Broadway actor and educator Josh Grisetti dies at 44

Josh Grisetti, who moved from Broadway and national touring productions into classrooms and directing rooms, died July 10 at 44. His longtime friend and Something Rotten! co-star Rob McClure announced the death on Instagram and said it was an apparent suicide.

Born Dec. 1, 1981, in Washington, D.C., Grisetti built a career that reached far beyond one signature role. He played Ralph in the fifth and final season of Prime Video’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and his screen credits also included The Knights of Prosperity, Nurse Jackie and The Good Fight. Onstage, he was closely associated with Something Rotten!, including playing Nick and Nigel Bottom in the national touring production.

Grisetti’s impact was strongest where performance met instruction. Before joining California State University, Fullerton, he taught acting, musical theatre and business of theatre at Fullerton College and Loyola Marymount University, according to his CSUF biography. That combination of credits made him more than a working actor with academic experience. It placed him in the daily training of younger performers who were preparing for the same industry he worked in professionally.

At Cal State Fullerton, Grisetti was part of a BFA musical theatre program that the university says is designed to prepare students for careers in theatre, television and film. That made his role especially consequential for students trying to turn classroom work into professional practice. His bio also said he authored God in My Head, extending his work beyond acting and teaching into writing.

He had also remained active as a director, recently staging Something Rotten! at Musical Theatre West and It Shoulda Been You at Musical Theatre Guild in Los Angeles. Those credits showed the breadth of a career that crossed performance, direction and education, with Orange County and Los Angeles both part of his professional orbit.

Grisetti’s agent, Rick Ferrari, also confirmed the death, and colleagues and fans began posting tributes as the news spread. The response reflected the two communities that knew him best: Broadway and the arts classrooms where he helped shape the next generation of performers.