Fil-Am Ali Ewoldt is first Asian to play Christine Daaé in ‘Phantom of the Opera’ on Broadway

On June 13, 2016, Ali Ewoldt became a 'Filipino First.'  She is the first actress of Filipino-descent to play Christine Daaé on Broadway.  But even bigger, Ali is also the first Asian actress and the first actress of color to play Christine Daaé on Broadway!

“It was so exciting to be cast in the role—period. But to have this honor on top of it is pretty incredible,” Ewoldt told InStyle.

From her personal website, Ali was born outside Chicago and raised 45 minutes north of New York City in the small town of Pleasantville. She has loved performing for as long as she can remember. She made her Broadway debut as Cosette in the 1st Broadway Revival of Les Miserables and is currently in the company of the Tony Award-winning revival of The King and I at Lincoln Center directed by Bartlett Sher. Ali has starred as Maria in the 1st National Tour of West Side Story directed by Arthur Laurents and David Saint and played Luisa in the The Fantasticks Off-Broadway, the world’s longest running musical. She has been featured on The Michael J. Fox Show, the short film Yield and DRAMA: The Webseries and has performed at Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall and Town Hall, and across the country and world!

Per her resume on her site, Ali graduated Cum Laude from Yale University with a B.A in Psychology.

From Broadway.com:

With 28 years on the Great White Way, over 11,000 performances and even a viral crosswalk production, The Phantom of the Opera is hitting another historic milestone. Broadway alum Ali Ewoldt, who is half-Filipino, begins performances as Christine on June 13; she is the first person of color in the role on the Main Stem.

Ewoldt recently played Tuptim in the Chicago Lyric Opera production of The King and I, having previously understudied the role in the current Broadway revival. Her additional credits include Les Miserables and The Fantasticks. Ewoldt told Broadway.com that Christine has "always been on that list of roles she wanted to play."

Ali Ewoldt and and Jordan Donica, Phantom of the Opera's New Raoul and Christine on Broadway, sing "All I Ask of You" at the Broadway in Bryant Park lunchtime concert.

From Theatre Nerds Interview With Broadway's Ali Ewoldt:

Ali joined the cast as Christine Daaé on June 13th, 2016. We covered a multitude of topics including her childhood, journey to Broadway, getting the role of Christine, and advice for young actors/actresses wanting to pursue a career in theatre.