Nelson was the original Boy in the popular Off-Broadway musical The Fantasticks but he made his mark as Michael, the self-hating homosexual in play The Boys in the Band.
After reprising the role for the 1971 London production of The Boys in the Band, he decided to stay in England, and went on to appear in West End productions of such American musicals as Show Boat, Annie and 42nd Street.
Nelson spent much of the later part of his career in small roles on television and in movies.
Nelson died in 1993 of AIDS-related complications in London.

Hellraiser
1987 · as Bill

Nightbreed
1990 · as Emergency Doctor

Lace 2
1985 · as Interviewer at Premiere

The Boys in the Band
1970 · as Michael

The Lonely Lady
1983

The Games
1970 · as Frat Boy in Drinking Contest

Red King, White Knight
1989

Cuban Breeze
1986 · as Larry Steiner

The Brute
1977 · as Psychiatrist

Hallelujah, Mary Plum
1980 · as American Newsman