Alex Boniello (born October 5, 1990) is an American actor, musician, author, and producer best known for his portrayal of the voice of Moritz in the 2015 Broadway revival of Spring Awakening, as well as his performance as Connor Murphy in the Broadway production of Dear Evan Hansen. In 2019, he won the Tony Award for Best Musical as a producer for Hadestown.
His start in professional theatre came with the touring company of American Idiot in 2013 as part of the ensemble. He also understudied the roles of Johnny and St. Jimmy.[2] Boniello was also a member of the cast of 21 Chump Street in its 2014 premiere and is featured on the show's original cast album.[3]
In 2015, Boniello performed in the Off-Broadway production of Brooklynite.[4] Later in the year, he was cast as the "Voice of Moritz" in the Deaf West Production of Spring Awakening,[5] and stayed with the company with its transfer to Broadway. He completed his run at the Brooks Atkinson theatre on January 24, 2016.[6] On April 13, 2018 it was announced that Boniello would be replacing Mike Faist as Connor Murphy in Dear Evan Hansen on Broadway.[7] He made his debut in the role on May 15, 2018 and played his final performance on January 26, 2020 alongside co-star Andrew Barth Feldman.[8]
Boniello released his debut EP titled Hi on multiple platforms on January 8, 2021.[11]
His debut work as a children's book author, A Case of the Zaps, was published by Abrams Books in August 2022.
In March 2023, it was announced that he would be playing the recurring role of Crash, the headless ghost, on CBS's hit series Ghosts.[12] Also in March 2023, it was announced that he would be playing the role of Jack of Diamonds in Disney's Descendants: The Rise of Red, the follow-up series to Disney's wildly successful Descendants franchise.[13] Also in 2023, he starred as Roger Davis in the World Symphonic Premiere of RENT at the Kennedy Center. [14]
Personal life
Boniello proposed to his long-term girlfriend, April Lavalle, on May 9, 2021.[15] The two got married on October 31, 2022. [16] On September 27, 2024, Lavalle revealed that her and Boniello were going through a break up following Boniello having an affair. [17]
^Feldberg, Robert. "Bergen County native shares role with deaf partner in Broadway's 'Spring Awakening'", The Record (Bergen County), September 20, 2015. Accessed October 18, 2015. "Theater is a collaborative art, but rarely do actors form a partnership as unusual as the one created by Alex Boniello, who was raised in Wood-Ridge, and Daniel N. Durant.... Boniello, who got the acting bug at Wood-Ridge High School before going on to study drama at Wagner College, joined the cast after the production had gotten under way in its Los Angeles debut, so, he said, he had to quickly play catch-up."
