1. Gavin James Creel was an American actor, singer, and songwriter best known for his work in musical theater.
29 Facts About Gavin Creel
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Gavin Creel was born in Findlay, Ohio, on April 18,1976.
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Gavin Creel was raised in a devoutly religious environment which he found highly alienating, and was drawn to theater as a way to escape it.
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Gavin Creel took part in the 2001 workshop of Spring Awakening.
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In 2002, Gavin Creel made his Broadway debut in the original production of Thoroughly Modern Millie, originating the role of Jimmy Smith opposite Sutton Foster's Millie Dillmount.
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In February 2003, Gavin Creel played Prince Eric in a workshop for Disney's stage adaptation of The Little Mermaid.
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Gavin Creel returned to Broadway in 2004 in the revival of La Cage aux Folles, playing Jean-Michel throughout the production.
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Gavin Creel returned to Broadway in 2009 in the revival of Hair.
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From 2012 until 2015, Gavin Creel starred in a series of productions of The Book of Mormon.
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Gavin Creel first starred as Elder Price in the First National Tour of the show in 2012.
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Gavin Creel subsequently originated the role in the musical's original West End production; for this performance, he was awarded Best Actor in a Musical at the 2014 Laurence Olivier Awards, the most prestigious theatrical awards in the United Kingdom.
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Gavin Creel played the suave salesman Steven Kodaly, opposite Jane Krakowski, in the 2016 Broadway revival of She Loves Me.
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Santino Fontana temporarily filled in for him while Gavin Creel recovered from back surgery from March to May 2018.
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In 2019, Gavin Creel assumed the role of Dr Pomatter in the Broadway production of Waitress.
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Gavin Creel subsequently played the role in the West End production of the musical in 2020.
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Gavin Creel starred alongside the show's composer Sara Bareilles for both stints.
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In 2021, Gavin Creel appeared in two episodes of American Horror Stories opposite Matt Bomer and Sierra McCormick on FX on Hulu.
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Gavin Creel came back for a month and then left again on September 4 for 10 days and was filled in for by Andy Karl, Gavin Creel returned to the production September 16 and stayed with the cast through its closing date January 8,2023.
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Gavin Creel reprised these roles in the 2023 national tour opposite Glover, Block, Arcelus, Forbach, Phelan, Rodriguez, and Karl.
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The first time Gavin Creel performed a song from his self-written musical was at Elsie Fest in 2019, where he debuted the song "The Only One".
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In 2021, Gavin Creel performed two shows of a self-described 'concert-cal' called Walk on Through: Confessions of a Museum Novice, for which Gavin Creel was commissioned to write and perform the book, music, and lyrics by the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
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Gavin Creel spoke at length about working on this piece before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Gavin Creel divided his time between residences on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and in Carmel, New York.
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Gavin Creel was gay and was heavily involved in gay rights activism.
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Gavin Creel was one of the founders, with Rory O'Malley and Jenny Kanelos, of Broadway Impact, an LGBT activist group that mobilized the New York theatre community in the pursuit of marriage equality.
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Gavin Creel was a regular on the LGBT R FamilyVacations cruise with Rosie O'Donnell.
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Gavin Creel dated actor Henry Gottfried for several years, whom he mentioned in his Tony acceptance speech.
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In July 2024, Gavin Creel was diagnosed with metastatic melanotic peripheral nerve sheath sarcoma, a rare form of cancer.
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Gavin Creel died from the disease under hospice care at his home in Manhattan on September 30,2024, at the age of 48.