Jason Raize
Encyclopedia
Jason Raize was an American actor, singer and former Goodwill Ambassador
for the United Nations Environment Programme
. He was best known for his roles as the adult Simba
in the Broadway
stage musical version of The Lion King
and Denahi in the animated Disney film Brother Bear
.
, and started acting as a teenager when his mother enrolled him in a summer Shakespeare workshop. In high school, after moving with his father to Oneonta, New York
, Jason performed in high school plays and with Oneonta’s Orpheus Theatre. He moved to New York City after high school where he briefly attended the American Musical and Dramatic Academy
.
in Oklahoma!
(as Jess/Dream Curly), The King and I
(as Lun Tha), Phantom
(in the title role), and The Rocky Horror Show
(as Rocky). His other regional credits include Gypsy: A Musical Fable
, The Sound of Music
, and West Side Story
.
When he was just 19, Jason succeeded Dennis DeYoung
of Styx
in the national tour of Jesus Christ Superstar
starring Ted Neely and Carl Anderson. Next he toured with Miss Saigon
, and had been cast as a swing in a national tour of The King and I
starring Hayley Mills when he decided to audition for Julie Taymor
's upcoming Broadway production of The Lion King
(1997).
Winning the role of "Simba" in The Lion Kings original Broadway cast, Jason became part of one of the biggest Broadway hits of the 1990s. During his three years with The Lion King, Jason performed "Endless Night" and "He Lives in You" on The Rosie O'Donnell Show
, as well as "Can You Feel the Love Tonight
" on Good Morning America
. He was also featured twice on the cover of InTheater magazine.
In September 1998, Jason appeared on The Paul Simon
Album: Broadway Sings the Best of Paul Simon singing the Simon & Garfunkel's "The Sounds of Silence". The album also featured Christiane Noll
, Jose Llana
, Lauren Kennedy, Jane Krakowski
, and Sal Viviano.
In May 1999, Jason co-produced a benefit for refugees from Kosovo
at the Kit Kat Klub. In October 1999, the United Nations Environment Programme
appointed Jason a Goodwill Ambassador "for his commitment and dedication to furthering the cause of the environment through the use of his creative talents to inspire respect for our natural heritage and to promote the conservation and sustainable use of the earth's resources."
Jason signed a deal with Universal Records
and released two singles ("Taste the Tears" and "You Win Again"), both produced by Desmond Child
who had recently produced Ricky Martin
's hit "Livin' la Vida Loca." In summer 2000, Jason and Jessica Simpson
starred in a Disney Channel
special called Jessica Simpson and Jason Raize in Concert. The concert was filmed in Disneyland and featured Jason's songs "I Can Make it Without You," "You Win Again," "Lovin' You Lovin' Me," "Run Away Girl," and "NYC." His debut CD on Universal was titled NYC, but it was not officially released.
Jason returned to the New York theater scene in January 2001 for a concert performance of Carmen Jones
. He starred in the made-for-TV-movie The Kitchen
which premiered on PBS in June 2001. That same fall, Jason's television series Keeping it Wild with Jason Raize premiered as a nationally-syndicated program in which Jason visited exotic locations such as Africa, Costa Rica, and Australia to learn about animals in their natural habitats. The show was produced by Sue Ann Taylor of Blue Heron Films.
Jason also provided the voice of Denahi in the Disney animated feature Brother Bear
, released in fall 2003.
without his family's knowledge to rethink his career path. Sarah MacArthur, his mother, said "[Jason] needed to step back and catch his breath. I don't think he had figured it out yet [what to do next]". He took a job working as a general hand at a stud farm
in Yass, New South Wales
called Hardwicke Stud, owned by olympic gold medalist Lawrence Morgan
. This was also a place where he had friends whom he met while filming there in 2001.
At 11:15 am on February 7, 2004, Jason's body was found hanged
in a shed on the farm property. A missing persons report had been filed on February 3, also believed to be the time of death. Jason's death was ruled a suicide.
, where Jason had performed as Simba for almost three years. The service included speeches by Jason's sister, Lisa, and Disney Theatrical's Thomas Schumacher, a performance by Jason's former The Lion King
co-star Heather Headley
, a slide show and home movies from his younger days, clips of Jason performing in The Lion King, and a montage from his Keeping it Wild television series. The service ended with a traditional South African celebration of passing into the next world led by cast members of The Lion King.
Today, the Orpheus Theatre in Oneonta
issues two annual Jason Rothenberg Raize Scholarships which underwrite tuition to the theater's summer music theater workshops for youths with financial need.
