Gavin Creel’s untimely death at the age of 48 shocked not only the theater world as a whole, but also his closest co-stars and famous friends.

The Tony-winning actor’s death from metastatic melanotic peripheral nerve sheath sarcoma was confirmed by his partner Alex Temple Ward on Monday, just months after Creel was diagnosed with the rare and aggressive cancer in July.

Since Creel’s Broadway debut in “Thoroughly Modern Millie” in 2002, he has starred in “La Cage aux Folles,” “Hair,” “The Book of Mormon,” “Hello, Dolly!”, “She Loves Me,” “ Waitress” and “Into the Woods,” among other professional companies. Following news of his death, his co-stars were quick to pay tribute to the late actor, calling him one of their most beloved colleagues both on and off stage.

Sutton Foster starred opposite Creel in ‘Millie’ and shared a photo of the pair on Instagram with the caption: ‘My sweet friend. I will love you forever.”

Their co-star Sheryl Lee Ralph shared some special memories in her post, writing: “My heart is broken to hear the news about Gavin Creel. I’m in shock. Gavin was such a beautiful soul and such a vibrant spirit, both on and off stage. I will always remember our time together when he played my ‘son’ in ‘Thoroughly Modern Millie’, where we laughed so much, shared so many moments.”

“I’ll never forget the days when we had matinees, Gavin would take (Etienne Maurice) and (Ivy Coco Maurice) to lunch at Virgil’s in Time Square. He was so funny, so kind and always made everyone around him feel special,” she continued. “Gavin, you were truly one of a kind. Bless you. I will miss you. During this time, I send all my love to the Creel family.”

Bette Middler, who starred in 2017’s ‘Hello, Dolly!’ revival with Creel – which won him his Tony Award – wrote: “Radiant actor Gavin Creel, beloved by the Broadway community, has died from a rare form of cancer. He played Cornelius Hackl to my Dolly in ‘Hello Dolly’ and I looked forward to working with him every night. He was fantastic. I can’t believe he’s gone. What a loss.”

Another of Creel’s “Dolly!” co-stars, Beanie Feldstein, shared an emotional message: “Gavin is the person who, after you’ve had the hardest day at rehearsal, takes your hand and says, ‘I’m taking you home.’ Gavin is the person who always answers the phone, lights up the room, brings people together. How lucky we all are to love him so much. Now, as he taught us, we must walk through it. But I don’t know how. I love you, my Gav.”

Offstage, Creel was also known for both “Eloise” films. His co-star Sofia Vassilieva, who played the title role, shared a short but powerful message in his honor, writing: “As quickly as the heart bursts, it shatters.”

The late actor was also fondly remembered by fellow artists such as Josh Gad, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Hannah Waddingham, Idina Menzel, Ben Platt and Cynthia Erivo, to name a few.

Creel is survived by Ward, dog Nina, parents Nancy Clemens Creel and James William Creel, older sisters Heather Creel, Allyson Creel and her partner Jennifer Kolb. According to the family, gifts in his memory may be made to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids.

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