Young Zien started in local theatrical productions. One of his early roles was as a child in a production of
South Pacific at the Melody Top summer outdoor theatre in Milwaukee.
Stage Zien's first major role was in 1977 at the
Manhattan Theatre Club in the musical
The Redemption Center (by Ron Cowen, Seth Glassman, and Sandy Naishtat), opposite
Alice Playten as the young couple. Later, Chip received acclaim in the role of Marvin in
William Finn's first musical,
In Trousers, which ran
Off-Broadway in 1979. In its sequels,
March of the Falsettos (1981) and
Falsettoland, this role was played by
Michael Rupert, while Zien played Mendel, a role he reprised when these two one-act musicals were joined together and played Broadway as
Falsettos in 1992. In 1998 Zien was featured in another Finn musical when he played a children's show host called Mr. Bungee, dressed as a frog, in
A New Brain Off-Broadway at the
Lincoln Center Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater. He received a 1999
Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical for this role. He originated the role of the Baker in
Into the Woods in 1986 at the
Old Globe Theatre in San Diego and on Broadway in 1987. Zien starred on Broadway in
Ride the Winds (as Inari) (1974),
The Suicide (as Victor Victorovich) (1980),
Grand Hotel (as Otto Kringelein) (1989) and
The Boys from Syracuse (as Dromio of Ephesus) (2002). He appeared in the
City Center Encores! staged concert production of
Applause as Buzz Richards in 2008. In 2005, Zien played the part of Goran in
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang on Broadway. In 2007, Zien was a replacement in the Broadway revival of
Les Misérables in the role of
Monsieur Thénardier. From April 1 to June 19, 2011, Zien appeared in the
Roundabout Theatre Company's production of
The People in the Picture, which played at
Studio 54 on Broadway. Zien appeared in a revival of
Into the Woods at the
Delacorte Theater in
Central Park from August 9 to September 1, 2012. He played the Mysterious Man, the father of the character he had originated in the original production 26 years prior. Zien appeared in the Broadway musical
It Shoulda Been You at the
Brooks Atkinson Theatre as Murray with music by Barbara Anselmi, book and lyrics by Brian Hargrove. The show, marking the directorial debut of
David Hyde Pierce, starred
Tyne Daly,
Harriet Harris,
Sierra Boggess, and
David Burtka, and opened in previews March 17, 2015, and officially on April 14. Zien originated the role of Older Rabbi Josef Roman Cycowski of the famous
Comedian Harmonists both Off-Broadway and on Broadway in the musical
Harmony at both the
Museum of Jewish Heritage at the National Theater
Folksbiene (where he was nominated for a
Drama Desk Award) and the
Ethel Barrymore Theatre in 2022 and 2023, respectively.
Film and television In 1973, Zien made his television debut on an episode of
Love, American Style. More guest roles in television followed, and in the early 1980s, he began a stream of regular TV roles. In 1981, he appeared on ''
Ryan's Hope as Daniel Thorne, the producer of the fictional Proud and the Passionate
soap opera on the series in which the character Barbara Wilde (Judith Barcroft) was starring. Later that year, he began a two-year run in the freshman NBC sitcom Love, Sidney'' as Jason Stoller, the young, hot-shot ad agency director who was Sidney Shorr's (
Tony Randall) boss. Immediately after
Love, Sidney's cancellation, Zien was cast in a similar role on the
ABC sitcom
Reggie, an American adaptation of the British series
The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin. He played C.J. Wilcox, the overbearing young boss of
Richard Mulligan's Reggie Potter. The series aired as a summer replacement during August and September 1983, but was not renewed by ABC after the tryout run. In 1986, he provided the voice of the title character in
Marvel Comics'
Howard the Duck. Zien later starred on the short-lived
CBS drama
Shell Game in 1987. In the 1990s, Zien was part of the ensemble cast of the CBS sitcom
Almost Perfect (1995–96), playing neurotic screenwriter Gary Karp.
Almost Perfect was cancelled shortly into its second season, but the series sustained its loyal following via reruns on
USA Network not long after. Zien would return to regular roles in daytime drama, first on
Guiding Light in early 1999, and by that summer, as newspaper reporter Donald Steele on
All My Children, a role that would last until 2001. He has appeared repeatedly as Attorney Cromwell on
Law & Order. During the 2002–03 season, Zien was the announcer on daytime's
The Caroline Rhea Show, He played Dr. Marsh in the
vampire comedy film
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Undead. ==Personal life==