Ethan Slater facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ethan Slater
Slater in 2024
Born	Ethan Samuel Slater (1992-06-02) June 2, 1992 (age 33) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Alma mater	Vassar College (AB)
Occupation	Actor singer
Years active	2012–present
Spouse(s)	Lilly Jay ​ ​ (m. 2018; div. 2024)​
Children	1

Ethan Samuel Slater (born June 2, 1992) is an American actor and singer. He is famous for playing SpongeBob SquarePants in the musical based on the cartoon. For this role, he won a Drama Desk Award and was nominated for a Tony Award in 2018. He also had a big role in the musical movie Wicked (2024), where he played Boq.

Early Life and School

Ethan Samuel Slater was born on June 2, 1992, in Washington, D.C.. He is the third child of Jay Slater, who worked at the Food and Drug Administration (a U.S. government agency that makes sure food and medicine are safe).

Ethan is Jewish and grew up following Conservative traditions. He went to the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School. Later, his family moved to Silver Spring, Maryland. Ethan's mother passed away when he was seven years old. He has said this was a very important event that shaped his life, even though he has few memories of her.

Slater finished high school at Georgetown Day School in Washington, D.C. He then studied drama at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York. While in college, he tried out for a Shakespeare workshop. This led to an audition with director Tina Landau. Ethan graduated from Vassar in 2014 with a degree in Drama.

Acting Career

Ethan Slater's first time performing in a theater was in July 2015. He starred as Luis in the musical Claudio Quest at the New York Musical Theatre Festival. He was nominated for an award for his performance.

In December 2015, he joined the Delaware Theatre Company. He acted in Barry Levinson's play Diner. Around the same time, he appeared in short films like Lightning Bugs in a Jar.

Becoming SpongeBob

In 2016, Ethan Slater was chosen for the main role of SpongeBob SquarePants. This was for the musical The SpongeBob Musical, directed by Tina Landau. The musical was a big hit in Chicago. Because it was so popular, it moved to Broadway in New York City.

Ethan performed as SpongeBob on Broadway from 2017 to 2018. His acting earned him a Tony Award nomination for Best Actor in a Musical in 2018. He won the Drama Desk Award and the Outer Critics Circle Award for his role. He also received the Theatre World Award for his amazing Broadway debut.

Other Roles

After his success as SpongeBob, Ethan appeared in several TV shows. These included Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Murphy Brown, and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.

In 2019, he was cast in a special theater performance of Camelot. From 2021 to 2022, he starred in the musical Assassins. In this show, he played Lee Harvey Oswald. His performance earned him a nomination for a Lucille Lortel Award.

From 2023 to 2024, Ethan played several roles in the Broadway show Spamalot. He also played Boq in the two-part movie version of the musical Wicked, directed by Jon M. Chu.

Personal Life

Ethan Slater started dating Lilly Jay, his high school sweetheart, in 2012. They got married in 2018. The couple welcomed a son in 2022. They later separated in 2023, and their divorce was finalized in 2024.

Works

Film

Television

Web

Theatre

Discography

Cast Recordings

Solo Recordings

Awards and Nominations