Joseph Morales

For the American mixed martial artist, see Joseph Morales (fighter).

Joseph Morales
Born	Joseph Alexander Morales 1982 or 1983 (age 41–42)[1] New Mexico, US
Nationality	American
Occupation(s)	Actor, singer
Years active	2003–present

Joseph Alexander Morales is an American stage and TV actor, known for starring as Alexander Hamilton in the musical Hamilton's Chicago production and second national touring production.^[2]

Early life

Joseph Morales was born in New Mexico.^[3] Ethnically, Morales is half-Mexican through his biological father, one-quarter German-Irish, and one-quarter Japanese.^[1][4] The father who raised him, Command Sgt. Major James Blankenbecler, was killed in action in 2003 while serving in the U.S. Army during the Iraq War.^[4]

As part of a military family, Morales moved frequently during his childhood, living in Virginia, Texas, and Hawaii.^[1] He encountered the Oregon Shakespeare Festival during a high school trip to Medford, Oregon, and made a decision to study theater at Southern Oregon University. After one year, he dropped out to begin auditioning for roles in New York.^[3]

Career

From October 2009 to July 2010, Morales performed with the National Tour of Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical In the Heights, as a member of the ensemble and as understudy for Usnavi, Piragua Guy, and Sonny.^[5] He was then chosen to star in the show's first national tour, as Miranda's replacement in the lead role of Usnavi, which he played from July 25, 2010, to April 3, 2011.^[5][6]

After touring in the cast of Bombay Dreams, Morales appeared in the national tour of If/Then from October 2015 to August 2016.^[7][8]

On March 10, 2017, Morales joined the Chicago company of Hamilton, as alternate in the role of Alexander Hamilton.^[5] Later that year, Hamilton producer Jeffrey Seller announced that Morales had been chosen to lead the show's second national tour in the title role, starring alongside Nik Walker as Aaron Burr.^[2] His first show as title player on the Philip Tour was February 6, 2018 in Seattle.^[9]

His television credits include Colony (2016) and Chicago Med (2015).^[10]

References

1. Weist, Ellen Fagg (April 6, 2018). "'From the neck up, we're completely different': Hamilton actors ready to take their shot with Salt Lake City audiences". Salt Lake Tribune. Archived from the original on 2018-04-11.
2. Criscitiello, Alexa (December 14, 2017). "Your Obedient Servants: Meet the New HAMILTON Tour Stars, Joseph Morales and Nik Walker". Broadway World. Archived from the original on 2018-03-30.
3. Davis, Darren (January 26, 2018). "Hamilton Gets His Shot in Seattle". Seattle Met. Archived from the original on 2018-01-30.
4. Zacharias, Karen Spears (June 2, 2017). "Gold Star son delivers lessons of Hamilton". Ledger-Enquirer. Columbus, Ohio. Archived from the original on July 20, 2017. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
5. The Broadway League. "Joseph Morales". Internet Broadway Database. Archived from the original on April 10, 2018.
6. Fishman, Elly; Pollock, Matt (July 13, 2016). "What to Expect from Your Hamilton Chicago Cast: Meet the soon-to-be stars in Hamilton's first run out of New York". Chicago Magazine. Archived from the original on 2018-04-11.
7. "Joseph Morales: Broadway and Theatre Credits". Broadway World. Archived from the original on 2018-04-11.
8. "Photos: Get A First Look At The 2nd National Tour of HAMILTON". Broadway World. March 6, 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-04-10.
9. McPhee, Ryan (December 14, 2017). "Joseph Morales, Nik Walker, Shoba Narayan, Kyle Scatliffe, More Set for New Hamilton National Tour". Playbill. Archived from the original on 2018-04-07.
10. Webster, Emma Sarran (November 21, 2016). "How the 'Hamilton' Cast Is Liking Chicago So Far". Michigan Avenue. Archived from the original on 2018-04-11.

External links

• Joseph Morales at the Internet Broadway Database
• Joseph Morales at IMDb