“But I don’t think that we ever lived in an impoverished situation where there was no culture.”[1] He moved to New York City with his family in 1977 as he began pursuing his professional career.
In October 1976, Parker made his Broadway debut as an understudy at the Morosco Theatre in a revival of the play The Innocents, adapted and directed by Harold Pinter.
He was in the original cast of The Visit at Criterion Center Stage Right in 1992, in which he played the roles of Ottilie Schill, Pedro Cabral, and Wechsler.
In 1996, he joined Anthony Rapp, Adam Pascal, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Taye Diggs, Wilson Jermaine Heredia, and Idina Menzel in the Broadway cast of Rent.
His roles included Gordon in "Life Support", the man in "Christmas Bells", Mr. Grey in "La Vie Boheme", and others.
His film credits include Marshall Fine in Gold Coast; Bill in The Last Supper; and the M.C./King of Comedy in Joey Breaker.
After a year away from the show and Doctor Dillamond, Parker returned to the role in the Second National US Tour company, marking his fourth North American production.
On September 23, 2014, he returned to the show on Broadway, replacing K. Todd Freeman as Doctor Dillamond and played his final performance on January 31, 2016.
It operated out of a defunct picture-frame factory on Seventeenth Street and attracted actors including Marisa Tomei, Fisher Stevens, and Gina Gershon.