Dear Committee of Theatre Owners,

The Broadway community and theater fans around the world were deeply saddened this week by the death of Gavin Creel. 

We are glad that Broadway's lights will be dimmed in honor of Gavin, as the Broadway League announced today. We are disappointed, however, that only some of those lights are currently set be dimmed, instead of all of them.

Gavin starred in eight Broadway musicals, as well as four in the West End; he earned a Tony and an Olivier for his performances. For younger fans in particular, he has been a key figure in the renaissance of musical theater in this century. His death at the age of 48 is a terrible loss.

We understand that full dimming is meant to be a rare thing. But special circumstances should be taken into account. The community’s sustained and profound outpouring of grief at his death—a testament not just to his youth but also to his character, his talent and his centrality in the Broadway world for the past 20 years—puts him in a different category. 

In 2018, theater owners made a similar mistake after the death of Marin Mazzie. They recognized their error then, and corrected it; she was honored with a full dimming. We hope they will do the same now to recognize the loss of one of Broadway's brightest lights.