Audra McDonald Says the Idea to DoGypsyCame from Friend Gavin Creel Before His Death

Mar. 15, 2025

From Left: Audra McDonald; and Gavin Creel.Photo:Bruce Glikas/Getty; Unique Nicole/Getty

Bruce Glikas/Getty; Unique Nicole/Getty

Audra McDonaldis giving her late friend,Gavin Creelcredit for inspiringher latest role on Broadway.

During an interview forThe Broadway Show with Tamsen Fadal, the six-time Tony winner, 54, revealed that Creel once told her that she needed to play Mama Rose inGypsy.

Now, the actress is set to portray the bossy stage mother in the forthcoming Broadway revival, which begins previews on Thursday, Nov. 21 at the Majestic Theatre in New York City ahead of its official opening on Thursday, Dec. 19.

In a preview of her conversation with correspondentPaul Wontorekposted toInstagramon Monday, Oct. 28, McDonald revealed that she and husbandWill Swenson— who costarred with Creel in the 2009 Broadway revival ofHair— “had a Thanksgiving dinner about eight years ago.” And one of the guests was Creel.

“We spent a lot of Thanksgivings together,” she recalled. “He’s a very close family member to us.”

From Left: Audra McDonald and Gavin Creel on May 15, 2011.Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic

Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic

The stage veteran said Creel even approached the show’s current director, George C. Wolfe, about the idea of a revival starring McDonald. “A few years ago, Gavin cornered George and went, ‘Are you going to direct Audra in this? Because you have to do it,’ " she shared. “So he kind of put it in my head.”

Audra McDonald (center) and the cast of ‘Gypsy’.Marc J. Franklin

Marc J. Franklin

In the wake of the loss, McDonald posted a tribute to the actor onInstagram. She shared a headshot of the late actor smiling while wearing a gray turtleneck and wrote, “He was light and love incarnate. Fly sweet Gavin, Fly.”

Later, on Oct. 22, Swenson penned a tribute to their late friend forAmerican Theatre, looking back at their time playing close friends Claude and Berger inHair. “While we were openingHairon Broadway, I was going through a really rough divorce. Don’t recommend. On our opening day I got some very frustrating news about it, and I was telling Gav how I was afraid it would sour my whole experience of opening the show,” he wrote.

From Left: Audra McDonald, Will Swenson and Gavin Creel on June 01, 2009.Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic

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He added, “Gavin said: ‘Absolutely not, Wilson! We’re meeting at the theatre at noon and we’re gonna put on music and paint our dressing room hallway with huge, beautiful hippie graffiti.’ "

“And that’s what we did. Buckets of paint. Huge peace signs. Our favorite lines from the show. Beads, flowers, freedom, and happiness. Oh, and the song we put on repeat was ‘Ain’t nothin’ gonna break my stride,’ which became our unofficial friendship anthem,” Swenson continued, before sharing that Creel “radiated light and kindness” and “lived in a constant state of searching for joy.”

The Broadway Show with Tamsen Fadalairs weekends in syndication (check local listings).

source: people.com