Will Roland

William Frederick Roland, born March 5, 1989, in New York City, is an American actor and singer. He grew up in Greenwich Village before his family relocated to Locust Valley, Long Island, when he was eight years old. Roland attended Friends Academy for both middle school and high school, then went on to earn a degree in musical theater from New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development in 2011.

Roland's professional career began immediately after graduating, when he took on the role of Ian DeForge in The Bus at 59e59 Theaters in New York City. The production ran from October 4 to October 31, 2011. The following year, he appeared in a staged workshop of The Black Suits, a musical by Joe Iconis, at the Barrington Stage Company in the Berkshires, playing Nato Obenkrieger from August 16 to September 2, 2012. That production featured Ben Platt, with whom Roland would later share the stage in Dear Evan Hansen. Roland reprised the role of Nato Obenkrieger when The Black Suits received its world premiere at the Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles, running from October 27 to November 24, 2013.

Roland's involvement with Dear Evan Hansen began in July 2014, when he participated in readings and workshops of the show in the role of Jared Kleinman. The production made its premiere at Arena Stage in Washington, D.C., running from July 10 to August 23, 2015. While in Washington for that engagement, Roland was also cast as Collin in the independent drama film One Penny, with principal photography taking place in 2015. The film premiered at the DC Independent Film Festival in February 2017, and Roland received a nomination for Best Supporting Actor at the Northern Virginia International Film and Music Festival that same year.

Dear Evan Hansen moved to an Off-Broadway limited engagement at the Second Stage Theatre in 2016, with previews beginning March 26 and the show opening May 1 and closing May 29. The production then transferred to Broadway's Music Box Theatre, where previews began November 14, 2016, and the show officially opened December 4, 2016. Roland originated the role of Jared Kleinman in that Broadway production, for which he received a Grammy Award and a Daytime Emmy Award. He remained with the show until June 10, 2018. His performance also attracted the attention of the showrunners of the television series Billions, who offered him an audition after seeing him in Dear Evan Hansen. That audition led to the recurring role of Winston, which Roland began portraying in season 3 of the series.

Roland's history with Be More Chill stretches back to April 2013, when he participated in the show's first reading in the role of Michael. He later re-auditioned for the lead role of Jeremy Heere when the production was casting for its world premiere in 2015 but was not cast at that time. He ultimately landed the role of Jeremy Heere for the show's Off-Broadway limited engagement at the Pershing Square Signature Center, announced on April 13, 2018. Previews began July 26, 2018, the show opened August 9, and it closed September 30, 2018, following a one-week extension. During that run, Roland released a new song titled "Loser Geek Whatever" through Ghostlight Records, a track introduced as the new act one finale for the Off-Broadway production. Be More Chill subsequently transferred to Broadway's Lyceum Theatre, with previews beginning February 13, 2019, opening night on March 10, 2019, and the run closing August 11, 2019.

Beyond his Broadway work, Roland played Zeke Matthews in the 2021 studio cast recording of Goosebumps The Musical: Phantom of the Auditorium, alongside Krystina Alabado and Noah Galvin. In 2023, he appeared in the world premiere of the musical Summer Stock at the Goodspeed Opera House and also participated in the studio cast recording of 17 Again: The Musical. On the personal side, Roland became engaged to Stephanie Wessels on November 7, 2018. The two married in June 2022 and welcomed their first child in October 2025.