When the Woodbridge name is in the headlines it's usually to do with sport.
But while Tennis great Todd Woodbridge is commentating at the Olympics, his son Beau is making news as the lead for the Australian professional debut of Dear Evan Hansen.
The hit musical - which is set to come to Canberra in February - announced the recent musical theatre graduate of the Royal Academy of Music in London would step into the role made famous by US actor and singer Ben Platt, both on stage and in the 2021 film adaptation.
While the rest of his family focused on sport - his aunt and uncle are former tennis player Nicole Bradtke and basketballer Mark Bradtke, and his cousin Austin Bradtke played for the Melbourne Demons - Beau Woodbridge has always had his eyes on the stage.
He began his career at a young age, playing the role of Gustave in Love Never Dies before going on to play Michael Banks in Mary Poppins, Jeremy in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Louis in The King And I.
But Dear Evan Hansen marks his first role since training in London.
"The family is really excited about the role," Beau Woodbridge says.
"It's nice to be stepping properly into theatre as an adult, professional performer and Mum, Dad, and my sister (Zara) are all excited to come and see it and have definitely bought their fair share of tickets already.
"We're a big theatre family, which is why I got into it in the first place. I think I saw my first show at about four, and I think the show that probably made me want to do theatre was Billy Elliot when I was about seven years old."
An instant hit on Broadway for its deeply personal and profoundly contemporary take on life, Dear Evan Hansen will celebrate its Australian premiere in Sydney on October 12, before playing seasons in Melbourne, Canberra and Adelaide.
For Woodbridge, his journey with Dear Evan Hansen began when he was 14 when he saw Platt perform with the original cast on Broadway.
"I still have the signed playbill with the majority of the company at my house," he says.
"It was amazing. I was just there will my mum watching the production, and we were just in tears at the end of the show, especially because it's a production that explores that mother-son relationship."
The musical tells the story of Evan Hansen, a bullied 17-year-old with social anxiety, depression and recently broken arm. He is told by his therapist to write letters to himself to detail what is good about each day, while his overworked single mother suggests he ask people to sign his cast to make friends at school.
But when classmate Connor Murphy dies by suicide, and one of Evan's letters is found in his jacket, people mistakenly think they were close friends. Things start to snowball.
"It's a really challenging show," Woodbridge says.
"Evan is a really interesting, difficult character and it gives me something to bite my teeth into, as well as having really great music.
"And I think that's what is really nice for audiences. It's got this script that is just really entertaining and keeps you on the edge of your seat, and you get drawn in when these songs start playing, but also there are times when these songs are a relief to the heavier themes that come up."
