Ben Cook (actor)

Benjamin Tyler Cook (born December 11, 1997)  is an American actor, dancer and singer. A Helen Hayes Award nominee, he has appeared in three Broadway productions: Ragtime, Billy Elliot the Musical, Tuck Everlasting and the upcoming musical adaptation of Mean Girls. He has also performed in two Broadway national tours, Billy Elliot the Musical and Newsies the Musical; and appeared on television in episodes of 30 Rock, House of Cards, Veep and Law & Order: SVU.

Early life
Cook was born in Eden, North Carolina. He grew up in New York City and Lorton, Virginia. He is the youngest child of Jill and Glenn Cook. His mother is an assistant director for the American School Counselor Association (ASCA). His father is an award-winning freelance writer, photographer, publishing consultant and blogger.

Cook attended and graduated high school from The Metropolitan School of the Arts in 2017.

Career
Cook is best known for his musical theatre roles. He made his Broadway debut in Ragtime, at the Neil Simon Theatre, understudying and performing the role of "Edgar (the little boy)". He performed in several productions at both Ford's Theatre and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, in Washington, D.C. Cook then returned to Broadway in the role of "Tall Boy" in Billy Elliot the Musical, at the Imperial Theatre, and played the roles of "Michael," then "Billy" in the North American National Tour of the production. His final tour performance as "Billy" was in Las Vegas, Nevada on May 19, 2013. Later, he toured for a year and a half in the role of "Race" and occasionally performed the role of "Crutchie" as the understudy in the first national tour of Newsies the Musical.

On January 15, 2016, it was announced that on January 31, 2016, after over 500 performances, Cook would leave the national tour of "Newsies" to become a member of the original Broadway cast of the new musical,"Tuck Everlasting," based on the 1975 children's novel written by Natalie Babbitt. Previews began on March 31, 2016 but the show closed on May 29, 2016, after 28 previews and 39 performances.

Cook subsequently reprised his work in the role of "Race" in "Newsies," in the filmed production of the stage musical, which ran in limited release in selected movie theatres, February 16, 18, 22, 2017.

On television, Cook has appeared as "Young Jack" to Alec Baldwin's "Jack Donaghy", on 30 Rock, in the episode entitled, "Chain Reaction of Mental Anguish;" as well as appearances, as Walt, in the episode of the HBO series, Veep, entitled "The Choice" and "Chapter 27", as Heather Dunbar's son on the Netflix series, House of Cards. Following the filmed production of "Newsies," Cook filmed an appearance on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, playing the role of "Adam Turner," in the episode entitled, "Great Expectations."

On July 27, 2017, it was announced that Cook was cast in the world premiere of the musical adaptation of the film Mean Girls. Its pre-Broadway debut is slated for Oct. 31, 2017, at the National Theatre, in Washington D.C. The book of the musical is written by Tina Fey. Casey Nicholaw, who also directed Cook in Tuck Everlasting directs and SNL creator, Lorne Michaels is the producer.

Personal life
The Cook family home is in Lorton, Virginia.