Photo: Dead Accts Broadway · License: CC BY 3.0 · Source: Wikimedia Commons
Norbert Leo Butz
Actor, singer (musical theatre)
Born January 30, 1967 in St. Louis (59)
Musical TheatreTheatre
A two-time Tony Award–winning musical theatre performer whose commanding presence and vocal prowess have defined leading roles across Broadway's most celebrated productions, from *Rent* to *Dirty Rotten Scoundrels* and *Catch Me If You Can*.
Known For
Roger Davis in Rent (1997)Camille Raquin in Thou Shalt Not (2001–2002)Jamie Wellerstein in The Last Five Years (2002, Off-Broadway)Fiyero Tigelaar in Wicked (2003–2004)Freddy Benson in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (2005)Jeffrey Skilling in Enron (2010)Carl Hanratty in Catch Me If You Can (2011)Edward Bloom in Big Fish (2013)Alfred Doolittle in My Fair Lady (2018, Lincoln Center)
9 Signature RolesSignature Roles
Spotlight
Defining moments and milestones
Career Trajectory
Beginning his professional journey at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival in 1993, Butz made his Broadway debut in 1996 as a replacement swing in *Rent*, eventually claiming the role of Roger Davis and establishing himself as a dependable musical theatre presence. His breakthrough came with his Tony-winning performance as Freddy Benson in *Dirty Rotten Scoundrels* (2005), a role that showcased his gift for sophisticated comedy and romantic leading-man appeal; he would repeat this achievement five years later in *Catch Me If You Can* (2011), cementing his status as a performer of rare versatility. Across three decades, Butz has inhabited an extraordinary range of characters—from the conflicted Fiyero in *Wicked* to the aging patriarch Edward Bloom in *Big Fish* and Alfred Doolittle in Lincoln Center's 2018 revival of *My Fair Lady*—demonstrating an artist equally at home in contemporary musicals and classic revivals.
Career Highlight
Two-time Tony Award winner for Best Actor in a Musical: *Dirty Rotten Scoundrels* (2005) and *Catch Me If You Can* (2011)
Training & Education
Webster University, Conservatory of Theatre Arts (BFA, 1990); University of Alabama/Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Professional Actor Training Program (MFA); Webster University (Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters, 2013)
Available Performances
Recordings featuring Norbert Leo Butz in the Society index
Additional recordings will appear here as the catalog expands.