The inspirational Ali Stroker.

You might know Ali Stroker from The Glee Project, but did you know she will be making her well-deserved Broadway debut in Deaf West's revival of Spring Awakening this fall? In this interview, Ali discusses her love of the arts, her charity work and how her disability has only made her stronger. Make sure to catch Ali as Anna in Spring Awakening on Broadway!

How did you initially become interested in performing?

• "I started performing when I was six years old, I did the musical Annie in this backyard production that my neighbors down at the Jersey Shore put on. I was very young but I realized, this is what I want to do for the rest of my life. I caught the bug."
  
  

Growing up did you visit New York a lot to see Broadway shows?

• "Yeah! I'm from New Jersey so I was able to go, it was the best. I would go with my family or with friends, and I would go see shows like Beauty and the Best, you know? Shows that were like, in the '90s. Any time I would go and see a Broadway show, I would get this tingling feeling like Oh my gosh, I want to do that one day. But I remember watching and asking myself, how would I do that? Because I didn't really know how somebody in a chair could be on Broadway because I had never seen it done. So, I went to college for musical theatre and I knew that I wanted to do it, I just didn't know how I would do it. Especially going into auditions for a show, there's not a of roles for people in chairs. So you go in hoping that they would be open to a new idea."
  
  
  
  

In college, you were in a production of Into The Woods! What character did you play, and could you tell us a little bit about that experience?

• "I was! It was a student production and I played Granny. I remember, because in the show, the wolf eats Granny and then she comes out of the wolf. I decided that I was going to, like, dive out of my chair, onto the ground. Everyone was so nervous but my director and I were like, 'No, we're gonna do it!' Ha. I've always felt like my other students were always comfortable on the stage, and everyone else just needs to catch up."
  
  
  

I am just envisioning you leaping out of your chair onto the stage, I love it. You must've given so many people a heart attack! That's amazing.

• "Haha, yeah! Hey, all for the sake of art!"
  
  

Exactly! Going off of the topic of art, how did you feel when you were told you got the part in Spring Awakening?

• "Oh, it's a crazy story! I was in South Africa, because I teach there with a program from New York called Arts Inside Out. And our internet had been down for like two days, but then I got an email during a class I was teaching. And I remember just going 'OH, MY GOD.' After class, I went to find one of my friends and we hugged and cried and I was yelling, 'I can't believe it!!!!' I always knew that it would happen, but I never thought it would happen so fast."
  

It's just such an amazing show! Had you seen it prior to auditioning?

• "Oh, yeah! I saw it on Broadway back in 2005, or 2006, I don't remember exactly. I was in college and I had a friend who had been cast from my college class, we were in New York and he auditioned and he got it. I remember going to see him in it and then not believing it was real, that somebody my age could be on Broadway. I had always been in love with it and then I did The Glee Project and Glee, and I was working with Lea Michele and Jenna Ushkowitz, it felt like so close to my life. And then Deaf West is doing the show and I auditioned, I was so excited. My agent sent my on my first audition and that was that, and then I got it!"

If you don't mind, let's chat about the Glee Project a little bit. What was that experience like for you as a performer?

• "Here's the weird thing, at first I was like I'm never going to do a reality TV show!' but then the opportunity came my way and I thought, how could I not do this?  And then I ended up being one of the finalists! It really gave me the platform to be able to perform and show the world what I can do, but also to tell my story. No matter what I do or where I go, my wheelchair comes with me, so it was a really good opportunity to kind of be able to tell my side of the story. A lot of the time, people have assumptions of what you're able to do and what you're not able to do, and this was such a good place for me to show the world what I can do!"

I remember watching you do 'Popular' and I remember thinking, 'Man! I want her to be Glinda so bad!'

• "Yes! Oh, gosh. Everyone would always say that to me! I remember listening to Wicked for the first time and realizing there was a character that was in a wheelchair, but then that character could walk and I was like NO! Ha, I don't know if they'd every cast anybody actually in a wheelchair for the show. Maybe one day! Glinda is sort of like, my dream role."
  
  
  

Theatre is constantly growing and they're constantly doing so many things, so I feel like in the near future there will be more roles that help with diversity!

