Tony winner Gavin Creel dies of rare cancer at the age of 48

NEW YORK (AP) — Gavin Creel, a veteran of Broadway musical theater who won a Tony Award for “Hello, Dolly!” opposite Bette Midler and received nominations for “Hair” and “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” died Monday of a rare and aggressive form of cancer. He was 48.

Publicist Matt Polk said Creel died of metastatic melanotic peripheral nerve sheath sarcoma at his home in Manhattan. The diagnosis was made in July 2024.

“I looked forward to working with him every evening. He was fantastic. I can't believe he's gone. What a loss,” Midler wrote on X. Idina Menzel shared a photo of Creelm on Instagram and wrote, “Sweet, sweet Gavin Creel. An angel among angels.”

Creel had a knack for Golden Age Broadway revivals, but also appeared in modern fare, such as the role of Dr. Pomatter in Sara Bareilles' musical “Waitress” on Broadway in 2019 and in the West End in 2020. He won an Olivier Award for “The Book of Mormon.”

Composer and playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda recalled on social media that Creel was his first King George III while working on the soon-to-be-hit “Hamilton”: “He wowed audiences with nothing but a Burger King crown about the finger and his overwhelming charisma and talent. He is so loved and it is unimaginable that he is no longer with us.”

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Creel grew up in Findlay, Ohio and graduated from the University of Michigan School of Music, Theater & Dance in 1998. He toured and worked locally before landing his breakthrough role as Jimmy Smith in the Broadway production of Thoroughly Modern Millie alongside fellow newcomer Sutton Foster. He also worked on Stephen Sondheim's penultimate musical, Bounce, directed by Hal Prince.

He played a key role as the demanding missionary Elder Price in The Book of Mormon. He starred in the series' first national tour in 2012 and reprized the role in London's West End, where he won an Olivier Award in 2014.

He played Jean-Michel in the 2004 revival of “La Cage Aux Folles” and returned to Broadway in 2009 as Claude Hooper Bukowski in the Public Theater's revival of “Hair.”

Associated Press critic Michael Kuchwara was full of praise: “Gavin Creel not only possesses a powerful voice, but also brings a gentle intensity to Claude, the most tormented member of the tribe.” It's Claude who gets most of the backstory in the series has: a conventional, middle-class upbringing in Queens; a total fascination with all things British, expressed in the song “Manchester, England”; and an uneasy sense of duty that ultimately leads him to enlist in the Vietnam War. Creel handles everything with confidence.”

Creel played Steven Kodaly in Studio 54's production of She Loves Me in 2016. The following season, Creel was cast as Cornelius Hackl alongside legends Midler and David Hyde Pierce in the hit revival of Hello, “Dolly” in 2017!” Directed by Jerry Zaks, who won the Tony for Best Actor in a Musical.

At the podium to accept his trophy, Creel thanked his college and added, “If you're out there and you have money – and I know some people in this room have a lot of it – start a scholarship fund.” Change lives from someone.”

Creel became an important voice in the theater industry by advocating for the passage of the federal marriage equality law. He founded the nonprofit organization Broadway Impact with his friends Rory O'Malley and Jenny Kanelos.

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Offstage, he played singing waiter Bill alongside Julie Andrews in the films “Eloise at the Plaza” and “Eloise at Christmastime.” In 2021, he was cast in Ryan Murphy's miniseries American Horror Stories alongside Matt Bomer. His 2022 solo concert was filmed for the first episode of PBS's “Stars Onstage at Westport Country Playhouse.”

In 2022, Creel was cast in an off-Broadway concert production of Sondheim and James Lapine's fragmented fairytale musical “Into the Woods” – Creel played the roles of both Cinderella's Prince and the Wolf. The show was later transferred to Broadway and extended multiple times, earning it a Tony nomination for Best Revival of a Musical.

He is survived by his mother, Nancy Clemens Creel, and father, James William Creel; his sisters Heather Elise Creel and Allyson Jo Creel; and his partner Alex Temple Ward.