Sara Bareilles took to Instagram to share her heartbreak following the death Sunday of Nick Cordero who starred in her hit Broadway play Waitress.
The 40-year-old singer-songwriter and actress posted a black-and-white photo of Nick on her Instagram Stories along with a caption reading, ‘Broken Hearted And Sending Love To Nick’s Family’ along with a red heart emoji.
Sara also posted the same photo on her Instagram page of Nick who died Sunday in Los Angeles at age 41 after suffering severe medical complications after contracting the coronavirus.
Heart broken: Sara Bareilles took to Instagram on Sunday to share her heartbreak following the death of Nick Cordero who starred in her hit Broadway play Waitress
‘He was light. Kind and gentle. Talented and humble. Funny and friendly. The best laugh. Sending so much love to the love warrior @amandakloots and little Elvis, and an immense hug to any one who is feeling the loss of this giant heart. Rest In Peace dear Nick. We love you. #sugarbutterfamily,’ Sara wrote for her roughly 704,000 followers on Instagram.
UCLA graduate Sara wrote the music and lyrics for Waitress with a book by Jessie Nelson.
The 2016 musical is based on the 2007 comedy-drama film of the same name that starred Keri Russell, 44.
Nick played the role of Earl in the Broadway production that debuted in 2016 at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre.
Best laugh: ‘He was light. Kind and gentle. Talented and humble. Funny and friendly. The best laugh,’ wrote Sara, shown in November 2018 in New York City, on Instagram about Nick
Giant heart: Sara paid tribute to Nick with an Instagram post that called him ‘Kind and gentle. Talented and humble. Funny and friendly’
Waitress was a box office smash on Broadway and closed in January 2020 after 33 previews and 1,544 regular performances.
Nick was known for his stage roles on Broadway and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his portrayal of Cheech in the 2014 Broadway musical Bullets Over Broadway.
He also was known for his work in A Bronx Tale.
Opening night: Nick is shown at the after party for Waitress in April 2016 after the Broadway Opening Night performance
Hit musical: Nick is shown with the Waitress cast including Dakin Matthews, Keala Settle, Jessie Mueller, Claire Keane, Kimiko Glenn, Christopher Fitzgerald, Drew Gehling, Eric Anderson during the Broadway Opening Night performance Curtain Call for Waitress at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on April 24, 2016 in New York City
The Canadian actor died Sunday at Cedars-Sinai hospital after more than 90 days in the hospital, according to his wife, Amanda Kloots, 38.
‘God has another angel in heaven now,’ she posted on Instagram. ‘Nick was such a bright light. He was everyone’s friend, loved to listen, help and especially talk. He was an incredible actor and musician. He loved his family and loved being a father and husband.’
Nick entered the emergency room on March 30 and had a succession of health setbacks, including mini-strokes, blood clots, septic infections, a tracheostomy and a temporary pacemaker implanted. He had been on a ventilator and unconscious and had his right leg amputated. A double lung transplant was being explored.
London shows: Sara is shown performing during the Waitress press launch in January in London
Viola Davis, 54, was among those in mourning, writing to his widow and child that ‘my heart is with you all.’ Fellow Broadway actress and president of Actors´ Equity Association Kate Shindle wrote on Twitter that she was ‘heartbroken for his family and deeply saddened by the loss of this talented and widely loved actor.’
During Nick’s hospitalization, Amanda sent him daily videos of her and their 1-year-old son, Elvis, so he could see them if he woke up, and urged friends and fans to join a daily sing-a-long. A GoFundMe page to pay for medical expenses has raised over $600,000.
The lanky actor took on the menacing role of husband Earl opposite his estranged wife, played by Jessie Mueller, in Waitress as well as the role of Sonny in Chazz Palminteri’s A Bronx Tale. It was at Bullets Over Broadway where Cordero met his wife. The two married in 2017.
Broadway star: Nick is shown with wife Amanda Kloots in March 2017 in New York City
Castmembers from Waitress – Jessie Mueller, Keala Settle, Kimik Glenn and songwriter Sara – helped raise money for Nick by covering his song Live Your Life. Sylvester Stallone sent a video with best wishes.
Amanda had said that it was difficult to tell whether Nick understood happened to him, but said he could respond to commands by looking up and down when he was alert.
Her husband played a mob soldier with a flare for the dramatic in Broadway’s Woody Allen 1994 film adaptation of ‘Bullets Over Broadway,’ for which he received a Tony nomination for best-featured actor in a musical. He and his family moved to Los Angeles to star in Rock Of Ages.
On the small screen, Nick appeared in several episodes of Blue Bloods and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and he had a role in the film Going In Style.
Young song: Amanda and Nick are shown with their son Elvis in August 2019 in NYC