About

DEREK LUSCUTOFF (he/him) is a dancer, singer, actor, pianist, accordionist, writer, and teacher living in New York City! Originally from Northern California (the Sacramento area), Derek grew up playing the piano, performing in musical theatre, and creating musical revues for anyone who would watch! Now he performs for audiences around the world and writes musicals of his own! He is of mixed ethnicity, born to a Latina mother (Mexican & Spanish) and a Russian/Italian father.

Derek began his professional career traveling the world as a performer with Norwegian Cruise Line and their affiliates Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises. On the Norwegian Gem, he danced in Swing! (a cruise ship adaptation of the Broadway musical, with original Broadway direction and choreography by Lynne Taylor-Corbett). On the Oceania Marina, in addition to performing in the production shows, he created his own cabaret entitled Swing, Standards, and Sinatra: A Big Band Tribute. On the Regent Navigator, he collaborated with another singer/dancer to create a Fred Astaire & Ginger Rodgers-style show—The Golden Age of Broadway and Hollywood, featuring hits from Judy Garland, Gene Kelly, and more. Over the course of three years, Derek traveled to six continents and over fifty countries!

Derek has also performed in musical theatre across the United States! His credits include Carnegie Hall (Strike Up the Band, directed by Ted Sterling), the national tour of Lincoln Center’s My Fair Lady (directed by Bartlett Sher), Goodspeed Musicals (the pre-Broadway tryout of 42nd Street, directed & choreographed by Randy Skinner), Paper Mill Playhouse (Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella), North Shore Music Theatre (The Sound of Music, Young Scrooge in A Christmas Carol, & Father Alexandrios in Mamma Mia!), The Phoenix Theatre Company (Singin’ in the Rain, Something Rotten!, An American in Paris), and more! He also recently played dream roles of his—Phil Davis in White Christmas (Music Theatre of Connecticut) and Don Lockwood in Singin’ in the Rain (Rivertown Theaters - New Orleans)!

Derek earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science with minors in Music and Dance/Performance Studies from the University of California, Berkeley, in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is also a graduate of the Jazz/Musical Theatre Dance Program at The School at Jacob’s Pillow in Massachusetts. And he completed Berkeley Rep’s theatre writing program, culminating with a staged reading of one of his full-length works.

Derek is a proud Latine & queer artist! A Renaissance man, he enjoys performing, teaching, creating, and collaborating with other artists! He is currently writing the book, music, and lyrics for several musicals, both on his own and with writing partners. Look out for those new works in the coming years! Derek is passionate about making a positive impact in the world through the performing arts, whether by bringing an audience joy or asking them to walk in someone else’s shoes and contemplate the important issues of our time.

Follow him on social media: @derekluscutoff