Behind the Scenes Spring 2024

WHO’S WHO

Behind the Scenes is published by Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS info@broadwaycares.org

Tom Viola, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Lane Beauchamp, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS

Larry Cook, DIRECTOR OF FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION

Ken McGee, PRODUCING DIRECTOR

Danny Whitman, DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT

OFFICERS

Robert E. Wankel, PRESIDENT

Thomas Schumacher, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT

Ira Mont, FIRST VICE PRESIDENT

Schele Williams, SECOND VICE PRESIDENT

Tom Kirdahy, THIRD VICE PRESIDENT

Philip Birsh, TREASURER

Judith Rice, SECRETARY

Paul Libin, PRESIDENT EMERITUS

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Ted Arthur

Cornelius Baker

Joseph Benincasa

David Binder

Chris Boneau

Barry Brown

Lisa Dawn Cave

Sherry Cohen

Gavin Creel

Alan Cumming

Ariana DeBose

Maria Di Dia

Mandy Gonzalez

Amanda Green

Tom Harris

Richard Hester

Richard Jay-Alexander

Beverly Jenkins

Francis Jue

Adam Krauthamer

Nathan Lane

BEHIND THE SCENES

Peter Lawrence

Joe Machota

Kimberly Marable

Kevin McCollum

Jerry Mitchell

Brian Moreland

Javier Muñoz

John Eric Parker

Bernadette Peters

Billy Porter

Lauren Reid

Cody Renard Richard

Jordan Roth

Nick Scandalios

Mark Shacket

Kate Shindle

Charlotte St. Martin

David Stone

Alvin Vincent Jr.

Tom Viola (ex-officio)

Channing Wickham

Editors Tom Viola, Lane Beauchamp

Layout & Design Jenny Garcia, Dominic Grijalva, Danielle Stecki

Writers Jennifer Buritica-Lopez, Francesca Toscano

Contributors

Jenna Adamek, Sarah Cardillo, Maureen “Mo” Fenninger, Lori Feren, Melissa Magliula, Taylor Mattes, Madeline Reed, Abigail Richards, Desney Scoby

Photographers

Amy Anderson, Angela of York, Roberto Araujo, Curtis Brown, Owen Burnham, Hally Everett, David Fenner, Jenny Garcia, Andy Henderson, Michael Hull, Elyse Mertz, Rebecca J. Michelson, Johnny Milani, Daniel Josh Pacheco, Daniel Roberts, Monica Simoes, Allison Stock

On the cover: Leslie Odom Jr., Willa Bost and Kara Young by Rebecca J. Michelson

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Dear Friends,

One of the great joys of my role as executive director of Broadway Cares is seeing firsthand how a collective love of theater and the arts can translate into tangible, lifesaving support and assistance. As you read through the pages of this issue of Behind the Scenes, I invite you to take a moment and embrace how your appreciation for and commitment to this craft and our mission have changed lives.

The continued success of our annual events is a testament to how your generosity knows no bounds. In this issue, we’ll take you from the New Amsterdam Theatre, where six weeks of dedicated fall fundraising was celebrated in an electric Red Bucket Follies, to the foliage-studded shores of this year’s Hudson Valley Dance Festival. We share the unforgettable Legacy: An Evening with Maria Friedman & Friends, and remember the magic of one-night-only performances at Broadway Backwards and Inside Dance Series.

Along the way, we also introduce you to a few of the faces who make our work possible, from dedicated Angels Circle members to stalwart stage managers and student fundraisers.

As important is sharing how your support is being put to work. Already this year, Broadway Cares awarded a record $2.83 million to 146 food pantries, congregate meal and meal delivery programs across the country. These grants will reach hundreds of thousands of people facing the challenges of living with HIV/AIDS and other illnesses while struggling with diminished resources, personal crises and economic insecurity.

And that lifesaving support is helping countless friends in the entertainment industry, as well. In 2023, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS awarded the Entertainment Community Fund (formerly The Actors Fund) $7.64 million, supporting a safety net of social services including The Friedman Health Center and the Phyllis Newman Women’s Health Initiative. In this issue, we explore the work of the HIV/AIDS Initiative - a program that is particularly close to my heart because it’s the first initiative Equity Fights AIDS supported at the Fund back in 1988. Our support of the HIV/AIDS Initiative jump-started our decades-long, invaluable partnership with the Fund.

