Julia Lester

For the American soccer player, see Julia Lester (soccer).

Not to be confused with Julia Lester Dillon.

Julia Lester (born January 28, 2000^[1]) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Ashlyn Caswell in the Disney+ series High School Musical: The Musical: The Series and for her portrayal of the role of Little Red Ridinghood in the 2022 Broadway revival of Into the Woods, for which she was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical.

Julia Lester
Lester at the Opening Night of the 2022 Broadway revival of Into the Woods
Born	(2000-01-28) January 28, 2000 (age 25)
Occupation(s)	Actress, singer
Years active	2009–present
Known for	High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, Into the Woods
Partner	Ilana Wolpert (2022–present)
Father	Loren Lester
Relatives	Peter Mark Richman (maternal grandfather) Lucas Richman (uncle)

Early life and education

Lester is from Woodland Hills, CA.^[2] She is Jewish.^[3] She is the youngest daughter of actors Kelly and Loren Lester, granddaughter of actors Helen and Peter Mark Richman, and niece of conductor/composer Lucas Richman.^[4]

She attended Calabasas High School.^[5]

Personal life

Lester is queer^[6] and has been dating screenwriter Ilana Wolpert since 2022.^[7]

Her character on High School Musical: The Musical: The Series also came out as queer in the third season.^[6]

Acting credits

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2011	The One Who Got Away	Young Cherie	Short film
2020	Annie Minerals, Teen Therapist	Annie
2021	What She Said		Associate producer
2024	Prom Dates	Hannah

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2014	Neckpee Island	Mona	Television film
2016	Bella and the Bulldogs	Gracie Crenshaw	Episode: "Bella in the Spotlight"
2017	Mom	Emily	3 episodes
2018	The Thundermans	Smith	Episode: "Revenge of the Smith"
2019	Prince of Peoria	Suzie	2 episodes
	Game Shakers	Tonya Mulligan	Episode: "Why Tonya"[8]
2019–2020	Spirit Riding Free	Bebe Schumann	Voice
2019–2023	High School Musical: The Musical: The Series	Ashlyn Caswell	Main role; Disney+ series
2023–2024	Hailey's On It!	Tina / various	Voice, 5 episodes
2025	The Four Seasons	Lila	4 episodes

Theater

Year	Title	Role	Venue	Ref.
2009	Les Misérables	Little Cosette	Regional	[9]
2010	Into the Woods	Milky White		[10]
2012	The Wizard of Oz	Dorothy Gale	Up On Stage	[11]
2015	Les Misérables	Éponine Thénardier	Youth Musical Theatre	[9]
2016	Carrie	Carrie White	Young Artists Ensemble
2017	Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat	Narrator / Ensemble	Kavli Theatre, Thousand Oaks
2018	Into the Woods	Little Red Ridinghood	Cupcake Theater, Los Angeles
	Next to Normal	Natalie	Hillcrest Center For The Arts, Thousand Oaks
	Calvin Berger	Bret	Hudson Backstage Theatre, Hollywood	[12]
2022	Into the Woods	Little Red Ridinghood	New York City Center, Off-Broadway
			St. James Theatre, Broadway	[13]
2023	The Secret Garden	Martha Sowerby	Ahmanson Theatre, Los Angeles	[14]
	I Can Get It for You Wholesale	Miss Marmelstein	Classic Stage Company, Off-Broadway	[15]
2025	All Nighter	Wilma	The Newman Mills Theater, Off-Broadway	[16]

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Work	Result
2023	Drama Desk Awards	Outstanding Featured Performance in a Musical	Into the Woods	Nominated
	Outer Critics Circle Awards	Outstanding Featured Performer in a Broadway Musical		Nominated
	Tony Awards	Best Featured Actress in a Musical		Nominated
2025	Lucille Lortel Awards	Outstanding Featured Performer in a Play	All Nighter	Nominated
	Drama Desk Awards	Outstanding Featured Performance in a Play		Pending