A man has been found dead on the roof of a Broadway theatre after jumping from a high-rise hotel in an apparent suicide.

The victim, identified as 37-year-old Wesley Hunter, is believed to have leaped from the top of the W New York Hotel on Friday evening (28Feb14) and landed on the roof of the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, which houses Motown the Musical.

A loud thud was heard inside the 104-year-old venue at the time of the incident, but cast and crewmembers and theatre staff did not think to have the sound investigated as they prepared for show time, even though the impact reportedly shook the crystal chandeliers.

Ensemble actor Ephraim Sykes tells the New York Post, "It was a loud boom. We didn't know what it was."

The show went on as scheduled and the corpse of Brooklyn resident Hunter wasn't found until 12 hours later, on Saturday morning (01Mar14), after a female guest at the W New York Hotel spotted his body outside the gym's window.