All of this is possible because you, alongside fellow theater fans and artists, have so much capacity for compassion and care. Every dollar in a bucket, every gift from an Angels Circle or Visionary Circle member, every ticket purchased is meals, medication and hope for those who need it most, today. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Tom Viola Executive Director

Remembering Board Trustee Chita Rivera

An inimitable light dimmed when Chita Rivera passed away January 30, 2024. That light shined far beyond the stage, as Chita’s commitment, dedication and loyalty to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS provided meals and medication to people in need across the country. A member of our Board of Trustees for more than 20 years, she brought boundless joy when stepping up for the organization in myriad ways, giving appeals from the stage, leading her castmates in signing thousands of posters and Playbills and gracing the stage at various events.

“Chita was one of our most loyal friends and staunchest of advocates,” Broadway Cares Executive Director Tom Viola said. “From our earliest days she set the example for what it means to show up in solidarity and determination for each other in times of crisis.”

To quote Kiss of the Spider Woman, “Sooner or later, you’re certain to meet.” Until then, Chita will be dearly missed by all at Broadway Cares and the countless folks across the country helped by her generosity.

2023 GRANT-MAKING

Entertainment Community Fund

The Friedman Health Center for the Performing Arts

HIV/AIDS Initiative

Phyllis Newman Women’s Health Initiative

COVID-19 Emergency Assistance Fund

Artists Health Insurance Resource Center (AHIRC)

Addiction and Recovery Services

Senior Services

The Dancers’ Resource

The Career Center

Safety Net for All Campaign

Broadway Flu Shot Program

Safe Workplace Initiative

The Stage Managers’ Project

The Paul Libin Center - Looking Ahead

Miscellaneous

Special event sponsorship, memorial donations

National Grants

Food Service and Meal Delivery Programs

"Where does all that money go?" $7,642,500

141 organizations in 38 states, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C.

Local AIDS Service Organizations

311 organizations in 50 states, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C., providing direct services and case management, supportive housing programs, emergency financial assistance, harm reduction programs and quality of life services

Emergency Grants for Pandemic Relief

Supplemental Grants and Shared Support

National Grants Program Grantees - Additonal Support

Theater Organizations Social Service Grants

Broadway Community Emergency Response Grants Florida Hurricane Relief, California and Hawaii Wildfires, Turkey Earthquake

National Grants Total

International Grants

South Africa organizations in honor of The Lion King

Miscellaneous

2,827,500 3,340,000 550,000 944,000 449,500 395,000 600,000 397,500 50,000 2,000,000 1,000,000 1,000,000 1,000,000 750,000 500,000 300,000 250,000 250,000 200,000 100,000 100,000 52,500 50,000 90,000

Entertainment Community Fund Total $9,106,000 $ 447,500

International Grants Total

2023 Grant-making Total $17,196,000

TABLE OF CONTENTS

A HISTORY OF GRANT-MAKING

5/92-12/92

Red Bucket Follies

Joy and Spectacular Fundraising Mark Long-Awaited Return of Annual Celebration

An exultant and effervescent Red Bucket Follies returned after a four-year, pandemic-induced hiatus to celebrate six weeks of enthusiastic fundraising. The star-studded variety show, performed December 4 and 5, honored 46 Broadway, Off-Broadway and national touring companies that participated in fall fundraising for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.

Red Bucket Follies raised a remarkable $4,553,203. The total was announced at the conclusion of Tuesday’s performance by Jonathan Groff, Rachel Bay Jones, Leslie Odom Jr. and Kara Young.

This year’s top overall fundraising award went to Merrily We Roll Along, which raised an astounding $631,932. Surprising the standing-room-only audience to accept the award was one of Groff’s co-stars, Daniel Radcliffe, who for six weeks energetically led nightly auctions from the stage offering one-of-a-kind show props and other signed treasures.

