American musical theatre actor Gavin Creel was BOTD in 1976. Born in Findlay, Ohio, he was raised in a devoutly religious family, developing an interest in theatre as a means of escape. He studied musical theatre at the University of Michigan, and began his professional career in regional theatre and joining a national tour of the musical Fame. He relocated to New York City, making his Broadway debut in 2002 in the musical Thoroughly Modern Millie, which earned him a Tony nomination. His other Broadway appearances include revivals of the musicals La Cage aux Folles, Hair and The Book of Mormon. In 2012, he starred in the London premiere of The Book of Mormon, winning an Olivier Award for best actor in a musical. He returned to Broadway for the 2017 revival of the musical Hello, Dolly! opposite Bette Midler, winning him his first Tony Award, Sara Bareille’s Waitress and Stephen Sondheim‘s Into the Woods. Openly gay since forever, he co-founded Broadway Impact, an LGBTQ activist group for the New York theatre community, which lobbied for marriage equality. Creel was in relationships with actors Jonathan Groff, Henry Gottfried and Alex Temple Ward. He died in 2024 of cancer, three months after his diagnosis, aged 48. Following news of his death, theatres in New York and London dimmed their lights in tribute to him.