Hunter Foster (born June 25, 1969) is an American musical theatre actor, singer,

librettist A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major litu ...

, playwright and director.

Career

After touring in several shows and playing on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

, in 2001 he was cast in his breakthrough role of Bobby Strong in ''

Urinetown ''Urinetown: The Musical'' is a satirical comedy musical that premiered in 2001, with music by Mark Hollmann, lyrics by Hollmann and Greg Kotis, and book by Kotis. It satirizes the legal system, capitalism, social irresponsibility, populism, burea ...

'', for which he received a

Lucille Lortel Award The Lucille Lortel Awards recognize excellence in New York Off-Broadway theatre. The Awards are named for Lucille Lortel, an actress and theater producer, and have been awarded since 1986. They are produced by the League of Off-Broadway Theatre ...

and a nomination for an

Outer Critics Circle Award The Outer Critics Circle Awards are presented annually for theatrical achievements both on Broadway and Off-Broadway. They are presented by the Outer Critics Circle (OCC), the official organization of New York theater writers for out-of-town newspa ...

. In 2003, Foster starred as Seymour in the Broadway revival of '' Little Shop of Horrors'', for which he received his first

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...

nomination. Foster appeared as Leo Bloom in '' The Producers'' on Broadway, Ensign Pulver in '' Mister Roberts'' at the

Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...

, and Ben in ''Modern Orthodox''

off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

. He also starred as Molina in '' Kiss of the Spider Woman'' at the Signature Theatre in

Arlington, Virginia Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from the District of Columbia, of which it was once a part. The county is ...

. Foster's writing includes the libretto for an off-Broadway 2002 musical based on the motion picture ''

Summer of '42 ''Summer of '42'' is a 1971 American coming-of-age film based on the memoirs of screenwriter Herman "Hermie" Raucher. It tells the story of how Raucher, in his early teens on his 1942 summer vacation on Nantucket Island (off the coast of Cape ...

'' and writing an adaptation of the film ''

Bonnie and Clyde Bonnie Elizabeth Parker (October 1, 1910May 23, 1934) and Clyde Chestnut (Champion) Barrow (March 24, 1909May 23, 1934) were an American criminal couple who traveled the Central United States with their gang during the Great Depression. The co ...

'' with ''Urinetown'' co-star

Rick Crom Rick Crom (born March 15, 1957) is an American actor, singer, comedian, lyricist, and composer. He has appeared in numerous television shows and specials, Broadway and off-Broadway musicals, as well as written several off-Broadway revues, and ...

. "Bonnie & Clyde: A Folktale" was workshopped in residency at the Academy for New Musical Theatre, through the

ASCAP Foundation The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadca ...

Irving Caesar Fund Fellowship, a Producer-Writer Initiative granted through the National Alliance for Musical Theatre. Foster was one of the writers for

Rosie O'Donnell Roseann O'Donnell (born March 21, 1962) is an American comedian, television producer, actress, author, and television personality. She began her comedy career as a teenager and received her breakthrough on the television series ''Star Search'' ...

's 2008

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

series ''

Rosie Live ''Rosie Live'' is a variety show starring Rosie O'Donnell that aired November 26, 2008 live from New York's Little Shubert Theatre on NBC. It contained singing, dancing, comedy routines and specialty acts. However, poor critical response and ratin ...

'', which was cancelled after the first episode. Foster played the role of music producer Sam Phillips in the musical ''

Million Dollar Quartet "Million Dollar Quartet" is a recording of an impromptu jam session involving Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash made on December 4, 1956, at the Sun Record Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. An article about the session ...

'' on Broadway at the

Nederlander Theatre The Nederlander Theatre (formerly the National Theatre, the Billy Rose Theatre, and the Trafalgar Theatre) is a Broadway theater at 208 West 41st Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1921, it was des ...

, which opened on April 11, 2010. Foster then portrayed Richard Hoover in the musical ''

Little Miss Sunshine ''Little Miss Sunshine'' is a 2006 American tragicomedy road film and the feature film directorial debut of the husband–wife team of Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris. The screenplay was written by first-time writer Michael Arndt. The film sta ...

'' at the

La Jolla Playhouse La Jolla Playhouse is a not-for-profit, professional theatre on the campus of the University of California, San Diego. History La Jolla Playhouse was founded in 1947 by Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire, and Mel Ferrer. In 1983, it was revived under ...

until March 27, 2011. He appeared on the ABC Family show ''

Bunheads ''Bunheads '' is an American comedy-drama television series created by Amy Sherman-Palladino and Lamar Damon that aired on ABC Family from June 11, 2012, to February 25, 2013. Starring Sutton Foster, the show centers on a Las Vegas showgirl who ...

'' as Scotty Sims, the brother of main character Michelle, who is portrayed by his real-life sister

Sutton Foster Sutton Lenore Foster (born March 18, 1975) is an American actress, singer and dancer. She is known for her work on the Broadway stage, for which she has won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical twice, in 2002 for her role as Millie Dill ...

. He originated the role of Bud in the musical ''

The Bridges of Madison County ''The Bridges of Madison County'' (also published as ''Love in Black and White'') is a 1992 best-selling romance novel by American writer Robert James Waller that tells the story of a married Italian-American woman (WWII war bride) living on a ...

'' in 2014. He has directed plays and musicals at the

Bucks County Playhouse THE BUCKS COUNTRY PLAYHOUSE The Bucks County Playhouse is located in New Hope, Pennsylvania. When the ''Hope Mills'' burned in 1790, the grist mills were rebuilt as the ''New Hope Mills,'' by Benjamin Parry. The town was renamed for the mills. ...

as well as at regional theaters. He directed ''Company'' in 2015 and ''Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story'' in June 2016 at Bucks County Playhouse.

Personal life

Foster is the older brother of actress

. He is married to actress and occasional co-star Jennifer Cody.

Stage credits

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Official site
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Foster, Hunter 1969 births Living people Male actors from Michigan Male actors from Georgia (U.S. state) University of Michigan alumni People from Teaneck, New Jersey American musical theatre librettists American male stage actors American male musical theatre actors American male singers People from Troy, Michigan Male actors from Augusta, Georgia Musicians from Augusta, Georgia