George Salazar

George Ernest Salazar (born March 7, 1986) is an American actor and singer. He is known for his work on and off-Broadway. He made his Broadway debut in the 2011 revival of Stephen Schwartz's ''Godspell''. Salazar originated the role of Michael Mell in '' Be More Chill'' (2015) and performed the role Off-Broadway (2018) and Broadway (2019) at the Lyceum Theater in New York City. He originated the role of Grover in '' The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical'' and starred in Pasadena Playhouse's production of ''Little Shop of Horrors'' as Seymour Krelborn. On screen, he had a recurring role as George Conway in the FX limited anthology series '' Impeachment: American Crime Story'' (2016), and in 2025 made his feature film acting debut as the voice and facial motion capture for Happy, one of the Seven Dwarfs in Disney's live-action remake of ''Snow White''.

Early life and education

Salazar was born on March 7, 1986, in Kissimmee, Florida, of Filipino and Ecuadorian heritage. Growing up, he wanted to be a surgeon, but switched his focus to the theater in his last two years of high school.

After graduating high school, he attended the University of Florida. In 2008, he graduated with a BFA degree in musical theatre. He moved to New York City shortly afterwards to pursue his acting career, as he felt that his career was limited in his home state owing to his ethnicity: "As an ethnic performer, I didn't fit in".

Career

Salazar's first break came in 2010 when he was cast as "Otto" in the second national tour of the Tony Award-winning musical '' Spring Awakening''. The production toured the United States as well as Canada and closed in May 2011. Upon returning to New York City from touring, Salazar earned his Actors' Equity Association membership.

In September 2011, Salazar was cast in the 40th Anniversary Broadway revival of Stephen Schwartz's ''Godspell''. In the revival, he was the "Light of the World" soloist, marking his Broadway debut. The show opened at Broadway's Circle in the Square Theatre on November 7, 2011, and closed on June 24, 2012, after 30 previews and 264 performances. A cast album was recorded and released on Sh-K-Boom Records in 2012. During ''Godspell''s run, he and the rest of the cast made television appearances on the ''Late Show with David Letterman'', ''The View'', ''The Rosie Show'', and the Tony Awards telecast.

In the Spring of 2013, he further combined his passions for theatre and music as a cast member and musician in the Off-Broadway production of ''F#%king Up Everything''. In addition to playing the stoner drummer of a rock band, he served as the musical's on-stage drummer. This role was later reprised in 2016 when the musical changed its name to ''Brooklyn Crush''.

In the summer of 2013, Salazar became an understudy in The Public Theater's Off-Broadway production of David Byrne and Fatboy Slim's ''Here Lies Love'', directed by Alex Timbers. In April 2014, Salazar rejoined the cast of ''Here Lies Love'' in an open-ended commercial run at the musical's original home, The Public Theater, as an onstage member of the ensemble. The production closed on January 4, 2015.

In 2015, he joined the cast of the musical adaptation of Ned Vizzini's '' Be More Chill'' as Michael Mell at the Two River Theater in Red Bank, New Jersey. The production closed on June 28, 2015.

In 2016, he played Michael in the Off-Broadway revival of '' Tick, Tick... Boom!'', which opened on October 20, 2016, at the Acorn Theatre at Theater Row. The production ran from October 20 to December 18.

In 2017, Salazar played the characters of Grover and Mr. D in the Off-Broadway premiere of ''The Lightning Thief''. The limited production ran from March 23 to May 6.

In 2018, he reprised his role as Michael Mell in '' Be More Chill'' in the Off-Broadway premiere of the musical at Signature Theatre Company from July to September 2018.

In 2019, Salazar played Michael Mell in '' Be More Chill'' at the Lyceum Theatre from February 14, 2019, to August 11, 2019, on Broadway.

In 2019, he starred in ''Little Shop of Horrors'' at Pasadena Playhouse as Seymour Krelborn from September 17, 2019, to October 20, 2019. During that time he was featured as a musical guest on ''The Late Late Show with James Corden'' on CBS where he sang "Suddenly Seymour" with ''Little Shop of Horrors'' co-star Mj Rodriguez.

In 2021, he played Musidorus in '' Head Over Heels'' at Pasadena Playhouse from November 9, 2021, to December 12, 2021. It is his first theatre acting role since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the first show to reopen Pasadena Playhouse.

In 2022, Salazar played Agent Maxwell Fernsby in ''As the Curtain Rises'', an original Broadway soap opera from the Broadway Podcast Network.

In 2023, he starred in the world premiere production of ''The Bottoming Process'' by Nicholas Pilapil, produced by IAMA Theatre Company at the Los Angeles LGBT Center from May 18 – June 12, 2023. Salazar portrayed the lead character Milo Santos opposite Rick Cosnett, after originating the role in the play's original workshop as a part of IAMA Theatre Company's Emerging Playwrights Lab. The ''Culver City News'' called his performance a "Tour-de-force."

Personal life

Salazar is an experienced percussionist on drumkit and cajón.

Filmography

Film

Television

Theatre credits

Awards and nominations

Discography

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Salazar, George
1986 births
21st-century American male actors
American gay actors
American LGBTQ people of Asian descent
American male film actors
American male musical theatre actors
American male television actors
American male voice actors
American people of Ecuadorian descent
American people of Filipino descent
LGBTQ Hispanic and Latino American people
Living people
Male actors from Florida
Male actors from New York (state)
University of Florida alumni