USITT is saddened to report that Broadway actor Ken Page has died at age 70. Page was born and raised in St. Louis, MO. Widely known as the voice of Oogie Boogie in The Nightmare Before Christmas franchise, he was in the original Broadway casts of The Wiz, Ain’t Misbehavin’, Cats, and It Ain’t Nothin’ But the Blues. He also appeared in the first Broadway revival of Guys and Dolls with an all-Black cast. He has appeared at regional theatres all over the United States and in London in productions of Randy Newman’s Faust, Stephen Schwartz’s Children of Eden, Jesus Christ Superstar, Aida, The Wizard of Oz, Les Misérables, My One and Only, Little Shop of Horrors, and more.

Page was also the Keynote speaker at USITT's 2017 Annual Conference & Stage Expo in St. Louis. As we honor his memory today, we invite you to revisit his speech below.