Manoel Felciano just finished singing, acting and playing the violin, piano and clarinet on Broadway as Tobias Ragg in the acclaimed revival of Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd. The role earned him one of the production's six Tony nominations, for best supporting actor. Other recent New York stage productions include Brooklyn, Shockheaded Peter, Much Ado About Nothing, and Cabaret. While playing an apostle in the Broadway revival of Jesus Christ Superstar in the year 2000, Manoel heroically stepped, at the last minute, into the role of Judas. Midway through his first big number, he took another heroic step, this time off the lip of the stage into the orchestra pit, resulting in minor injuries to himself and members of the brass section. He finished the performance bleeding and wound up with a sprained wrist and write-ups in The New Yorker and The New York Times. He has been a star ever since.

I met Manoel in college and predictably enough fell in love with him. This didn't go anywhere, despite his taste for musical theater, and I have since learned to tolerate his heterosexual lifestyle. I interviewed him at the Bar Nothing in 2003 before I knew about things like lighting and sound. He was born and raised in San Francisco and is the son of composer and cast member Richard Felciano and dance critic Rita Felciano.  More about Mano at mano.felciano.com.

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