Robert LuPone, a theater artist also known for playing Bruce Cusamano on The Sopranos, died on August 27. He was 76. LuPone had pancreatic cancer over the past three years, per an Instagram post from the Off Broadway MCC Theater, which he co-founded. Among others, LuPone is survived by his younger sister, Patti, the Tony-winning Broadway star. LuPone got his start acting shortly after graduating from Juilliard. He originated the role of the director, Zach, in A Chorus Line, which earned him a Tony nomination. He later starred in plays including A View From the Bridge and True West. LuPone was otherwise known for playing Tony Soprano’s neighbor Dr. Bruce Cusamano on The Sopranos. His other television appearances include All My Children, which earned him a Daytime Emmy nomination; Sex and the City; and, most recently, Billions. But LuPone spent much of his later career focused on theater development and education, opening Manhattan Class Company Theater alongside Bernard Telsey and William Cantler in 1986 and directing the New School for Drama’s M.F.A. program from its founding in 2005 through 2011. “Bob was a force, an advocate, complex in the richest ways, overflowing with a youthful enthusiasm, and deeply wise as he looked in to our souls,” Telsey and Cantler wrote in a letter. “He was our best friend.”
