Barrett Conrad Foa (born September 18, 1977)^[1] is an American singer, dancer, and actor. He is best known for his performances inBroadway theatre.^[2] He has played many leading characters inOff-Broadway andregional theatre productions. He has appeared in multiple Broadway shows, includingMamma Mia! and as Princeton and Rod inAvenue Q.^[3] From 2009^[3] to 2021, he portrayed Eric Beale on the military police proceduralNCIS: Los Angeles.^[4]

Barrett Foa
Foa in 2015
Born	Barrett Conrad Foa (1977-09-18)September 18, 1977 (age 47) New York City,New York, U.S.
Education	University of Michigan (BFA)
Occupation(s)	Actor, singer, dancer
Years active	1995–present

Barrett Conrad Foa was born and raised in Manhattan, New York.^[1][5][6] He is the son of Conrad Foa, an international insurance broker, former musician and Army veteran, and mother Linda Rimanich, an executive, editor and author. Foa's parents are both Manhattan natives, community and civic activists, philanthropists, and organizers in the Democratic party.^[7][8][9]

Foa graduated fromThe Dalton School, a K-12 college preparatory school in New York City.^[10][11][12] His interest in musical theater developed during his high school years.^[10] He was involved with the arts—especially musical theater—as a hobby, "a fun, non-athletic, after-school activity that kept me busy and helped me get a little attention".^[13] He attendedInterlochen Center for the Arts—a Northern Michigan school for music, dance, writing, film, visual arts and theater—during his four summers of high school in the 1990s. According to Foa, his experience at Interlochen "instilled the passion and the drive that I feel toward my craft and my business. Finally, I was surrounded by people who were obsessed with something that no else back home even understood. I got excited and I got voracious. 'Other weirdos like me!' I still carry that hunger inside me to this day."^[13][14] Over many summers, he had featured parts in plays, musicals, andoperettas.^[13] Among other skills, he learned to sing in an operatic style for the playLend Me a Tenor.^[3] As an alumnus, he set up the Barrett Foa Musical Theatre Scholarship to be given annually to a high school camper studying musical theatre.^[13]

Foa received his first paid job at the New London Barn Playhouse, asummer stock theatre in New Hampshire, after an audition at StrawHat Audition in 1995, which he thinks was "instrumental in moving his career forward".^[15] He played an effeminate version of evilMordred inCamelot.^[2][15] Foa attended theUniversity of Michigan in Ann Arbor (UMich), earning hisbachelor in fine arts (BFA) in Musical Theatre in 1999.^[14] He kept doing summer stock through his college years and had earned hisEquity card by the time he got his bachelor's degree.^[10] During his junior year, he studied acting andWilliam Shakespeare for a semester at theRoyal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London.^[10][11] After graduating from college, he returned to New York City.^[1]

Foa has played many leading roles in plays and musicalsOff-Broadway, and inregional theatre.^[16] His regional credits includeSweet Charity,The Music Man,Camelot,Pirates! The Musical,The Lady in Question,Much Ado About Nothing, andThe Fantasticks.^[17] His Off-Broadway credits, as of February 2020^[update], includeBuyer & Cellar,The Drunken City,Godspell, andTio Pepe (akaSomewhere).^[a][17]

Foa got his break playingJesus in the 2000 Off-Broadway revival of the musicalGodspell for the 30th anniversary.^[1][11] He is on the cast album as well.^[13][11] HisBroadway theatre debut was in 2001 as a cast member in the original production ofMamma Mia!, a musical based on 22pop songs ofABBA.^[10][18] After months with the show, Foa left to accept a three-month job atTheatreWorks inPalo Alto, California, where he created the lead role in a musical calledKept with music byHenry Kreiger and lyrics byBill Russell.^[10]

After playing Matt inThe Fantasticks atThe Muny inSt. Louis, Foa was picked to play Claudio in a dual production ofMuch Ado About Nothing atHartford Stage and theShakespeare Theatre Company inWashington, D.C. In 2003 Foa was in theCupid and Psyche-inspired four person, Off-Broadway show of the same name which was also an updated Greek mythology and comedy.^[10] He was also in the musicalCamelot as the evil Mordred portrayed with a thick Scottish burr who is apunk bastard.^[2]

Foa has performed on Broadway hundreds of times over a ten-year span; in the mid-2000s as Princeton and Rod inAvenue Q, and then was offered the role of Leaf Coneybear inThe 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.^[3][19] He was the first actor cast inAvenue Q who had not been a puppeteer first, "It was a bit of a scary experience going into a room full of puppeteers and saying: 'I'm going to be your new lead.' They put me into an intensive two-day course and I proved at the audition I could fit in with everyone else. I got to be the understudy for a year".^[3][18] He took over a lead role inAvenue Q in 2005, and in 2006, a lead inThe 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.^[12]

He played his last performance as Frederic inPirates! an updated version ofThe Pirates of Penzance, on July 8, 2007, at thePaper Mill Playhouse. He played Karel inThe Lady In Question, a play by and starringCharles Busch from August 14 through September 2, 2007.

