# Phillipa Soo
**Phillipa Soo** (born 1990) is an American actress and singer best known for originating the role of [Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton](https://www.edgepedia.org/elizabeth-schuyler-hamilton) in the Broadway musical *Hamilton*, a performance that earned her a 2016 Tony Award nomination, a Grammy Award for the cast album, and an Emmy Award nomination for the filmed version.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5623883/) • [2](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/phillipa-soo) She has since originated leading roles on Broadway in *Amélie*, *Into the Woods*, and *Camelot*, and stars as Dr. Avery Morgan in the ABC series *Doctor Odyssey*.[3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/phillipa-soo-501275) • [4](https://www.dgepress.com/abc/bios/phillipa-soo/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1990, Libertyville, Illinois[3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/phillipa-soo-501275) |
| Training | Graduated from The Juilliard School's acting program in 2012[5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/la-ca-cm-phillipa-soo-20161211-story.html) |
| Signature role | Eliza Hamilton, original Broadway cast (July 13, 2015 – July 9, 2016)[6](https://theatricalindex.com/person/phillipa-soo) |
| Major awards | Tony nomination (2016), Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album (2016), Primetime Emmy nomination (2021)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5623883/) • [2](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/phillipa-soo) |
| Other originated roles | Natasha Rostova in *Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812* (2012), Amélie (2017), Cinderella in *Into the Woods* (2022), Guenevere in *Camelot* (2023)[4](https://www.dgepress.com/abc/bios/phillipa-soo/) • [3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/phillipa-soo-501275) |
| Television leads | Harper in *The Code* (2019), Avery Morgan in *Doctor Odyssey* (2024–2025, 18 episodes)[7](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Phillipa-Soo/) |
| Writing | Debut children's book *Piper Chen Sings*, a New York Times bestseller[8](https://www.laphil.com/people/phillipa-soo) |
## Early life and training
Soo grew up in Libertyville, Illinois, and trained at The Juilliard School in New York, graduating from its acting program in 2012.[3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/phillipa-soo-501275) • [5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/la-ca-cm-phillipa-soo-20161211-story.html) She has described her musical background as a mix, including piano study as a child, and has said Juilliard was the first place she could "access the musical version" of herself as an actor.[9](https://time.com/4589438/phillipa-soo-michelle-obama-hamilton/) • [10](https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/phillipa-soo-the-code-cbs-hamilton-interview/)
**First roles.** Just two months after graduating, she made a much-heralded debut as [Natasha Rostova](https://www.edgepedia.org/natasha-rostova), the heroine of Tolstoy's *War and Peace*, in [Dave Malloy](https://www.edgepedia.org/dave-malloy)'s pop opera *Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812*, in the 2012 Ars Nova production.[5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/la-ca-cm-phillipa-soo-20161211-story.html) • [4](https://www.dgepress.com/abc/bios/phillipa-soo/) The show transferred to the custom-built [Off-Broadway](https://www.edgepedia.org/off-broadway) venue Kazino, where directors Thomas Kail and Pam MacKinnon saw it and began thinking of Soo for new musicals each had in development: *Hamilton* and *Amélie*.[11](https://dramatics.org/phillipa-soo-lights-up-broadway/) Soo has said the role taught her how to tell a story through song and how to find herself in a historical figure, skills that carried directly into *Hamilton*.[11](https://dramatics.org/phillipa-soo-lights-up-broadway/)
## Hamilton
Soo was invited to a reading of *Hamilton* in December 2013, when [Lin-Manuel Miranda](https://www.edgepedia.org/lin-manuel-miranda) was still writing the second act and wanted to hear it aloud; she was then offered the role of Eliza Hamilton in the show's world premiere at the Public Theater.[5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/la-ca-cm-phillipa-soo-20161211-story.html) • [11](https://dramatics.org/phillipa-soo-lights-up-broadway/) She played Eliza in the original Broadway cast from July 13, 2015 to July 9, 2016.[6](https://theatricalindex.com/person/phillipa-soo) The role brought her a nomination for the 2016 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical, a [Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album](https://www.edgepedia.org/grammy-award-for-best-musical-theater-album) as part of the cast recording, the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Musical, and the Actors' Equity Foundation's 2015 Clarence Derwent Award.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5623883/) • [7](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Phillipa-Soo/) • [12](https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/phillipa-soo-eliza-hamilton-hillary-clinton-9818/)
In June 2016, as the relentless eight-shows-a-week schedule took its toll on the original cast, Soo, Miranda, Leslie Odom Jr., and other members announced their departure for the following month. Director [Thomas Kail](https://www.edgepedia.org/thomas-kail) filmed the original company over three dates, June 26 to 28, 2016, without film-specific rehearsals; Soo said she asked of herself only to "show up and let the story guide me."[13](https://time.com/5861263/hamilton-movie-behind-the-scenes/) The filmed version was released on Disney+ in 2020, and her performance as Eliza earned her a nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie at the 73rd [Primetime Emmy Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/primetime-emmy-awards) in 2021.[7](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Phillipa-Soo/) • [2](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/phillipa-soo)
