Former Tisch and Courant student Adi Roy first played Aladdin on stage in his middle school’s production of “Aladdin Jr.” At that time, he hadn’t even seen the popular Disney film. Now, Roy fills Aladdin’s shoes several times per week on Broadway.
After starting his Broadway stint as an NYU student, Roy was eventually cast as Aladdin in 2022 and has continued the role ever since. The show has been nominated for five Tony Awards, including Best Musical and Best Choreography, and has seen overwhelmingly positive reviews since it began running on Broadway in 2014.
In an interview with WSN, Roy discussed breaking into the Broadway sphere, playing Aladdin and growing alongside his character.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
WSN: Where did your passion for the arts originate?
Roy: I grew up watching Bollywood movies with my parents, and that’s where my first love for entertainment came. A lot of the bonding that me and my family had was sitting at the TV for dinner and watching a movie — that defined my childhood. Until high school, I went to a few theater camps, one of which was Paper Mill Playhouse Summer Musical Theater Conservatory, a big regional theater in New Jersey. I fell in love with that process. I fell in love with getting into the nitty-gritty details of theater and figuring out what I want to be like as an actor.
Roy started attending NYU in 2020 and studied drama at the Tisch School of the Arts, as well as data science and mathematics at the Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences. During the fall of his sophomore year, he auditioned for the role of Phoenix in the Broadway show “Jagged Little Pill,” a musical inspired by Alanis Morissette’s 1995 album about a family grappling with their suppressed pain from challenging experiences. Roy said that at the time, he had just been rejected from another show, but was able to channel his sadness from that experience into embodying this character and scoring the big-stage part.
Soon after earning the role, Roy dropped out of NYU to pursue his passion for performance full time. “Jagged Little Pill” was on Broadway from October to December 2021.
WSN: What was your opening night in ‘Jagged Little Pill’ like?
Roy: There was a lot of pressure to get up to Broadway standard. I told my parents, ‘Let me get better at this role a little bit, then you guys can come. Don’t come to opening.’ My dad actually surprised me and he was in the audience. I saw him outside the stage door when I got out. I was really emotional. I don’t think anything will ever compare to that night. It was the reopening of a show post-COVID, and the energy in the crowd was amazing. Everyone wanted to be there so badly. It was my Broadway debut, so I had friends, family members, all cheering for me in the audience. It was electric.
Roy moved back home to New Jersey after his first Broadway show closed and started looking for more opportunities on stage. After auditioning for “Aladdin” in 2021, he said that the team invited him to re-audition in February 2022 for both the Broadway show and the North American tour. Roy described going through six rounds of auditions over two months before booking the leading role, rehearsing for eight weeks and eventually performing in the first show.
The tour of “Aladdin” began in October 2022 and ended this May — Roy playing the titular role throughout the entire period. The cast traveled to 58 cities in the United States and Canada, including Washington, DC, Tulsa and Toronto. The next month, Roy began playing Aladdin at the New Amsterdam Theatre in Times Square. He said that finding routine in his life was hard on the road and that acting on Broadway has proven slightly easier — even with numerous shows to star in per week.
WSN: How do you find work-life balance?
Roy: This is the longest I’ve done a show ever, and so, to keep it fresh, it’s still an ongoing process of figuring out how I can continue to make this show good every night, and not just go through the motions. Taking time off helps revitalize the show. When you’re sitting in an audience, you realize how much power being up on stage has on an audience, and you feel that love for theater again. That always helps me re-key into that.
When acting, Roy said that he tries to make the experience interesting for both himself and the audience each night by interacting with his co-actors in different ways and experimenting with performance techniques on stage — especially with Don Darryl Rivera, the actor who has played the role of comedic bird Iago since the show’s opening in 2014. Roy also admitted that mastering dancing in the musical was his biggest struggle throughout rehearsals, but he has gotten significantly better since first joining the cast.
Critics said that Roy’s performance during the U.S. and Canadian tour was “simply unmissable” and noted his “brazen self-assurance” in the role as Aladdin sweeps Princess Jasmine off her feet. Roy said while he would like to continue playing the role on Broadway as long as possible, he is still excited for any future opportunities that come his way — including acting in new theatrical work and film acting.
WSN: What changes have you noticed after playing the same character for years?
Roy: I’ve aged two — almost three — years now in the role. As I’ve transitioned from the tour to Broadway, my version of Aladdin has changed a little bit. He’s grown up as well because I experienced life. I experienced traveling across the nation, learning about myself and what I need to feel fine as an actor and person. That helps inform the character. I have learned from Aladdin to look for the joy in situations. I’ve generally done that for most of my life, but Aladdin is the type of dude to just always look for the joy, even when it’s sad. That helps make life a little less serious.
Contact Rory Lustberg at [email protected].