From March 13 to April 20, 2008, he played Eddie inThe Drunken City atPlaywrights Horizons. He also played Tu-Ping in a workshop presentation ofThe Nightingale with music byDuncan Sheik and book and lyrics bySteven Sater at theNew York Theatre Workshop directed byJames Lapine.

In May 2008, he played Jordy in a workshop ofGiant, a new musical with music and lyrics byMichael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on theEdna Ferber novel and themovie withRock Hudson,Elizabeth Taylor, andJames Dean.

He had established himself on Broadway, and then took some friends' advice and moved to Los Angeles in the late 2000s to pursue television work.^[18] He soon picked up cameo and supporting roles inNumb3rs,The Closer, andHBO'sEntourage.^[18]

From 2009 to 2021, Foa portrayed Eric Beale, a computer, and technology "wizard" on the military police procedural show about theNaval Criminal Investigative Service,NCIS: Los Angeles.^[3][20] It was the first spin-off ofNCIS, at the time the second most popular show in the country.^[18] The show is a procedural crime drama, but coupled with a "kind of a workplace comedy going on".^[18] He auditioned for the operational psychologist character Nate Getz but the producers wrote the Beale part for him instead.^[12] It was his first stable job in his life with a ten-months a year, 9-5p schedule.^[12] His recurring role inNCIS: Los Angeles was upgraded to a series regular in the middle of thefirst season after twelve episodes.^[12] In April 2011 his character, in a series first, switched from his station in the operations center—and his casual surf wear—to do field work including using a gun.^[21] In May 2021, after the12th season finale ofNCIS: LA, Foa announced that he was leaving the series after twelve seasons.^[22]

Foa continues to do live performing in addition to his television work, "I'm used to having a live connection with an audience on a stage, and also after the show. ... There's more of an immediate personal touch."^[18] In January 2011, Foa headlined the musical stage showSincerely, John Hughes, a tribute to the films and soundtracks of film directorJohn Hughes.^[23] Foa is co-writer, producer and star ofFor the Record: John Hughes, a live musical event featuring scenes and songs from the movies of the 1980s film director; it played multiple sold-out runs in LA and NYC.^[11][12]

In Summer 2012 he bought a $1.4 million two-bedroom "architectural residence" above theSunset Strip, he sold it a year later for almost $1.7 million.^[5]

In July 2013, Foa played Harold Hill, the lead in the musicalThe Music Man, staged by theConnecticut Repertory Theatre.^[18] From May to August 2014, Foa played the lead in Jonathan Tolins' one-man Off-Broadway comedyBuyer & Cellar about an actor who manages a basement mall inBarbra Streisand's home.^[24][25] HerMalibu home's basement has a mall of quaint shops, "purely for her own amusement" built to house her extensive collections.^[12][26]

ForNCIS: Los Angeles'seventh season (2015-6), Foa's character, usually seen at headquarters, is trained for field work, includingweapons handling.^[20] In May 2016 Foa bought a three-story, two-bedroom contemporary home inSilver Lake for $1.35 million.^[5][27]

In early 2019, Foa had a guest starring role onWill & Grace asWill Truman (Eric McCormack)'s love interest—and fellow teacher Paul.^[19] In May 2019 he bought a $2.1 million 1950s three-bedroom ranch-style home in the foothills aboveBeachwood Canyon.^[5]

In 2019 he was given a leave of absence fromNCIS so he did not have to commute fromSt. Louis, Missouri where he was playing Prior Walter, the lead inTony Kushner's two-act, seven-hour playAngels in America.^[28][29] In February 2020 Foa led a cabaret benefit night, "Barrett Foa Has Friends!", for the LA-based PAWS which aids people with chronic diseases care for their pets.^[17]

Foa is gay, and as of July 2020, single.^[3] In February 2019, Foa publiclycame out as gay on social media.^[30]

Barrett's older brother by four years, Justin, is the fifth generation owner and CEO of Foa & Son, an internationalinsurance brokerage firm established in 1861; and is married to professor and historian of ChristianityCandida Moss.^[7][31] Their mother, Linda, died ofbreast cancer in June 2016.^[7]

Barrett bought an "unconventionalarchitectural" three-story, two bedrooms home inSilver Lake, Los Angeles in 2016, that was just built, for $1.4 million.^[32] He listed it for sale in September 2020 at $1.7 million.^[32] In May 2019, he bought another home, a newly rehabilitated 1950s single-story three bedroom ranch-style structure in the foothills above L.A.'sBeachwood Canyon for $2.09 million.^[5]

In addition to various workshops and readings, Foa donates his time and talents to community causes and non-profit theatre companies and organizations, includingBroadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS andThe Actors' Fund.

• Candida Moss

• Barrett Foa atIMDb
• Barrett Foa at theInternet Broadway Database 
• Barrett Foa at theInternet Off-Broadway Database