CFAC Graduate Caleb Hafen Portrays Cedric Diggory and James Potter on Broadway
Caleb Hafen still remembers exactly where he was when the call came.
“I stepped out, answered my agent’s FaceTime call, cried, then returned to my table with red eyes, buzzing with energy,” he said.
Hafen, a 2023 graduate of Brigham Young University, is now performing on Broadway in “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” where he plays Cedric Diggory and James Potter and understudies Albus Potter.
“Wizzo! My name is Caleb Hafen,” he said, introducing himself with the same energy he brings to the stage.
His path to Broadway began shortly after graduation. Hafen moved to New York City with fellow performer McCall McClellan, taking a restaurant job while auditioning.
“We started auditioning as much as we could from there,” he said.
The audition process for “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” stretched over months. Hafen described a series of callbacks, from a self-tape in October 2023 to a flying assessment in December.
“It was one of the most positive audition processes I have ever been a part of,” he said.
Movement callbacks stood out.
“We were encouraged to stay positive, make mistakes and have fun,” Hafen said. “It was almost designed for us to fail — I think it was so they could see how we handled it.”
He received the offer on December 20, 2023, but rehearsals did not begin until July 2024. For months, he kept the news quiet.
“I was not supposed to tell anyone for six of those months,” he said. “I could barely contain it.”
One performance moment, he said, captured the unpredictability of live theatre. During a touring show, a backstage miscommunication left Hafen and another actor alone on stage.
“What should have been a twelve-person transition sequence turned into a lovely duet,” he said.
They continued the scene, unsure what had happened.
“We made eye contact, wondering ‘where in the world is everybody?!’” Hafen said.
The stage manager quickly called a hold. Hafen remembers the moment not for its mistake, but for its humor.
“That’s live theatre, baby,” he said.
Hafen credits much of his preparation to mentors at BYU.
“There is seldom anything more valuable to a student than a mentor who can fill your soul with confidence,” he said of professor Tim Threlfall.
Confidence, Hafen said, shapes performance.
“When mentors tell you that you are a strong actor, and you believe them … that confidence becomes a part of your instrument that you can carry with you into audition spaces.”
He also pointed to training across disciplines. Contemporary dance classes, dialect coaching and vocal instruction all proved essential.
“I had no idea how frequently I would be asked for dialect work,” he said.
Dance, in particular, became a turning point.
“Without these classes … I would have never made it past the first round of movement callbacks,” Hafen said.
Beyond just performance, Hafen said his experiences have shaped his perspective on faith and relationships.
“I have met some of the most Christlike people within the theatre industry,” he said.
He described a broader understanding of empathy.
“Lines that might separate people … do not keep our God from mourning with those that mourn, and celebrating with those that have found genuine happiness,” Hafen said.
That perspective has influenced how he understands love.
“It is not enough to just ‘love,’” he said. “Love is a verb. And we must perform it not necessarily in the way we feel it, but in the way others will feel it. It is different for everyone. We have heard ‘do unto others what you would have them do unto you’ (Matthew 7:12). That is the golden rule. But I think I have learned there is also a diamond rule: ‘Do unto others what they would have others do unto them.’”
For him, that idea requires more than intention.
“It takes more effort, more thought, more empathy, more getting to know … more of what Christ would do,” he said. “It is worth it.”
