Towson alum makes Broadway debut in ‘Hell’s Kitchen,’ performs in Baltimore this month 

By Jaylen Beaner-Walker, Senior Editor

Professional dancer and Towson University Alum Chris Miller made his Broadway debut in “Hell’s Kitchen,” a musical written by 17-time Grammy winner Alicia Keys, in January. 

This November, the cast will be performing at Baltimore’s Hippodrome Theatre. 

The musical, loosely based on Keys’ youth in the ‘90s, is centered around a 17-year-old girl growing up in Hell’s Kitchen, New York who discovered a passion for music and the arts. 

“I think anyone can be able to see themselves within this show and be able to relate to that sense of striving, and that humanity of just finding their purpose and their identity,” Miller said.

Miller is originally from Los Angeles but was raised in Columbia, Maryland. He began his dance training at five years old while taking classes at Studio A Modeling Etiquette and Dance Academy in Baltimore. He has also attended various well-renowned dance schools, such as the Debbie Allen Dance Academy, Dance Theatre of Harlem and The Ailey School. 

Miller graduated from Towson in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in Dance Performance and Choreography, and has cited various mentors as having a significant impact on his dance journey.

One of those people is former Towson dance professor Linda-Denise Fisher-Harrell, who now serves as the Artistic Director at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. 

Harrell first met Miller when he was in middle school. She was the director of the Ailey Summer Camp held by Towson’s Department of Dance. During the pandemic, Miller took Harrell’s classes, which were taught live from her living room.

“It’s been really incredible to see a young person go from being curious about dance and approaching the discipline in middle school and being serious enough to pursue it through college,” Harrell said. “ I mean, he’s in a Broadway show, so that says a lot about his dedication and how serious he’s always been, how curious he’s always been as an artist.”

Miller said he first heard about the musical through his dance acquaintances in the Broadway industry. 

Between March and August 2025, he auditioned for the show four times before taking the last male dance ensemble position later that summer. Rehearsals for the show began shortly after, with the first performance taking place in October 2025 in Cleveland, Ohio. 

According to Miller, the show’s dance rehearsals are dedicated to cleaning up details in choreography that may have been lost throughout the show’s duration. There are also separate rehearsals for the show’s principal actors and the singing ensemble. 

“I didn’t grow up doing musical theater and so being able to do a show 8 times a week and keeping it consistent has been one of the most challenging things that I’ve ever done starting off in my career,” he said.

Miller said that he is hopeful for more opportunities following the show’s completion in August 2027.

“I definitely think that this show has given me a greater overview and a landscape of what to continue to expect, working as a professional dancer in this industry,” he said.