Early years and education Lee is an alumnus of the
Doreen Bird College of Performing Arts after which he has been involved in various musicals as a performer and choreographer.
Career Lee appeared in the dance play
Contact in the West End at the Queen's Theatre, opening in October 2002. In 2004, Lee auditioned to be the
Bert understudy in the London production of
Mary Poppins, but won the role outright. He originated the role of Bert in the original
West End production. He also starred as Bert in the
Broadway production of
Mary Poppins. He was chosen for the Broadway role because of his critically acclaimed performance as Bert in the West End production. He departed the Broadway production after nearly two years to launch the US National Tour, but returned to the Broadway production in August 2010 until January 2013. Lee was nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Musical at the 2005
Olivier Awards and the 2005 Theatregoer's Choice Awards for originating the West End role of Bert. For his Broadway performance, Lee was nominated for the 2006
Outer Critics Circle Awards (Outstanding Actor in a Musical) and the 2007
Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical. He also won the 2007
Drama Desk Award for Featured Actor in a Musical and an award for Outstanding Broadway Debut at the 63rd annual
Theatre World Awards. In August 2007, Lee was added to
Sardi's caricature gallery with other Broadway actors. In June 2008, Lee performed in a concert version of
Show Boat at
Carnegie Hall as Frank Schultz. He has performed as part of
Andrew Lloyd Webber's
The Phantom of the Opera film adaptation, appearing as one of the singers/dancers in the "Masquerade" scene. Lee and former London co-star
Laura Michelle Kelly performed as Bert and Mary Poppins in the
America Celebrates 4 July at Fords Theatre in front of President
Barack Obama and First Lady
Michelle Obama on 6 June 2010. The special aired on 2 July 2010 on
ABC. Lee again reunited with Kelly when he returned to the role of Bert in the Broadway production of
Mary Poppins on 24 August 2010. He took over the role of Jerry Travers in the West End production of
Top Hat beginning 5 February 2013. He joined the Broadway revival of
Les Miserables as Thenardier beginning 3 March 2015. Lee played
Squidward Tentacles in
SpongeBob SquarePants, the Broadway Musical. The stage musical premiered at the
Oriental Theatre in Chicago, Illinois, and ran from June to July 2016. Lee reprised his role as Squidward for the Broadway run of the musical, starting with November 2017 previews at the
Palace Theatre and remaining until it closed in September 2018. Lee was nominated for a
Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his role as Squidward. In June 2019, he appeared at
Paper Mill Playhouse in
Millburn, New Jersey, taking on the role of Lumiere in
Beauty and the Beast. He reprised the role in the 2021 UK tour. The production then transferred to the West End's
London Palladium for a limited engagement beginning June 2022. On February 17, 2020, he performed the Manhattan Concert Productions' 50th-anniversary celebration of
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at
David Geffen Hall,
Lincoln Center. He played the Butler. Lee returned to the
Paper Mill Playhouse to play Max Detweiler in its production of
The Sound of Music from December 2–January 1, 2023. He then went on to star in the tribute revue ''
Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends'', which opened at the
Gielgud Theatre on 3 October 2023 following preview performances that began on 21 September. The production ran until 6 January 2024. In 2025, the revue transferred to the
Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles and then to Broadway's
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre. Lee took over the role of
Scar in the Broadway production of
The Lion King beginning July 22, 2025. ==Acting credits==