THEATER
Sam Primack stars as Evan Hansen in Dear Evan Hansen at the Wharton Center in East Lansing, May 17-22.
Broadway-Bound Sam Primack is on tour in the role of Evan Hansen. JULIE SMITH YOLLES CONTRIBUTING WRITER
N
ot too many high schoolers’ moms have kvelling rights to their sons starring on Broadway in the title role of Evan Hansen from Dear Evan Hansen. In fact, the elite group is exclusive to a population of two, both discovered at the National High School Musical Theatre Awards, or Jimmy Awards. And both Jewish. First, there was Andrew Barth Feldman. Next, there is Sam Primack, who, at 18, started on Broadway in June 2019 as the understudy for all three male teen characters — Evan Hansen, Connor Murphy and Jared Kleinman. He then starred on the Dear Evan Hansen national tour as
the Evan Hansen alternate, performing the role during Saturday matinees and Sunday evenings. One week before he was set to perform at the Fisher Theatre,in front of a local fan base in March 2020, all tours were canceled, and Broadway shut down. “The week of March 8, Sam had taken a scheduled time off from the tour to go on our family vacation to Costa Rica. While we were there, that’s when COVID became a reality,” said Allyson Ochs Primack, who grew up in Farmington Hills and now lives in Scottsdale, Ariz., along with her parents, Carole and Larry Ochs. “By the last day of our trip, we found out that the tour was
suspended for several weeks. We were all devastated.” Sam came directly home to Arizona from Costa Rica to wait for news. By August 2020, when it was clear that the Dear Evan Hansen tour would not be resuming any time soon due to COVID, he enrolled at Arizona State University and completed his first year of college in May 2021. Primack started back on tour in December of 2021. This was not the first time that Dear Evan Hansen interrupted Primack’s schooling. In March 2019, with one semester left until high school graduation, Primack moved to New York and started his amazing
theatrical journey. He was able to come back to Scottsdale for two days in May 2019 and graduate with his classmates at Chaparral High School. And on June 19, 2019, he opened on Broadway. “Getting noticed and discovered at the Jimmy Awards is a huge stepping-stone to so many students who become Broadway stars. I was lucky, and I am grateful that I got that experience. It truly changed my life in ways that I never expected,” Primack says. BACK IN MICHIGAN Primack will finally be coming to Michigan with Dear Evan Hansen at the Wharton Center in East Lansing, May 17-22. continued on page 56 MAY 12 • 2022
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