Best onstage presentation went to the company of The Lion King. Set to spoken word written by Daniel Watts and performed by Bongi Duma, the timely and meaningful piece was directed and choreographed by Ray Mercer. The piece challenged how toxic

masculinity often forces men to suppress their emotions, asking, “what happens to boys when boys don’t cry?”

Snagging the runner-up spot was Back to the Future: The Musical with an original number that had cast members revving their engines in an audition for the role of the national tour’s time-traveling DeLorean. Representing theater’s most iconic modes of transportation, from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Greased Lightning to Miss Saigon’s helicopter and Starlight Express’ dining car, the cast comedically competed in “A Car-us Line” to earn the starring role. However, there could only be “One Single Car Sensation.” The number was directed by Billy Hipkins and Jelani Remy.

In the opening number, Bonnie Milligan met the ghost of Tony Awards present - the magnetic J. Harrison Ghee - in a delightful dream sequence that ushered in the return of Red Bucket Follies. Traveling through time in a DeLorean, they met Back to the Future’s Remy, who joyfully announced, in the style of the Backstreet Boys, that Red Buckets are back (alright!). Complete with a joyful ensemble, spirited choreography and Milligan dressed as a Red Bucket that transformed into a sparkling gown, the number was written by Jed Resnick and directed and choreographed by Andrew Turtletaub.

After eight years of performing the role of Samuel Seabury, Hamilton’s only remaining original cast member, Thayne Jasperson, was fed up of losing to the 10-dollar founding father eight times a week. So Jasperson humorously transformed Seabury into the show’s central star in its most pivotal moments. He took the throne as King George, suffered a dramatic post-duel death as Philip and stole the show’s final moments as Hamilton’s loving wife, Eliza.

Here Lies Love shared “Pasko Na, My Love,” an original Christmas carol with a Filipino twist composed by cast member Angelo Soriano. Despite the song’s heart wrenchingly affecting lyrics about a lost love missed on Christmas, the cast’s buoyant energy and uplifting harmonies brought the spirit of the show to the New Amsterdam stage.

SiriusXM “On Broadway” host Christine Pedi shared her impressions of Broadway’s most legendary ladies set to the “Twelve Days of Christmas.”

Red Bucket Follies also featured performances from Harmony’s Sierra Boggess, original Sweeney Todd Len Cariou, Here We Are’s Rachel Bay Jones, Some Like It Hot composer and lyricist Marc Shaiman with actor Jenifer Lewis, Hadestown’s Lillias White and Broadway Inspirational Voices.

Seth Rudetsky, host of SiriusXM’s “On Broadway” channel, returned for the 13th time to host the show with his quintessential deconstructions.

Hamilton’s Jasperson directed and choreographed a celebratory salute to the 14 national touring productions that joined in the fundraising. Representing Dancers Responding to AIDS, a program of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, The Verdon Fosse Legacy performed “Mexican Shuffle” from Sweet Gwen Suite.

Patrick Page led a moment of silence to remember lives lost to and affected by HIV/AIDS. Other special presenters included Roger Bart, Julie Benko, Corbin Bleu, Sierra Boggess, Alex Brightman, Victoria Clark, Lorna Courtney, Danny DeVito, Jonathan Groff, Rachel Bay Jones, Danny Kornfeld, Leslie Odom Jr., Zal Owen, Jelani Remy, Kara Young and Chip Zien.

Red Bucket Follies was directed by Jason Trubitt with Bernadette Schoenborn as production stage manager, leading a team of 16 stage managers. Ted Arthur was music director and Charles Gordon was music coordinator. Lighting design was by Anthony Pearson with sound design by Marie Renee Foucher.

