Jeffrey Carlson, of Taboo and All My Children Dies at 48

Actor Jeffrey Carlson has died at the age of 48, according to published reports that began circulating over the weekend. At time of publication, the cause of death had not been made public.

Born in California, Carlson moved to New York City to study at Juilliard, where he graduated as a member of the Drama Division’s Group 30. While still in school, he made his off-Broadway debut in Lee Blessing’s 2001 play Thief River at Signature Theatre. His Broadway debut came a year later as the son, Billy, in Edward Albee’s drama The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia? Following The Goat, Carlson starred as Valère opposite Henry Goodman in the Roundabout Theatre Company revival of Tartuffe, and originated the role of Marilyn in the Broadway mounting of the Boy George biomusical Taboo, earning a Drama Desk nomination.

A well-regarded classical stage actor, Carlson played Hamlet at Shakespeare Theatre Company, Edward II and Prince Hal at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Romeo at the McCarter Theater, Richard II at Yale Rep, and many others. Other credits include the plays Bach at Leipzig, Manuscript, Candida, The Importance of Being Earnest, and a production of The Miracle Worker starring Hilary Swank that was supposed to come to Broadway but instead closed out-of-town at Charlotte Rep in North Carolina.

On screen, Carlson was seen in Hitch, The Killing Floor, Backseat, and, most notably, All My Children, where, in the role of Zoe, he became the first actor to play a trans character on daytime television.