Goodwill Ambassador
Goodwill Ambassador is a collective term sometimes used as a substitute honorific title or a title of honor for an Ambassador of Goodwill; but, most appropriately for a generic recognition, it is a job position or description that is usually indicated following the name of the individual recognized...
for the United Nations Environment Programme
United Nations Environment Programme
The United Nations Environment Programme coordinates United Nations environmental activities, assisting developing countries in implementing environmentally sound policies and practices. It was founded as a result of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in June 1972 and has its...
. He was best known for his roles as the adult Simba
Simba
Simba is a lion character and the protagonist of Disney's most successful animated feature film, The Lion King. He is the son of Mufasa and Sarabi, nephew of Scar, mate of Nala, and father of Kiara. He has golden fur and when he grows into an adult, he has an auburn mane...
in the Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
stage musical version of The Lion King
The Lion King (musical)
The Lion King is a musical based on the 1994 Disney animated film of the same name with music by Elton John and lyrics by Tim Rice along with the musical score created by Hans Zimmer with choral arrangements by Lebo M. Directed by Julie Taymor, the musical features actors in animal costumes as well...
and Denahi in the animated Disney film Brother Bear
Brother Bear
Brother Bear is a 2003 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures, the forty-fourth animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics. In the film, an Inuit boy pursues a bear in revenge for a battle that he provoked in which...
.
Early life
Born as Jason Rothenberg, Jason grew up in the Catskills in upstate New YorkNew York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, and started acting as a teenager when his mother enrolled him in a summer Shakespeare workshop. In high school, after moving with his father to Oneonta, New York
Oneonta, New York
Oneonta is a city in southern Otsego County, New York, USA. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, had a population of 13,901. Its nickname is "City of the Hills." While the word "oneonta" is of undetermined origin, it is popularly believed to mean "place of open rocks" in the Iroquois language...
, Jason performed in high school plays and with Oneonta’s Orpheus Theatre. He moved to New York City after high school where he briefly attended the American Musical and Dramatic Academy
American Musical and Dramatic Academy
The American Musical and Dramatic Academy , is a college conservatory for the performing arts located in New York City and Los Angeles, California....
.
Career
In the summer of 1994, having changed his surname to Raize, Jason performed at the Bucks County PlayhouseBucks County Playhouse
The Bucks County Playhouse is the State Theater of Pennsylvania, and is located in New Hope, Pennsylvania.When the Hope Mills burnt in 1790, the grist mills were rebuilt as the New Hope Mills by Benjamin Parry. ....
in Oklahoma!
Oklahoma!
Oklahoma! is the first musical written by composer Richard Rodgers and librettist Oscar Hammerstein II. The musical is based on Lynn Riggs' 1931 play, Green Grow the Lilacs. Set in Oklahoma Territory outside the town of Claremore in 1906, it tells the story of cowboy Curly McLain and his romance...
(as Jess/Dream Curly), The King and I
The King and I
The King and I is a stage musical, the fifth by the team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. The work is based on the 1944 novel Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon and derives from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, who became governess to the children of King Mongkut of Siam in...
(as Lun Tha), Phantom
Phantom (musical)
Phantom is a musical with music and lyrics by Maury Yeston and a book by Arthur Kopit. Based on Gaston Leroux's 1910 novel The Phantom of the Opera, the musical was first presented in Houston, Texas in 1991....
(in the title role), and The Rocky Horror Show
The Rocky Horror Show
The Rocky Horror Show is a long-running British horror comedy stage musical, which opened in London on 19 June 1973. It was written by Richard O'Brien, produced and directed by Jim Sharman. It came eighth in a BBC Radio 2 listener poll of the "Nation's Number One Essential Musicals"...
(as Rocky). His other regional credits include Gypsy: A Musical Fable
Gypsy: A Musical Fable
Gypsy is a musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Gypsy is loosely based on the 1957 memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee, the famous striptease artist, and focuses on her mother, Rose, whose name has become synonymous with "the ultimate show business...
, The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music is a musical by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the memoir of Maria von Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers...
, and West Side Story
West Side Story
West Side Story is an American musical with a script by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and choreographed by Jerome Robbins...
.
When he was just 19, Jason succeeded Dennis DeYoung
Dennis DeYoung
Dennis DeYoung is an American singer, songwriter, musician and producer best known for being a founding member of the rock band Styx, a tenure that lasted from 1970 to 1999.-Early life:...
of Styx
Styx (band)
Styx is an American rock band that became famous for its albums from the late 1970s and early 1980s. The Chicago band is known for melding the style of prog-rock with the power of hard rock guitar, strong ballads, and elements of American musical theater....
in the national tour of Jesus Christ Superstar
Jesus Christ Superstar
Jesus Christ Superstar is a rock opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Tim Rice. The musical started off as a rock opera concept recording before its first staging on Broadway in 1971...
starring Ted Neely and Carl Anderson. Next he toured with Miss Saigon
Miss Saigon
Miss Saigon is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby, Jr.. It is based on Giacomo Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly, and similarly tells the tragic tale of a doomed romance involving an Asian woman abandoned by her American lover...
