Jeffrey Mylett (June 8, 1949 – May 7, 1986) was an American

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

and

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...

. He was best known for his roles in both the stage and film productions of ''

Godspell ''Godspell'' is a musical composed by Stephen Schwartz with book by John-Michael Tebelak. The show is structured as a series of parables, primarily based on the Gospel of Matthew, interspersed with music mostly set to lyrics from traditional hym ...

''.

Personal life

Mylett was born in

North Canton, Ohio North Canton is a city in central Stark County, Ohio, United States. The population was 17,842 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Canton–Massillon metropolitan area. History In 1831, the Community of North Canton first began as the Villag ...

. He attended Hoover High School and studied theater at Carnegie Mellon University. He followed the spiritual teacher

Meher Baba Meher Baba (born Merwan Sheriar Irani; 25 February 1894 – 31 January 1969) was an Indian spiritual master who said he was the Avatar, or God in human form, of the age. A major spiritual figure of the 20th century, he had a following of ...

, and he appears in ''The God-Man'', a documentary about Meher Baba produced for

Australian television Television in Australia began experimentally as early as 1929 in Melbourne with radio stations 3DB and 3UZ, and 2UE in Sydney, using the ''Radiovision'' system by Gilbert Miles and Donald McDonald, and later from other locations, such as Bris ...

in 1976. In the documentary, Mylett is interviewed and performs his song, "House of the Lord." Mylett died at the age of 36 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

in 1986 as a result of complications of

HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...

Theater, film, and television

He appeared in the original off-Broadway production of ''

'' in 1971. During the musical's initial two-week run at La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club, the show featured songs by cast members, including two songs by Mylett. A team of producers then transferred the show to commercial theaters and hired

Stephen Schwartz Stephen Lawrence Schwartz (born March 6, 1948) is an American musical theatre lyricist and composer. In a career spanning over five decades, Schwartz has written such hit musicals as ''Godspell'' (1971), ''Pippin'' (1972), and ''Wicked'' (20 ...

to compose a new score. All the original songs were replaced, except for "By My Side" by Jay Hamburger and Peggy Gordon. Mylett also appeared in ''Thoughts'', written by ''Godspell'' castmate

Lamar Alford Lamar Alford (October 11, 1944 - March 29, 1991) was an American actor and singer. Early life Wilkie Lamar Alford was born on October 11, 1944 in Troy, Alabama. He was the youngest of five children (Fletcher, Franklin, Bertha, Stella, and Lama ...

, at La MaMa in 1972 and again in 1973. In 1974, he appeared in the

Broadway musical Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Th ...

The Magic Show ''The Magic Show'' is a one-act musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Bob Randall. It starred magician Doug Henning. Produced by Edgar Lansbury, Joseph Beruh, and Ivan Reitman, it opened on May 28, 1974 at the Cort T ...

'', in which he was

Doug Henning Douglas James Henning (May 3, 1947 – February 7, 2000) was a Canadian magician, illusionist, escape artist and politician. Early life Henning was born in the Fort Garry district of Winnipeg, Manitoba, and began practising magic at Oaken ...

understudy In theater, an understudy, referred to in opera as cover or covering, is a performer who learns the lines and blocking or choreography of a regular actor, actress, or other performer in a play. Should the regular actor or actress be unable to a ...

and played Henning's role while he was away. During Mylett's scheduled appearances in the show, the character's name was changed from "Doug" to "Jeff." In early 1977, he participated in the workshop which created the musical '' Working''. When the show premiered at the

Goodman Theatre Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of the Chicago theatre scene, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization. Part of its present theater complex occupies the la ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

and later 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 ...

, the roles Mylett had developed in the workshop were performed by

Joe Mantegna Joseph Anthony Mantegna (, ; born November 13, 1947) is an American actor. Mantegna began his career on stage in 1969 in the Chicago production of the musical ''Hair''. He earned a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play and a Joseph Jeff ...

. Mylett recreated his stage role in the 1973 film version of ''

''. He also appeared in the films ''Money Talks'' (1972), '' Brewster's Millions'' (1985), and ''

My Man Adam ''My Man Adam'' is a 1985 American comedy film directed by Roger L. Simon and co-written by Simon and Renée Missel. Plot High schooler Adam Swit (Raphael Sbarge) constantly daydreams about the same beautiful girl. Soon new student Sabrina McKa ...

'' (1985). He hosted ''The Rock 'n' Fun Magic Show'', a 1975

television special A television special (often TV special, or rarely television spectacular) is a standalone television show which may also temporarily interrupt episodic programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Some specials provide a full range of ent ...

featuring music, magic, and comedy. The special featured appearances by

Bill Cosby William Henry Cosby Jr. ( ; born July 12, 1937) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and media personality. He made significant contributions to American and African-American culture, and is well known in the United States for his eccentric ...

, and the

Hudson Brothers The Hudson Brothers were an American musical group formed in Portland, Oregon, consisting of brothers Bill Hudson, Brett Hudson and Mark Hudson. They were discovered by a record producer while recording music at a local studio, and offered a rec ...

, among others.''

The Times-Reporter ''The Times-Reporter'' is an American daily newspaper published seven mornings a week in New Philadelphia, Ohio. It is owned by Gannett. The newspaper was created in 1968 through the merger of ''The Daily Times'' of New Philadelphia and ''The Dai ...

'', Dover- New Philadelphia, Ohio, November 7, 1975, p. D3. The

series Series may refer to: People with the name * Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series * George Series (1920–1995), English physicist Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Series, the ordered sets used in ...

initially intended to follow this special was never produced.

References

External links

*
Mylett's page on La MaMa Archives Digital Collections
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mylett, Jeffrey 1949 births 1986 deaths Followers of Meher Baba Musicians from Canton, Ohio AIDS-related deaths in California Carnegie Mellon University College of Fine Arts alumni 20th-century American male actors Actors from Canton, Ohio People from North Canton, Ohio