These 6 UCLA Grads Are Taking New York Theater by Storm

August 24, 2016 by Natalie Grillo

The University of California Los Angeles was one of the first universities to combine theater, film, and television into a single administration. The result: major talent.

Take a look at these six alumni who have recently taken Broadway by storm.

Beth Behrs

Most recognized for her TV role on “Two Broke Girls”, Beth Behrs recently made her Off-Broadway debut in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Gynecologic Oncology Unit at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center of New York City. Behrs graduated in 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the School of Theater, Film, and Television.

Derek Klena

After making his Broadway debut in Wicked as Fiyero, Derek next went to star alongside Kelli O’Hara and Steven Pasquale in The Bridges of Madison County. Most recently, this UCLA grad starred as Dmitry in the highly anticipated production of Anastasia and will be transferring in the role on Broadway next spring.

Katie Boeck

Before becoming the voice of Wendla in the beautiful and inspiring revival of Spring Awakening, Katie Boeck was a star at UCLA, winning their talent competition Spring Sing for a record-breaking 3 years in a row.

Jessica Keenan Wynn

Born and raised in LA, Jessica Keenan Wynn moved to NYC in 2014 to make her debut in Heathers the Musical Off-Broadway after graduating from the theater program at UCLA. Now starring in Beautiful: The Carole King Musical on Broadway, Jessica is keeping in line as the fifth generation of an acting family dynasty.

Coby Getzug

Coby Getzug studied the arts at both the LA County High School for the Arts and UCLA. Only 9 months after his college graduation, Getzug became the standby for Elder Cunningham in the national tour of The Book of Mormon. Coby is now saying “Hello!” as the Elder Cunningham standby on Broadway.

Doug Carpenter

After receiving a degree in opera from UNLV, Doug Carpenter made the decision to study musical theater at UCLA. After only one audition after graduation, Doug landed the role as the prince in Rodger’s and Hammerstein’s Cinderella at the Civic Light Opera of South Bay Cities. This talented UCLA grad is now taking Broadway by storm in Beautiful: The Carole King Musical.

UCLA isn’t the only university in Los Angeles to produce some seriously talented actors and actresses. Check out these young stage stars who went to USC.