Duncan Sheik, singer-songwriter behind “Barely Breathing” and Broadway’s “Spring Awakening,” dies at 56

Duncan Sheik, the singer behind the ’90s hit “Barely Breathing” and later the Tony Award-winning composer of Broadway’s “Spring Awakening,” has died at 56 years old, his family said Friday. 

Sheik died Thursday from cardiac arrest, his mother Suzanne Sheik told The New York Times. Sheik’s family said on Instagram he died on Thursday “surrounded by love.” 

His family had previously said on social media on Thursday that Sheik was “receiving medical care” and was in critical but stable condition. 

Sheik moved to Los Angeles to work as a musician in the early 1990s, and rose to pop stardom with the 1996 single “Barely Breathing.” The song charted on the Billboard Hot 100 for over a year. 

He continued to release music throughout the ’90s and early 2000s. In 1999, Broadway playwright Steven Sater approached Sheik to discuss working together on a musical based on the German play “Spring Awakening.” Their eventual collaboration would lead to a musical of the same name that opened on Broadway in 2007 and starred Lea Michele, Jonathan Groff and John Gallagher Jr. 

“Spring Awakening” went on to win eight Tony Awards, including best musical. Sheik won best orchestrations and best original musical score. The show is due to return to New York City with an off-Broadway run in November. 

Sheik also worked on a musical adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’ “American Psycho,” which bowed on Broadway in 2016, and “Alice by Heart,” a musical retelling of “Alice in Wonderland” that played off-Broadway in 2018. He also continued to release his own music. 

Sheik is survived by his parents, his wife Nora, their daughter Ines, and two half-siblings, The New York Times reported. 

“Duncan was a father, husband, son, brother, and friend,” his family said on Instagram. “He will be remembered for his sensitivity, wit, inteligence, and depth of spirit he brought to those who knew and loved him.” 

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