Nesconset's Hannah Waller, stage actor who earned all-state honors, dies at 18 of complications from brain cancer

When a Theatre Three director in Port Jefferson needed someone to stand in during a rehearsal of "A Christmas Carol," he turned to young actor Hannah Waller. Cast as Belinda Cratchit, she immediately commanded the stage.

"She got up, took center and did all of my lines off-book. Flawlessly," artistic director Jeffrey Sanzel recalled.

Waller, a Nesconset musical theater performer who appeared on stages across Long Island and earned all-state vocal honors, died Nov. 1 after a three-year battle with brain cancer. She was 18.

Born to perform

Born Oct. 9, 2008, Waller showed an early love of performing. At 3, she received a microphone for Christmas and sang Eric Church’s "Springsteen" from the family couch, her father, Glen Waller, recalled.

"You would have thought she was closing Madison Square Garden to 20,000 people the way she sang it," he said.

Music teacher James Brosnan, of North Babylon, recognized Waller’s natural talent and enthusiasm in kindergarten, then watched both flourish when he taught her again throughout her four years at Smithtown High School West, where she graduated from in June.

"She was so good at what she did that she would elevate the performances of the other students around her," Brosnan said.

A gift for storytelling

Her list of roles continued to grow even after she underwent brain surgery in September 2023. At Smithtown West, she played Jack in "Into the Woods" in 2023, Gavroche in "Les Misérables" in 2025 and Ali in "Mamma Mia!" this year. She also portrayed Cady in a 2023 youth production of "Mean Girls" at the John W. Engeman Theater.

Her mother, Deborah Waller, said her daughter eagerly texted her whenever she earned a part, including Liesl in a 2022 youth production of "The Sound of Music" at the Engeman Theater.

Waller also attended Long Island High School for the Arts. She was selected for the 2024 New York all-state choir and several all-county ensembles, and received a Smithtown Rotary Club award in May recognizing students who persevered through adversity.

Robbie Torres, her longtime vocal coach from Holtsville, helped her earn a perfect score on a French-language New York State School Music Association Level VI solo. But beyond her vocal technique, he admired the way she brought a song’s emotions and characters to life. "The most powerful thing I discovered about her was her innate knack for storytelling," Torres said.

Brosnan was especially moved by Waller's portrayal of Gavroche after she missed an extended period of school for treatment. "For her to come back to school and give such a moving performance was truly inspiring," he said.

Beyond the stage

Theater filled Waller’s life offstage, too. Sera Prinz, a close friend and fellow performer from Port Jefferson Station, recalled the pair spending hours dissecting shows and casting choices as well as singing karaoke, and Waller turning everyday phrases into songs. They met in the Engeman Theater’s 2023 youth production of "Mean Girls" and bonded over Taylor Swift, romance novels and theater.

What began as shared interests quickly blossomed into a close friendship. "You didn’t have to do anything to earn her love. She was just so kind and so caring always," Prinz said.

Her parents described their daughter as a gentle "old soul" who put others first. Even on difficult days, her father said, she focused on those she cared about. He said she and her twin sister, Mallory Waller, "loved each other more than anything."

Broadway became a mother-daughter tradition after Waller's parents began giving her tickets each Christmas. Waller's mother accompanied her to "Hadestown" three times, but she also treasured the quieter moments they shared on drives home from Waller's performances, when she would eagerly recount the evening’s highs and lows.

Waller also found ways to share that love of theater with her father. Knowing "Oklahoma!" was his favorite musical, she surprised him with an outing to see it. For his birthday this year, she took him to screenings of "Grease" and "Footloose," two musicals they enjoyed together. He said it was "the thought of the gift," rather than its cost, that mattered.

She is survived by her parents, Glen and Deborah Waller, and her twin sister, Mallory Waller, all of Nesconset.

Visitation is Saturday from 2-5 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. at St. James Funeral Home in St. James, with remembrances from 8-9 p.m. A private cremation is planned.