Denver dancer: From brain surgery to Broadway | John Moore

A Denver actor is going from brain surgery to Broadway.

Much of Denver – and pretty much the whole “Tiny Pretty Things” TV universe – has been on edge since Denver-born actor and classically trained ballet dancer Barton Cowperthwaite, 31, announced five weeks ago that doctors had discovered a tumor in his brain the size of a lemon. In medical terms, it’s called a Grade 2 glioma. Ten whirlwind days later, he was undergoing surgery to remove it and determine if it was cancerous.

Sometimes good things happen in threes. And the three-fold good news for the graduate of Denver School of the Arts all adds up to one big holiday miracle. One Cowperthwaite has kept his fans up to speed on with remarkable transparency from the start. He has 188,000 followers on Instagram alone.

• Most important: Doctors at NYU Langone Health believe they got all of the tumor. And while they can’t be sure it wasn’t cancer until the pathology results come back any day, they have told Cowperthwaite they are “currently 98% sure that we’re looking at the best-case scenario,” he posted. There is no known cure for these types of tumors, and it’s possible for Cowperthwaite’s to come back, but “at this point, they are not recommending any immediate continued treatment. We will be moving forward with monitoring and getting scans every 2-3 months for the next few years.

“This is definitely the news we were hoping for, and it feels like we have so much to be optimistic about moving forward.”

• Next: Cowperthwaite proposed to jewelry designer Sophie Thoerner earlier this year – and she said yes.  

• And, if you can believe this: It was just announced that Cowperthwaite will be making his Broadway debut this spring as an ensemble player in “The Outsiders,“ a new musical based on both the classic S.E. Hinton novel and the Francis Ford Coppola film version. Previews begin March 16 at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, with opening night set for April 11.

“I am so proud to be part of bringing this timeless story to life on a Broadway stage,” Cowperthwaite said. “The cast and creative team is truly incredible. Getting back to good health for this show is a massive motivator through this difficult time.”

The lead roles will be played by Brody Grant as Ponyboy, Brent Comer as Darrel, Jason Schmidt as Sodapop, Sky Lakota-Lynch as Johnny, Joshua Boone as Dallas Winston and Emma Pittman as Cherry Valance. The ensemble will also include Renni Anthony Magee, who appeared in the DCPA Theatre Company’s 2018 production of “Oklahoma!” set in an all-Black town.

The director will be Danya Taymor, niece of Julie Taymor, who became the first woman to win a Tony Award for directing a musical (“The Lion King”).

Ironically, one week after doctors discovered Cowperthwaite's tumor, he had been scheduled to open in the in off-Broadway revival of James McLure's dark comedy "Lone Star." (He had to be replaced.)

Cowperthwaite was a featured actor on the 2021 Netflix series “Tiny Pretty Things,” which revolved around the goings-on at a ballet school in Chicago. He played Oren Lennox, a character the show described as "a strapping prince of a man. Wealth and good looks gave him great roles, a girlfriend and primed him for success. But beneath this veneer lies crippling anxiety, a dysfunctional obsession with his body, and a need for physical perfection." But the show was not renewed. "Ya’ll know Season 2 Oren would’ve been an absolute savage!" Cowperthwaite posted.

He was taken to the emergency room Nov. 8 after he had a seizure, he said on TikTok. His diagnosis was immediately reported by dozens of national media outlets including CNN, People, Entertainment Weekly and NBC. Much of the media incorrectly equated the initial discovery of the tumor with brain cancer.

He had a setback on Sunday when he developed an infection that not only left him with a new titanium plate in his head, it will require him to push IV antibiotics for the next six weeks. There was no immediate word if that will endanger his place in the Broadway show. "We are happy to be home," Thoerner posted. "The only way out is through."

In the first few days following Cowperthwaite’s diagnosis, a GoFundMe campaign was launched that has raised more than $107,600 to help pay for his growing medical expenses.

Cowperthwaite had been given the green light to start some light exercise, and he was eager to start physically rebuilding his body. “I am going to bust my ass to get back into fighting/dancing shape,” he wrote.

“Life has such a beautiful glow lately that I want to soak up and share with everyone. No matter what happens down the line, I know more than ever how strong I am and how much love and support I have lifting me up. I’m so grateful for the support I’ve gotten from so many to help me weather this storm and get to the point where I can clearly see the path toward making this happen. What a life!”

Barton's mother, Laura Cowperthwaite, is a co-founder of Denver’s Curious Theatre. Just last month, Barton's cousin, the film director Gabriela Cowperthwaite, was honored at the Denver Film Festival with an award and a closing-night screening of her new space thriller “I.S.S.”

Barton returned to Denver in 2017 as a featured ensemble dancer in the national touring production of "An American in Paris." At that time, he paid a visit to Denver School of the Arts, where he graduated in the class of 2010, and led students through a master class.

“It’s cool to impart on them the wisdom that I wish I could have told myself when I was that age,” he said at the time.