Talia Suskauer

Talia Suskauer (born August 2, 1996) is an American musical theatre actress, who is best known for playing Elphaba in the Broadway company of the smash-hit musical Wicked.

Early life

Suskauer was born in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Her mother, Michelle Suskauer was a criminal defense lawyer who would later become president of the Florida Bar Association; her father Scott Suskauer was also an attorney who would later become a judge on Florida's 15th Judicial Circuit. By age 4, she had begun acting in local roles at her community temple. As a child, her parents would take her to attend Broadway shows in New York and played cast albums for her; as a result Suskauer claims that theater "was the only thing I ever really wanted to do". majoring in theatre, and performed on stage locally at StarStruck Theatre in Stuart. She performed as Elphaba until March 12, 2020, when the tour temporarily shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She reopened the show in Dallas at the Music Hall at Fair Park on August 3, 2021, in the first Broadway touring performance to take place since the COVID shutdown began. She played her final performance on tour on March 20, 2022 and was replaced by Lissa deGuzman.

It was then announced that Suskauer would be transferring to the Broadway production, replacing Lindsay Pearce as Elphaba on May 24, 2022. She played her final performance on March 5, 2023, and was replaced by her standby, Alyssa Fox. A TikTok of Suskauer's longtime vocal coach Craig Wich's reaction to the news that she would be joining the cast went viral.

Suskauer's performances as Elphaba have been received favorably by critics. KDHX's Tina Farmer said "Talia Suskauer shines as Elphaba, with beautiful diction and a rich voice that resonates with relatable insecurity and determination." BroadwayWorld's Daniel Collins said of Suskauer, "Elphaba may have a magical broom but she's also got a powerful set of pipes, nearly shaking the rafters as Suskauer belts out songs like 'Defying Gravity' and 'No Good Deed,' each ending with a powerful, how-long-can-she-sustain-that-note vocal crescendo."

Other performances Suskauer has performed regionally at the New London Barn Playhouse in New London, New Hampshire, repeatedly earning New Hampshire Theatre Award nominations for roles such as Princess Fiona in Shrek the Musical, Rosa Bud in The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Lily Craven in The Secret Garden, and Jo March in Little Women. She has also performed at the Penn State Centre Stage with roles as Ms. Asp in Love In Hate Nation and Daphna in Bad Jews. From January 21 to September 7, 2025, she played the role of Lucille Frank in the national tour of the Tony Award-winning revival of the 1998 musical Parade. From June to August 2026, Suskauer led A Walk on the Moon, an off-Broadway musical based on the film of the same name running at the Laura Pels Theatre.

Suskauer is represented by the Harden Curtis Kirsten Riley talent agency and Moxie Artists management.