, and had been cast as a swing in a national tour of The King and I
The King and I
The King and I is a stage musical, the fifth by the team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. The work is based on the 1944 novel Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon and derives from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, who became governess to the children of King Mongkut of Siam in...
starring Hayley Mills when he decided to audition for Julie Taymor
Julie Taymor
Julie Taymor is an American director of theater, opera and film. Taymor's work has received many accolades from critics, and she has earned two Tony Awards out of four nominations, the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design, an Emmy Award and an Academy Award nomination for Original Song...
's upcoming Broadway production of The Lion King
The Lion King (musical)
The Lion King is a musical based on the 1994 Disney animated film of the same name with music by Elton John and lyrics by Tim Rice along with the musical score created by Hans Zimmer with choral arrangements by Lebo M. Directed by Julie Taymor, the musical features actors in animal costumes as well...
(1997).
Winning the role of "Simba" in The Lion Kings original Broadway cast, Jason became part of one of the biggest Broadway hits of the 1990s. During his three years with The Lion King, Jason performed "Endless Night" and "He Lives in You" on The Rosie O'Donnell Show
The Rosie O'Donnell Show
The Rosie O'Donnell Show is an Emmy Award-winning American daytime television talk show hosted and produced by actress and comedian Rosie O'Donnell. It aired for six seasons from 1996 to 2002...
, as well as "Can You Feel the Love Tonight
Can You Feel the Love Tonight
250px|thumb|right|Simba and Nala embrace during the "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" sequence."Can You Feel the Love Tonight" is a song from Disney's 1994 animated film, The Lion King, composed by Elton John with lyrics by Tim Rice. It was described by Don Hahn , Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff as...
" on Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
. He was also featured twice on the cover of InTheater magazine.
In September 1998, Jason appeared on The Paul Simon
Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist.Simon is best known for his success, beginning in 1965, as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel, with musical partner Art Garfunkel. Simon wrote most of the pair's songs, including three that reached number one on the US singles...
Album: Broadway Sings the Best of Paul Simon singing the Simon & Garfunkel's "The Sounds of Silence". The album also featured Christiane Noll
Christiane Noll
Christiane Noll is an American singer and actress known for her work in musicals and on the concert stage. She is perhaps best known for originating the role of Emma Carew in Frank Wildhorn's Jekyll & Hyde, as well as her roles in Urinetown and City of Angels.-Life and career:Noll was born in New...
, Jose Llana
Jose Llana
Jose Llana is a Filipino-American singer and actor known for his high tenor voice.-Biography:Born May 5, 1976, Llana, a native of Manila, Philippines, grew up in Springfield, Virginia, a suburb of Washington, D.C...
, Lauren Kennedy, Jane Krakowski
Jane Krakowski
Jane Krakowski is an American actress and singer. She is most well known for her performance of Elaine Vassal on Ally McBeal, for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award, and for her current role as Jenna Maroney on the NBC sitcom 30 Rock, for which she has been nominated for three Emmy...
, and Sal Viviano.
In May 1999, Jason co-produced a benefit for refugees from Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
at the Kit Kat Klub. In October 1999, the United Nations Environment Programme
United Nations Environment Programme
The United Nations Environment Programme coordinates United Nations environmental activities, assisting developing countries in implementing environmentally sound policies and practices. It was founded as a result of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in June 1972 and has its...
appointed Jason a Goodwill Ambassador "for his commitment and dedication to furthering the cause of the environment through the use of his creative talents to inspire respect for our natural heritage and to promote the conservation and sustainable use of the earth's resources."
Jason signed a deal with Universal Records
Universal Records
Universal Records was a record label owned by Universal Music Group, and it is now owned by Manny Patino and Michael Jackson, and operated as part of the Universal Motown Republic Group.-History:...
and released two singles ("Taste the Tears" and "You Win Again"), both produced by Desmond Child
Desmond Child
Desmond Child is an American musician, songwriter, and producer. He is a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame.-Career:...
who had recently produced Ricky Martin
Ricky Martin
Enrique "Ricky" Martín Morales , better known as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican and Spanish pop singer and actor who achieved prominence, first as a member of the Latin boy band Menudo, then as a solo artist since 1991.During his career he has sold more than 60 million album copies worldwide...
