The award for best presentation went to the company of Wicked, which dedicated their performance to cast member Jerad Bortz and his husband Steven Skeels. A devastating car crash left Bortz paralyzed from the chest down. Bortz returned to the stage with Skeels and donned the company’s bonnet while leading them in an emotional rendition of “Dear Old Shiz.” The casts of Hamilton and Dear Evan Hansen united to share a mashup of “You Will Be Found” and “The Story of Tonight,” iconic songs from both shows arranged by Alex Lacamoire. “Found Tonight” was first performed by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Ben Platt at the March for Our Lives on March 24, in Washington, D.C. While all the numbers in the show did not feature pairings, the spirit of collaboration and unity was present throughout the fundraising season and inspired performances full of humor, hope and heart. The comedic companies of Avenue Q, A Bronx Tale The Musical and SpongeBob SquarePants shared playful parodies that had the audience smiling and laughing. The company of The Lion King and dance troupe Caleb Teicher & Company, representing Broadway Cares program Dancers Responding to AIDS, both shared captivating dance-focused pieces. Chicago powerhouse Lana Gordon and Jacob Hoffman from the benefit performance of Howard Crabtree’s When Pigs Fly showed their vocal prowess with impressive lead vocals representing their shows. The Easter Bonnet Competition also included a spirited tribute to all the national touring productions, set to Donna Summer’s “She Works Hard for the Money.” The number featured 22 dancers and was choreographed by Richard J. Hinds. This year’s Easter Bonnet Competition opened with a high-energy production number, in which original La Cage aux Folles stars David Engel, Drew Geraci and Jennifer Smith explained the origins of the competition to SpongeBob SquarePants’ Brynn Williams. The number was written and directed by Billy Hipkins and co-directed and choreographed by James Kinney, with music direction by Ted Arthur. The show concluded with Once on This Island’s Hailey Kilgore singing a show-stopping and awe-inspiring rendition of the Easter Bonnet Competition anthem, “Help is on the Way,” written by David Friedman with a new arrangement by Ted Arthur. Actors across Broadway came together to host this year’s Easter Bonnet Competition, including John Cariani and Ari’el Stachel from The Band’s Visit; Lilli Cooper, Gavin Lee and Ethan Slater from SpongeBob SquarePants; Bongi Duma and Nhlanhla Ngobeni from The Lion King; Erika Henningsen and Taylor Louderman from Mean Girls; Lea Salonga from Once on This Island and Taylor Trensch from Dear Evan Hansen.
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Behind the Scenes