Drew near Oscar for small role (5)
I believe the answer is:
cameo
'small role' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'drew near oscar' is the wordplay.
'drew near' becomes 'came' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should believe this answer much more).
'oscar' becomes 'O' (phonetic alphabet: alpha, bravo, charlie etc.).
'came'+'o'='CAMEO'
'for' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for cameo that I've seen before include "Brief role" , "Small piece of hard stone carved with raised design" , "Carved brooch - small role" , "Small role - gem with a figure carved in relief" , "Something small but well executed, say role in play" .)