• "It needs to happen, and it's kind of a big thing that's happening now because there has never been an actor or an actress in a wheelchair cast on Broadway. So, this is a cool moment for anyone who has a disability and who wanted to be on Broadway who feels that they aren't represented and that it's impossible. I'm excited about the idea that things are changing!"

Speaking of the power of representation, after you appeared on The Glee Project, and then on Glee, did you have a lot of people reach out to you and share their stories?

• "Yeah, the response has been the same and then, it's not just back then. It's people still! People stop me all of the time and they tell me 'I saw you on the Glee Project and you really inspired me!' It happens all of the time and you don't realize when you're doing that kind of thing what you're actually doing, you know? I was there 'cause I wanted to be on Glee, ha! But there was also a greater reason why I was there. For Glee, they had a character that was in a wheelchair, but the actor wasn't really in a wheelchair. So, I think, there was still this separation between somebody who actually has a disability and actually wants to do this, to see somebody who has a disability and is doing it, not somebody who's playing the part."

Talking about reaching out, you are involved in so many charitable organizations, it's crazy! Good for you. Could you tell us a little bit about some of them?

• "I work with Arts Inside Out, an anti-bullying campaign called Be More Heroic. I'm on an all wheelchair dance team with the Walk and Roll foundation, I represent them as well. One of my very good friends who is also in a chair, started this after she was injured, it's non-profit. I told her I'd stand behind her in anything she'd do, she's like a sister to me! That's really fun and it's also really fun to have a community that's similar to me, and having people there for you. You know, you have support but there's nothing like having a community there that is going through what you're going through. It's great."
  
  

That's amazing! So, when you were in South Africa teaching, could you see yourself continuing to go back there?

• "Yes! This past trip was my third time going and certainly not my last because I feel like, when so much good comes my way, I have to give back. There were so many people there for me after my accident and so much support, I feel like part of my mission is to, of course go after my dreams but to also help and support people and bring the arts to someone who really could use a form of expression and an outlet because that's what the arts did for me."

Going off of that, what inspires you the most? What drives you to be the best you can be?

• "Whoa. Hm. I would say, people. People inspire me. Humanity inspires me to continue at this journey of being a performer and having a disability. I feel like it's so important to feel like they are represented, so when I was growing up, there was no body who looked like me on TV or on stage and I think that if there was a young person out there who wanted to do this, how cool is it for them to know this is possible? I grew up unsure if it was. Traveling and meeting new people, that's one of the best part of being a performer! You get to connect with people, even if it's not face to face, but when you perform you get to connect with the audience. When I get the opportunity to perform, I don't know if it's adrenaline, but I just feel like I'm dreaming."

When you were in college, did you receive a piece of advice that you still hold dear to you today?

• "I did! I remember being told, do three things a day that can help you move forward even if there's nothing going on, especially when there's nothing going on. And then my dad is a coach, so he washed me with inspiration and inspirational quotes. They're all over my house. I think that finding yourself and your inner strength is probably one of the hardest parts of growing up and maturing and that, for me, has been one of the hardest parts of this. Knowing that with a job or without a job, I'm okay and I'm strong and I have people around me that love me and I have something to say and something to do. I have a purpose! It's sort of jumbley, but that's how I feel! Ha!"
  
  

What would you say to someone who has a disability and thinks that they can't achieve their dreams?

• "I would say to them, first of all, tell the story you want to tell .When you have a disability, there's a lot of different angles and a lot of different ways to introduce yourself. Decide what you want to tell and what you want to share. I think that people are really rooting for me and wanting to help me and part of that is because I know that I'm not a victim and my disability has only been an opportunity for me. And also, become the best performer, singer, actor, dancer you can be and be open to growing. That's what I love about the arts because talent rises above everything else, even if you come in with a disability and you're talented, nobody can say anything! Often, some of the greatest talent comes from the most unexpected places.
  
  I was at the Kennedy Center for the 25th anniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act, and there were all people with disabilities performing. There was this one kid who recently became blind and he said, when he sang, that when all of the video games and sports disappeared, what he was left with was this gift - he played piano. Growing up, I couldn't play sports. There were a lot of things I couldn't do. It's not about what you can't do, it's about what you can do and putting all of your time and energy into that."