ANI
23 Jun 2022, 19:27 GMT+10
Washington [US], June 23 (ANI): Steve Fickinger, a Disney executive who won a Tony Award for producing the popular musical Dear Evan Hansen after working on the Broadway productions of 'Newsies' and 'The Lion King', has passed away. He was 62.
According to his niece Jessica Roy, Fickinger passed away unexpectedly on Friday at his home in Laguna Beach, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
Fickinger worked on Mulan, Tarzan, and LiloStitch while serving as director of creative development for Walt Disney Feature Animation. He later held the position of vice president of creative development for the Disney Theatrical Group, where he oversaw the opening of a dozen Broadway productions, including The Lion King and Aida.
In addition, Fickinger oversaw the Tony-winning production of Newsies, the High School Musical national tour, and the enduring Broadway run of Aladdin.
As per The Hollywood Reporter, after working for Disney for two decades, he left the company in 2013 and founded FickStern Productions. The company's debut production, Dear Evan Hansen, premiered on Broadway in 2016 and won six Tony Awards, including best musical.
Steven Thomas Fickinger was born in Chicago in 1960, the youngest of five children. Rahm Emanuel, the future mayor of Chicago, and performed on stage at New Trier High School West before going on to UCLA.
He worked as a stage actor in New York City for several years following college before moving back to the West Coast and landing a job at Disney.
At The Bourbon Room in Hollywood, Fickinger served as executive producer of Rock of Ages as well. The show's lead actor, Nick Cordero, passed away in July 2020 at the age of 41 after a long battle with COVID-19.
Fickinger had Live at the Crescendo Club: An Evening With Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, and Pearl Bailey written and produced by Deniece Williams under the direction of Seret Scott, as per his niece.
He participated in charitable events like the Race to Eradicate MS, the Los Angeles Food Mission, and the AIDS Walk.
His siblings Joan, Jan, Michael, and Emily are also living survivors. A memorial service will be held in Los Angeles after a funeral in Chicago. (ANI)
Get a daily dose of Knoxville Times news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Knoxville Times.
More InformationBRUSSELS, Belgium: EU tech chief Margrethe Vestager has said that a draft code of conduct on artificial intelligence (AI) could ...
MOSCOW, Russia: After a turbulent 15 months of store closures and declining demand, Russian designers and brands are assisting the ...
WASHINGTON D.C.: The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has said that more than 8.3 million US homes and businesses do not ...
CHICAGO, Illinois: Driven by an ongoing shortage of properties available on the market, in March US single-family home prices rose ...
MIAMI, Florida: Carnival Cruise Lines has said a cruise ship, the Carnival Sunshine, which sailed through rough seas off the ...
BEIJING, China: On his return to China after a three year absence, which is his company's largest production hub, Tesla ...
PYONGYANG, North Korea: North Korea attempt failed to launch a satellite on May 31, which prompted raid sirens and a ...
HONG KONG, China: Describing the lack of women in China's top leadership as concerning, the United Nations has recommended the ...
BEIJING, China: Amid its rivalry with the US for reaching new milestones in space, reflecting their competition for global influence, ...
WASHINGTON D.C.: A Transportation Security Administration (TSA) report released this week revealed that over the Memorial Day weekend, the start ...
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia: Malaysia's maritime agency has said that it found a cannon shell believed to be from World War ...
KATHMANDU, Nepal - For the past three days, agitated students and guardians have been protesting against the school administration at ...