Audra McDonald and her husband Will Swenson are a Broadway power couple.

The actors first met in 2007 while working on the Broadway revival of 110 in the Shade, per The New York Times. Swenson proposed on New Year’s Day in 2012, and the pair got married later that same year. McDonald and Swenson welcomed their daughter Sally James in October 2016.

The Broadway stars are incredibly supportive of each other’s careers, but they both get nervous when the other is in the audience.

“The scariest audience for me is always the audience where you’re sitting, because I feel loved and supported, but I still want you to like me,” McDonald — who is currently up for her record seventh Tony Award — told Swenson during a 2022 Entertainment Weekly joint interview.

Swenson agreed, adding, “I’ll perform in front of thousands of strangers and not get insecure, but I want you to like me so much that I get nervous every time you come.”

So who is Audra McDonald’s husband? Here’s everything to know about Will Swenson and his relationship with the actress.

He was raised in Utah

Swenson and his family moved to Provo, Utah, when he was 12. He grew up performing at the Hale Theater, which his family owned and operated, per Deseret News, and was raised in a Mormon home.

Swenson has since left The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS).

“I no longer go to church. I’m not a practicing Mormon,” he said during an appearance on the Why I’ll Never Make It podcast in 2021. “I’m still very much culturally Mormon. I miss elements of it.”

He continued, “I think, on one hand, [my family] is proud of their son of Utah that has done well, and on the other hand, they are sad and disappointed and think I have something wrong with my soul.”

He’s an actor

After graduating with a degree in theatre from Brigham Young University, Swenson took a job performing at Disney World as Beauty and the Beast‘s Gaston, he told Backstage in 2024.

Swenson eventually landed on Broadway in 2004’s Brooklyn. In 2009, Swenson gained significant acclaim for his portrayal of Berger in the 2009 revival of Hair, earning him a Tony Award nomination.

His Broadway repertoire includes other notable roles such as Javert in Les Misérables (2014), Earl in Waitress (2016) and Neil Diamond in A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical (2022).

In addition to his stage work, Swenson has starred in several Mormon films, including The Singles Ward (2002) and Sons of Provo (2004).

They made their red carpet debut in 2009

McDonald and Swenson made their red carpet debut as a couple at the American Theatre Wing’s Spring Gala in 2009.

Since then, the couple have attended the Tony Awards five times. McDonald has been at the opening night of many of her husband’s productions, including Hair and Priscilla Queen of the Desert.

Most recently, McDonald and Swenson walked the red carpet together at the 2025 Met Gala.

He married McDonald in 2012

Swenson and McDonald wed on Oct. 6, 2012, at their home in Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y.

In October 2024, the Private Practice star paid tribute to her husband on their anniversary via a post on Instagram.

“Married this guy 12 years ago. Here’s to 12 more and then 12 more after that and 12 more and 12 more and 12 more and 12 more…” she wrote.

They welcomed their daughter in 2016

Swenson and McDonald have a blended family. Four years after getting married, the couple welcomed their daughter, Sally James, on Oct. 19, 2016.

The actress was already a mom to daughter Zoe Madeline, whom she shares with her first husband, Peter Donovan. Swenson also has two sons, Sawyer and Bridger, with his first wife, Amy Westerby.

In 2024, McDonald paid tribute to Sally on her 8th birthday.

“This most gorgeous precious big ball of light, joy and love is 8 years old today,” she wrote on Instagram. “I love you so very much forever and ever and always my sweet Sally! .”

He and McDonald have performed together

The couple first shared the stage in the 2007 Broadway revival of 110 in the Shade. McDonald starred as Lizzie Curry, while Swenson played Cody Bridger.

They reunited for a full production of the same musical in 2010 at Utah’s Hale Center Theater Orem, according to Playbill.

For their next joint project, McDonald and Swenson are “dying to do Anthony and Cleopatra” together, they told Entertainment Weekly in 2022.