## Stage career after Hamilton
Soo has originated and starred in more than six Broadway and Off-Broadway productions.[8](https://www.laphil.com/people/phillipa-soo) Her Broadway credits after *Hamilton* include the title role in *Amélie, A New Musical* (2017), Rebecca in the play *The Parisian Woman* opposite [Uma Thurman](https://www.edgepedia.org/uma-thurman) (2017–2018), [Cinderella](https://www.edgepedia.org/cinderella) in the 2022 Broadway revival of *Into the Woods*, and Guenevere in [Aaron Sorkin](https://www.edgepedia.org/aaron-sorkin)'s 2023 Lincoln Center revival of Lerner & Loewe's *Camelot*.[3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/phillipa-soo-501275) • [4](https://www.dgepress.com/abc/bios/phillipa-soo/) Off-Broadway, she played Inez Milholland in the Public Theater's 2022 world premiere of Shaina Taub's *Suffs*, directed by Leigh Silverman; when the musical reached Broadway, the role was played by Hannah Cruz.[4](https://www.dgepress.com/abc/bios/phillipa-soo/) • [14](https://apnews.com/article/7b947d76e2cd781d20eb238f4ff1e009) She also appeared in the Off-Broadway plays *Nassim* (2019) and *Tumacho* (2020).[6](https://theatricalindex.com/person/phillipa-soo) Her performance as Cinderella earned a 2023 Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Featured Performance in a Musical, and she won a Grammy as part of the *Into the Woods* cast album.[3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/phillipa-soo-501275) • [8](https://www.laphil.com/people/phillipa-soo)
## Screen work
Soo made her television debut in the NBC series *Smash* in 2013, then played a lead role as Harper in the CBS military drama *The Code* (2019).[7](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Phillipa-Soo/) Her later television credits include a supporting role in the Hulu miniseries *Dopesick* (2021) and a role in the Apple TV+ series *Shining Girls* (2022).[7](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Phillipa-Soo/) • [4](https://www.dgepress.com/abc/bios/phillipa-soo/) Since 2024 she has starred as Dr. Avery Morgan, one of the leads alongside [Joshua Jackson](https://www.edgepedia.org/joshua-jackson), Sean Teale, and [Don Johnson](https://www.edgepedia.org/don-johnson), in Ryan Murphy's ABC medical drama *Doctor Odyssey*, appearing in 18 episodes through 2025.[4](https://www.dgepress.com/abc/bios/phillipa-soo/) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5623883/)
Her feature film debut came in Fabien Constant's *Here and Now*, opposite [Sarah Jessica Parker](https://www.edgepedia.org/sarah-jessica-parker).[4](https://www.dgepress.com/abc/bios/phillipa-soo/) She starred in the [Selena Gomez](https://www.edgepedia.org/selena-gomez)-produced romantic comedy *The Broken Hearts Gallery* (2020), voiced the moon goddess Chang'e in Netflix's animated *Over the Moon* (2020) and a lead role in Disney+'s *The One and Only Ivan*, and starred as Emma Blair in the 2023 adaptation of Taylor Jenkins Reid's bestseller *One True Loves*, opposite Simu Liu and Luke Bracey, a film on which she also served as an executive producer.[4](https://www.dgepress.com/abc/bios/phillipa-soo/) • [7](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Phillipa-Soo/)
## Writing and recording
**Piper Chen Sings.** During the Covid-19 lockdown, Soo and Maris Pasquale Doran, a psychotherapist and social worker, wrote their debut picture book *Piper Chen Sings*, communicating largely by FaceTime between Brooklyn and New Jersey. The book centers a Chinese American protagonist, a choice both authors considered especially important given the rise in anti-Asian hate crimes during the pandemic, and draws on Soo's own childhood experience of stage fright.[15](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/phillipa-soo-maris-pasquale-interview/) The book became a New York Times bestseller.[8](https://www.laphil.com/people/phillipa-soo) She has also contributed to *Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls* and its second volume, and to *Eliza: The Story of Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton*.[16](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/2190121/phillipa-soo/) As a singer she appears on the album *Warriors* by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Eisa Davis.[8](https://www.laphil.com/people/phillipa-soo)
## Personal life
Soo lives in Brooklyn with her husband, the actor Steven Pasquale.[16](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/2190121/phillipa-soo/)
## References
1. [Phillipa Soo, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5623883/)
2. [Phillipa Soo, Emmy Awards and Nominations, Television Academy](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/phillipa-soo)
3. [Phillipa Soo, IBDB](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/phillipa-soo-501275)
4. [Phillipa Soo bio, ABC/Disney Press](https://www.dgepress.com/abc/bios/phillipa-soo/)
5. ['Hamilton' star Phillipa Soo on bringing the magic of 'Amelie' to the stage, Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/la-ca-cm-phillipa-soo-20161211-story.html)
6. [Phillipa Soo, Performer, Theatrical Index](https://theatricalindex.com/person/phillipa-soo)
7. [Phillipa Soo, BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Phillipa-Soo/)
8. [Phillipa Soo, LA Phil](https://www.laphil.com/people/phillipa-soo)
9. [Hamilton Star: Michelle Obama Gave Me 'the Best Compliment I Have Ever Received', Time](https://time.com/4589438/phillipa-soo-michelle-obama-hamilton/)
10. [Phillipa Soo On 'The Code', 'Hamilton' & Auditioning For Juilliard, CBS New York](https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/phillipa-soo-the-code-cbs-hamilton-interview/)
11. [Phillipa Soo Lights Up Broadway, Dramatics Magazine](https://dramatics.org/phillipa-soo-lights-up-broadway/)
12. [Phillipa Soo on Eliza Hamilton (and Hillary Clinton), Backstage](https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/phillipa-soo-eliza-hamilton-hillary-clinton-9818/)
13. [Inside Hamilton's Four-Year Journey From Stage to Screen, Time](https://time.com/5861263/hamilton-movie-behind-the-scenes/)
14. [Hillary Clinton and Malala Yousafzai producing. An election coming. 'Suffs' has timing on its side, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/7b947d76e2cd781d20eb238f4ff1e009)
15. [A Broadway Star Gets in Touch With Her Inner Child, Kirkus Reviews](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/phillipa-soo-maris-pasquale-interview/)
16. [Phillipa Soo, Penguin Random House](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/2190121/phillipa-soo/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Theater and dance › Stage practitioners and craft › Acting: theory, technique, and teachers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license