeling that week. If we have time, it’s great to get out and explore, but I know I always have to just listen to my body and rest if I need to. Our number one job is to be ready to do the show and be at our best for our audiences. That being said, I am a big foodie, so I love to eat my way across the country!”

Thomas grew up cooking with her dad, where he taught her to make a pork dish he called “Lili’s Pork Tenderloin.” She continues to cook that first dish she ever learned, but now she honors her first teacher by calling it “My Dad’s Pork Tenderloin” (see recipe in the box).

Thomas incorporates her love of cooking while on the road when she can, and that is certainly something her castmates appreciate. One week she worked on perfecting her Chicken Milanese since there was a show reference to her character making that dish. On another day, she made chicken soup for a cast member who wasn’t feeling well. Her goto ingredient, though, is actually duck.

“I love cooking duck breast,” says Thomas. “I learned the traditional French style in Paris.”

Cooking brings Thomas joy, she says, and she draws on experience working at several high-end New York restaurants to be able to share that joy through food.

“Cooking connects me to people. I can be creative and experiment with no pressure. Plus, I’m a mom. I love to feed people.”

Thomas says her family regularly requests her fried chicken, but she has also been perfecting her beef stroganoff and a tomatoless lasagna.

“That’s an interesting performance thing,” she says. “Some of the singers have acid reflux, and tomato dishes can aggravate that. So, I’m working on a non-acidic Bolognese sauce.”

Thomas balances show life and family life by making the most of her time off from performances at home with her kids or bringing them to where she is when they have breaks from school. She has been traveling with Dear Evan Hansen since June 2022 and says there is a renewed energy with each city they visit.

“Even though we are doing the same show every night, it’s different. Each time we visit a new city, we know those audiences have been waiting for us, waiting to see the show. There’s that sense of excitement and anticipation. So, it’s like having an opening night over and over again. I love that feeling.”

Follow along with her adventures @thelilithomas.

Want to see this great Broadway musical coming to Sioux Falls April 18-23? Buy tickets at WashingtonPavilion.org.