Months after Nick Cordero lost his COVID-19 battle, his Broadway castmates honor him

Several of Nick Cordero’s Broadway castmates are getting back together to honor their friend and costar, who died in July at age 41 after a high-profile battle with COVID-19.

On Sunday, Broadway on Demand will stream a tribute special to Cordero, featuring performers from the casts of “A Bronx Tale,” “Bullets Over Broadway,” “Rock of Ages,” “The Toxic Avenger” and “Waitress.” The event, benefiting the Save the Music Foundation, will start at 4 p.m. Pacific at broadwayondemand.com.

“This memorial will be very special in many ways,” Cordero’s wife, fitness instructor Amanda Kloots, wrote on Instagram. “Family, friends and broadway casts have participated to ensure Nicks memory. I know Nick would want a celebration, a happy and music filled celebration! He would want people to smile, to sing, to laugh and love. We will give him just that.”

The special will include a mix of photos, videos and performances, as well as messages from Cordero’s loved ones. Viewers are encouraged to donate to the Save the Music Foundation, which is providing free music education resources for remote learning and teaching amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

After Cordero’s death, Sara Bareilles, Zach Braff, Kimiko Glenn, Jenna Ushkowitz, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Josh Gad, Darren Criss, Caissie Levy, Bernadette Peters, Phillipa Soo, Frankie Grande, Leslie Odom Jr. and other theater luminaries penned tributes to the Tony nominee, with whom some shared the stage.

And during his illness, the casts of “Rock of Ages” and “Waitress” reunited to raise money for a GoFundMe campaign supporting Cordero and his family while the actor was in a medically induced coma. Cordero played Dennis in a Hollywood production of “Rock of Ages” and originated the role of Earl on Broadway in “Waitress.”

Kloots also honored Cordero’s memory on Thursday by releasing an emotional duet, “Not Far Away,” on their third wedding anniversary. The former Radio City Rockette enlisted the help of veteran music producer Rickey Minor and audio engineer Lenny Wee to finish the track, which Cordero had begun writing and singing about the loss of his father. Kloots completed the song by writing and recording her own lyrics about losing her husband, with whom she shares a 1-year-old son, Elvis.

“The process of writing, singing and recording Not Far Away has been incredibly therapeutic for me,” Kloots wrote on Wednesday. “Listening [to it] has made me feel closer to him, giving me a lot of comfort these last few days. I hope that if you’ve experienced loss it will help you too.”