Broadway Star Chris Peluso Dead at 40

In the wake of his passing, Peluso was mourned by his fellow performers, who remembered him as a gifted artist.

“This is devastating. I only have wonderful memories of Chris. I am holding tight to all of the light he shared. So kind. So funny. So giving. So talented and loving,” Toni Trucks commented on Michigan’s Instagram tribute to Peluso, an alumnus of the school. Desi Oakley also added, “i learned so much from his kindness & professionalism, i am sending so much love to all who walked closely with him.”

Peluso’s theater career stretched back to 2004, when he rose to fame as an understudy in the revival of Assassins. His credits also included performances in Broadway’s Beautiful The Carole King Musical and Lestat, as well as a role in the 2017 U.K. Tour of Funny Girl.

For Peluso, his love of theater was all-encompassing.

“Theatre is my life. It has provided me with friends, family, education, structure, meaning, and purpose,” he told Pocket Size Theatre in 2017. “If it were not for theatre I would not be the person I am today.”

Peluso is survived by his wife Jessica and their two children, daughter Aria and son Caio Lian Gomes-Peluso, according to Playbill.