Biographie
Norbert Leo Butz was born on January 30, 1967, in St. Louis, Missouri, as the seventh child of Elaine and Norbert A. Butz. He is of German, French, and Irish descent. In 1993, he auditioned for the Alabama Shakespeare Festival without using his middle name, but due to frequent confusion with his father, he decided to add "Leo." His Broadway career began in 1997 when he moved with his then-wife Sydney and their infant daughter Clara to join the musical "Rent" as a swing. After a few months, he took over the lead role of Roger full-time. Following "Rent," Norbert toured as the emcee in "Cabaret" around the time his daughter Maggie was born. He appeared in other productions, including the role of Jamie, a perplexed heartthrob in "The Last 5 Years," and Camille, a character driven by revenge, in "Thou Shalt Not." His major breakthrough came in 2003 when he played the charismatic Prince Fiyero in "Wicked." During his tenure in "Wicked," Norbert and Sydney divorced, and he met Michelle Federer, who would become his fiancée and wife. He left "Wicked" on July 7, 2004, to star as Freddy Benson, a naive yet humorous character, in the successful musical "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels." He continued performing this role on the national tour until October 2006, when he filmed the movie "Dan in Real Life," which was released in theaters on October 26, 2007.