's hit "Livin' la Vida Loca." In summer 2000, Jason and Jessica Simpson
Jessica Simpson
Jessica Ann Simpson is an American recording artist, actress, television personality, and fashion designer whose rise to fame began in 1999. Since that time, Simpson has achieved many recording milestones, starred in several television shows, movies, and commercials, launched a line of hair and...
starred in a Disney Channel
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company. It is under the direction of Disney-ABC Television Group President Anne Sweeney. The channel's headquarters is located on West Alameda Ave. in...
special called Jessica Simpson and Jason Raize in Concert. The concert was filmed in Disneyland and featured Jason's songs "I Can Make it Without You," "You Win Again," "Lovin' You Lovin' Me," "Run Away Girl," and "NYC." His debut CD on Universal was titled NYC, but it was not officially released.
Jason returned to the New York theater scene in January 2001 for a concert performance of Carmen Jones
Carmen Jones
Carmen Jones is a 1943 Broadway musical starring Muriel Smith in the title role, later made into a 1954 musical film; the play also ran for a season in 1991 at London's Old Vic and most recently in London's Royal Festival Hall in the Southbank Centre in 2007. It is an updating of the Georges Bizet...
. He starred in the made-for-TV-movie The Kitchen
The Kitchen
The Kitchen is a non-profit, multi-disciplinary art and performance space located at at 512 West 19th Street, between Tenth and Eleventh Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City...
which premiered on PBS in June 2001. That same fall, Jason's television series Keeping it Wild with Jason Raize premiered as a nationally-syndicated program in which Jason visited exotic locations such as Africa, Costa Rica, and Australia to learn about animals in their natural habitats. The show was produced by Sue Ann Taylor of Blue Heron Films.
Jason also provided the voice of Denahi in the Disney animated feature Brother Bear
Brother Bear
Brother Bear is a 2003 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures, the forty-fourth animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics. In the film, an Inuit boy pursues a bear in revenge for a battle that he provoked in which...
, released in fall 2003.
Death
In 2003, Jason returned to AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
without his family's knowledge to rethink his career path. Sarah MacArthur, his mother, said "[Jason] needed to step back and catch his breath. I don't think he had figured it out yet [what to do next]". He took a job working as a general hand at a stud farm
Stud farm
A stud farm or stud in animal husbandry, is an establishment for selective breeding of livestock. The word "stud" comes from the Old English stod meaning "herd of horses, place where horses are kept for breeding" Historically, documentation of the breedings that occur on a stud farm leads to the...
in Yass, New South Wales
Yass, New South Wales
Yass is a town in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia in Yass Valley Shire. The name appears to have been derived from an Aboriginal word, "Yarrh" , said to mean 'running water'....
called Hardwicke Stud, owned by olympic gold medalist Lawrence Morgan
Lawrence Morgan
Lawrence "Laurie" Morgan was an Australian sportsman who is the only person to play VFL/AFL football and win an Olympic Gold Medal...
. This was also a place where he had friends whom he met while filming there in 2001.
At 11:15 am on February 7, 2004, Jason's body was found hanged
Hanging
Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
in a shed on the farm property. A missing persons report had been filed on February 3, also believed to be the time of death. Jason's death was ruled a suicide.
Memorial and Legacy
A public memorial service for Jason was held on April 8, 2004, at Broadway's New Amsterdam TheatreNew Amsterdam Theatre
The New Amsterdam Theatre is a Broadway theater located at 214 West 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Theatre District of Manhattan, New York City, off of Times Square...
, where Jason had performed as Simba for almost three years. The service included speeches by Jason's sister, Lisa, and Disney Theatrical's Thomas Schumacher, a performance by Jason's former The Lion King
The Lion King (musical)
The Lion King is a musical based on the 1994 Disney animated film of the same name with music by Elton John and lyrics by Tim Rice along with the musical score created by Hans Zimmer with choral arrangements by Lebo M. Directed by Julie Taymor, the musical features actors in animal costumes as well...
co-star Heather Headley
Heather Headley
Heather Headley is a Trinidadian-American R&B and soul singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. She has won one Tony Award and one Grammy Award.-Personal life:...
, a slide show and home movies from his younger days, clips of Jason performing in The Lion King, and a montage from his Keeping it Wild television series. The service ended with a traditional South African celebration of passing into the next world led by cast members of The Lion King.
Today, the Orpheus Theatre in Oneonta
Oneonta
-Communities:*Oneonta, New York, A small city and inspiration for some of the other "Oneontas"*Oneonta , New York, a town that surrounds the City of Oneonta*Oneonta, Alabama, Blount County*Oneonta, Kentucky, a location southeast of Cincinnati, Ohio...
issues two annual Jason Rothenberg Raize Scholarships which underwrite tuition to the theater's summer music theater workshops for youths with financial need.
External links
- The Raize Resource: web resource about the life and career of Jason Raize