Entertainment Producer, Composer William May dies

William May, the Australian-based entertainment producer who co-created the top-selling theatrical tour 'Walking With Dinosaurs', has died. He was 56.

May died at St. Vincent's Hospital in Melbourne after a recent illness, his public relations company said.

May, born in Brooklyn, New York, was an artistic director, composer and entertainment producer.

As a young boy, he won scholarships to the Carnegie Hall for dance and the New York High School of Performing Arts.

He toured with Sonny and Cher and the Osmonds as a teenager, before moving at age 19 to Australia, where he largely remained based while working on domestic and overseas productions.

With his partner Malcolm Cooke he produced more than 40 theatrical productions that appeared from Broadway to London's West End, including 'Marilyn - An American Fable'; 'Always', a musical story of King Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson; 'The Hobbit'; and 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'.

In 2007 he developed 'Walking with Dinosaurs, the Live Experience', a live version of the award-winning BBC series, which brought 15 full-size dinosaurs to life.

After touring Australia, the $20 million production is now touring the United States and Europe.

'Walking With Dinosaurs' was the best selling non-music tour of 2009 in North America, according to Pollstar and was the 12th biggest tour of the year, following acts such as U2, Britney Spears and Nickelback.

"His reputation as an artistic director was colored by a driving passion to give children and families the experience of wonderment, and to ignite their imagination to dream," publicists Solters & Digney said in a statement.

"His motto was: 'If you can dream it, you can achieve it.'"

May is survived by Cooke, his longtime life and business partner, the statement said.

For more information go to www.williammay.com.au