Dear Evan Hansen Cut Songs
A masterpost of all the info I could find on the songs cut from DEH, either during development or during the move from Arena Stage in DC to New York. Three of the songs (Infinite Island, In The Bedroom Down The Hall, and A Little Bit of Light) have been played by Pasek & Paul. Videos are linked below. I may have missed some things, so feel free to add stuff on!
Cut during move from Arena Stage to NY
This’ll Be The Year: The opening number in DC. A totally different song from Anybody Have A Map, which did not exist at the time, and was written to replace TBTY. A big ensemble number where all the characters sang about their aspirations for the coming year. It was cut for being too generic and not character-specific enough.
Part of Me (and its reprise): The Act I closing number in DC. Also a totally different song from You Will Be Found. It was cut because, unlike YWBF, which is uplifting despite its ironic placement in the narrative, it was explicitly cynical about social media and its role in tragedy.
Cut during development before Arena Stage or during Arena Stage run
Infinite Island (video): The prototype of Waving Through A Window. This one probably counts more as a cut chorus than cut song. The lead into the chorus (step out of the sun / because you’ve learned) is the same, but the chorus goes: I’m standing on the edge of an infinite island / shouting at the wind, I wave my hands / hanging off the edge of an infinite island / maybe across the sea someone on the other end of the island is waving back at me.
In The Bedroom Down The Hall (video, song starts at 9:10): Duet between Cynthia and Heidi, about Connor and Evan as children. It begins with Cynthia in Connor’s room, packing up his things. Some details it mentions: fights between Cynthia and Connor, Heidi gifting Evan with a comic book collection and Evan dressing up as Wolverine for Halloween. Also, Connor was going to therapy and taking medication. It was cut because it didn’t fit well into the narrative and Pasek and Paul (and Levenson, I suppose) were having to restructure scenes to make it work. Also: it was too long. There’s an unreleased recording of it sung by Jennifer Laura Thompson and Rachel Bay Jones.
A Little Bit of Light (video, song starts at 20:10): Sung by Cynthia to Evan after receiving the first batch of emails. Also talks about Connor’s struggle with mental illness, and how at points, he was trying very hard to get better. After it was cut, Pasek and Paul added Cynthia and Larry’s verses to Requiem (which was originally a Zoe solo).
Goin’ Viral: Jared solo, sung to Evan over Gchat, after Connor steals his letter. Pasek and Paul talked about it at the Sirius XM Town Hall. It “painted a “nightmare” scenario to Evan about the harms of the internet/social media, how your life can be ruined when something unflattering goes viral. Pasek and Paul said they decided to cut it because why force the audience to see…how things go viral…when they plan to show it later on in Act 1.“ This almost made it to DC, and was cut just before the first performance. Unfortunately, the most we’ve heard of it is Will Roland drunkenly singing the words “going viral” during the Broadwaysted Podcast.
Unnamed song Evan sings to Zoe: Was very slow and dragging. Pasek and Paul later took some of its lyrics and used them in If I Could Tell Her.
Total Reinvention: Sung by Evan, about his dreams and goals for the coming year (i.e. total reinvention). Was cut for being too obvious and straightforward, and for lacking nuance. Pasek and Paul do not miss this one at all.
Other songs Will Roland only mentioned by name but didn’t give details of during his BwayZone interview: This Is Me (multiple iterations of it or multiple songs with the same title), Make Yourself Heard.
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