Thomas J. Gates, Longtime Broadway Stage Manager, Dead After Being Struck by Train

Thomas J. Gates, a longtime Broadway stage manager, died Wednesday, May 8 after being struck by an NJ Transit train.

Gates, 51, of South Orange was fatally hit by a train on the the Morris and Essex Line at 9:12 am. Wednesday near the South Orange Station.

His death was confirmed by Illinoise, on which Gates served as Production Stage Manager. The Tony-nominated musical, now running at the St. James Theatre, had celebrated its current Broadway run the evening prior and canceled its Wednesday performance.

Beloved in the theater industry, Gates got his start on Broadway as an assistant stage manager on the 2001 revival of Noises Off. He then worked on Hairspray, Brooklyn, High Fidelity, Finian’s Rainbow, Newsies, Pippin, The Visit, and Waitress. Off-Broadway, Gates worked on the Lincoln Center Theater production of The Gardens of Anuncia last year, as well as the drama The Fears.

Among Gates survivors are his husband, fellow stage manager Rick Steiger.