Dear Evan Hansen has been on my list of the top musicals that I have been wanting to see for a very long time. I actually first heard about the film from the song I had listened to, which still remains to be my favorite song off the soundtrack, “Waving Through a Window.” Having Michael Kriak come in and speak about his experience working on set as a producer was very exciting. One thing that I was immediately drawn to about Michael Kriak was his eagerness to teach and share his knowledge with us. He encouraged us to stop him in the middle of speaking to answer any questions that we may have had about anything. He was very knowledgeable about each topic that arose and gave a lot of advice. Kriak talked about the importance of networking and taking any opportunity that comes your way. This was the main reason how he landed his job as a producer by networking with others that were able to connect him to this position. Just by reaching out to others and showing a genuine interest can get you a long way.

I found it interesting that Michael Kriak originally had a business background previously to working as a producer on Dear Evan Hansen. He was previously an accountant and even has a CPA. I did not realize just how diverse the field of business is and how the knowledge and degree from this major can be applied to so many different career paths, including that of production and media.

Kriak remains humble and modest when it comes to his achievements. He talked about his surreal experience winning the Tony Award in 2017 for the play Dear Evan Hansen and what that meant for him as co-producer. He, himself talked about how he did not expect Dear Evan Hansen to gain this type of success and recognition. He went into an overview of what the play was about and the type of impact that he wanted it to have. One of Kriak’s favorite part of doing his job is how he is able to connect with families. One of the main themes in Dear Evan Hansen is the value of family, especially in tough times. Being able to see the faces of many family members in the crowd, seeing the musical for the first time, is rewarding enough to keep him doing the show every night. Kriak is currently in the process of producing another musical known as The Prom, which he hopes will capture the hearts of his audience.