Jacob Pham of Harbor Links is currently playing Young Simba in Broadway’s “The Lion King.”
When Jacob Pham was on the brink of turning 10, he had one request – he wanted to take a trip to New York City to see his first Broadway show. His pick? Disney’s “The Lion King.”
“We also got to see ‘Phantom of the Opera’ and ‘Moulin Rouge,’ but when we saw ‘The Lion King,’ I think the spark and the passion just exploded in him because he was so mesmerized by it. Afterward, he said, ‘Mom, one day I want to be Young Simba.’”
That day has come.
At just 12 years old, Jacob has landed his dream role playing Young Simba on the Broadway stage.
Jacob’s love of music began when he was in preschool and would listen to his big sister Emma play the piano. “I would sit next to her and just watch her because she was really good,” Jacob said.
Jacob was able to listen and play by ear, and then Emma taught him to play his first song: “All of Me,” by John Legend. “I just kept playing the melody…I memorized it and it was just so fascinating.”
He began piano lessons at 7 and quickly mastered the works of classical composers. Jacob has since added guitar, drums and ukulele to his musical repertoire, but piano remains his first love. Jacob’s parents are quick to insist he did not inherit the musical gene from them. Instead, the credit goes to his paternal grandfather who taught himself to play seven instruments. “He was in church choir… he was always walking around with the accordion and playing around the house,” said Jacob’s father Toan. His grandfather passed away just before Jacob was born, but his gift of music lived on through his grandson.
One day when Jacob was dabbling with the lyrics to “All of Me” his family learned that, like his grandfather, he not only had a gift for playing music; but he could also sing.
A friend of Emma’s heard Jacob singing and encouraged him to sign up for a summer musical at Berkeley Prep. It was a middle school production and, although Jacob was just 8 at the time, the director recognized his talent and cast him as Snail with the Mail in “A Year with Frog and Toad.” “It was amazing, and it was just so fun singing because I had four solos,” Jacob said. He went on to earn the role of The Boy (one of two lead roles) in a summer production of “The Velveteen Rabbit” at Corbett Prep.
It was his entrée into community theater at Ovations Dance Academy at age nine that really helped hone his musical theater chops. Ovations’ Artistic Director Orlando Peña spent 20 years in theater in New York City and moved to Tampa in 2020 to open his first Florida-based academy. He immediately recognized Jacob’s talent and cast him as the charismatic radio announcer, Bert Healy, in “Annie.”
“He’s been in all of our musicals since,” Peña said.
Ngoc credits the year-round theater exposure and supportive environment at Ovations for fostering Jacob’s talent. “Mr. Orlando Peña is amazing, and I think he’s just really inspired Jacob and really homed in on his theater skills and dancing skills and just brought out something really special in Jacob,” she said.
At Ovations, Jacob also found camaraderie with fellow theater kids. “I think that just kind of helped to build his confidence to be around other kids that enjoyed what he did,” Ngoc said.
In 2023, Jacob began middle school at Corbett Prep, a school known for its extensive fine arts program, and found yet another supportive theater environment in which to further his craft. “It really did bring out a completely different aspect of theater for him under Mr. Seth Travaglino,” Ngoc said. “He’s just been really inspiring and supportive of Jacob’s love for theater and he just took him under his wing.”
That same year, Jacob took his career to the next level by working with The Industry Network to secure an agent. He landed with L.A.-based DDO Artists Agency. Shortly after signing with DDO, Jacob had the opportunity to audition for a production of “A Christmas Story.” His audition tapes landed him an ensemble role and he spent two months on a stage in Los Angeles.
But it was his singing and acting coach, Emilia Sargent, who helped pave the way to his dream role.
A year and a half ago, Sargent held an intensive workshop for auditions featuring New York-based talent manager Lisa Calli. “She just fell in love with Jacob,” Ngoc said.
Calli has been in the business for over 20 years and works closely with the Broadway community. “She got a jump on looking at different audition opportunities. ‘The Lion King’ was purely a dream,” Ngoc said.
Jacob landed voiceover roles with Nickelodeon and Disney. He appeared on an episode of “Sesame Street” and had a segment with Elmo. He voiced a character in “Well-Versed,” a Nick Jr. animated series that teaches children civics through short music videos.
But “The Lion King” remained the goal.
“He would watch every clip on YouTube. He would read every single documentary, every write-up they have on ‘The Lion King.’ He researched all the other young kids that did ‘The Lion King’ and it was just his dream,” Ngoc said.
In March of 2023, he got one step closer to that dream when Calli submitted him for the nationwide call for Young Simba. After a series of Zoom auditions, he was one of eight boys invited to New York to audition on stage. In the end, although they loved his performance, he was a bit too small in stature for the role.
Fast forward a year and Disney reached out to Calli to invite Jacob to another final call back. This time he was offered the role on Broadway. “I just told myself to just keep pushing through and just to keep trying …just don’t give up and keep practicing and practicing and it worked!” Jacob said.
His success comes as no surprise to those who have worked with him.
“He’s an amazing young man. So, so talented, but also so kind and humble,” Travaglino said. “He’s just done so much to elevate his craft and those around him…I can’t wait to see him shine on Broadway.”
“He’s brilliant,” added Peña. “He has a photographic memory; he has rhythm. He has all of the tools to be a gifted performer…plus an incredibly supportive family.”
Indeed, the Phams have supported Jacob wholeheartedly in his acting pursuits, but they are just as supportive of him being a typical tween. “He loves to play football. He still plays his video games. So, we try to nurture all the other aspects of being a kid and still being able to relax and goof off and enjoy other aspects besides just performing,” Ngoc said.
But performing is in his blood.
“I love to entertain the audience, and I just want the audience to feel something whenever I perform,” Jacob said.
Jacob will be entertaining Broadway audiences in his role as Young Simba on select days through February 16, 2025.
A fact that still hasn’t quite sunk in.
“It’s just been a whirlwind, you know… I don’t think it’s going to hit until we see him on stage,” Ngoc said.
Editor’s note: For more on Jacob’s career and his Broadway schedule, follow him on Instagram @jacobphamofficial.