Red Bucket Follies was performed at the New Amsterdam Theatre, home to Disney’s Aladdin. Red Bucket Follies was sponsored by The New York Times.

broadwaycares.org/follies2023 PHOTOS &

TOP FUNDRAISERS

BROADWAY MUSICALS

Top Fundraiser Merrily We Roll Along

1st Runner-Up Sweeney Todd .................... $291,902

2nd Runner-Up Some Like It Hot $186,437

3rd Runner-Up Gutenberg! The Musical! ..... $170,418

BROADWAY PLAYS

Top Fundraiser Purlie Victorious .................. $87,781

1st Runner-Up Pictures from Home ............. $86,373

OFF-BROADWAY PLAYS AND MUSICALS

Top Fundraiser Little Shop of Horrors ......... $52,727

1st Runner-Up Here We Are $41,478

NATIONAL TOURS

Top Fundraiser Wicked - Munchkinland .... $202,894

1st Runner-Up Beetlejuice $176,861

2nd Runner-Up Frozen ............................... $172,284

3rd Runner-Up Aladdin $151,635

46 COMPANIES RAISED $4,553,203

Merrily Director’s Legacy Concert Celebrates Sondheim and More

Olivier Award winning actor and director Maria Friedman showcased her status as one of best interpreters of legendary musical theater composers at Legacy: An Evening with Maria Friedman & Friends on March 4. The concert benefited Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, the Stephen Sondheim Foundation and The Marvin Hamlisch International Music Awards.

The one-night-only performance wove a narrative of songs and personal tales from across Friedman’s storied career, leading to her current role as the celebrated director of the smash hit Broadway revival of Merrily We Roll Along. The concert was hosted at Merrily’s home, the Hudson Theatre.

Friedman flexed her impressive range as she journeyed through show tunes by Sondheim, Hamlisch and Michel Legrand. She shared songs from some of musical theater’s most cherished shows, including A Chorus Line, Company, Into the Woods, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, A Little Night Music, Passion, Sweeney Todd, West Side Story and more.

Tony Award winner Santino Fontana popped in to play the George to Friedman’s Dot in a Sunday in the Park with George medley, and then returned with a rendition of “Buddy’s Blues” from Follies. During a jazzy medley of Michel Legrand’s work, Friedman was joined by an ensemble including members of the Merrily We Roll Along cast, as well as dancer Luke Hawkins with a show-stopping tap solo. Throughout the show, Friedman was accompanied by an ensemble of recent theater graduates making their debuts on a Broadway stage.

In an evening all about legacy, the final number, “Our Time” from Merrily We Roll Along, found Friedman ushering in and welcoming the new generation of theater stars.

VIDEO

Entertainment Community Fund

An Evolution of Support for the HIV/AIDS Initiative

hen Keith McNutt attended a performance of Rent in the mid-1990s, he didn’t expect the stories told onstage to mirror his experiences as a case worker for the

“I remember hearing the lyrics, ‘Will I lose my dignity, will someone care?’” McNutt said recently. “The words are repeated and repeated, and the pain and terror grows, and it reaches a crescendo of agony. It perfectly described what I was living every day with our clients.”

Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS has been supporting the life-affirming work of the HIV/AIDS Initiative at the Entertainment Community Fund (formerly The Actors Fund) since the program’s inception in 1988. Before the merger of the two organizations, Equity Fights AIDS provided the initial funding for the initiative and Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS continues to provide the majority of its annual budget. Last year, Broadway Cares provided $1 million to the HIV/AIDS Initiative.

McNutt and his team would take clients on social trips, as they were often ostracized from their families and struggling with loneliness.

“Even when there’s pain in life, there are so many opportunities to be gracious in giving.”

- Keith McNutt

In those earliest days of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, case management at the Fund ranged from building support systems and “buddy” teams when clients were healthy to writing wills, finalizing funeral arrangements and being by their bedsides for their final days.

“Even when there was such pain in life, there were also so many opportunities to be gracious in giving,” McNutt said.

Thanks to the generosity of Broadway Cares donors and supporters, this commitment of compassion has never wavered — even as accessibility to HIV medication transitioned the disease from a death sentence to a manageable condition.

“The care we’re providing changed because now we aren’t primarily going to funerals,” said Kent Curtis, who has been leading the HIV/AIDS Initiative since 2007. “So many of our patients today thought they’d never see 50, let alone 80. Now, our work has evolved into more long-term case management for clients of all ages.”

While evolutions in disease management have shifted the course of the case work, the Fund’s personalized compassion and support is a steadfast constant for its clients.

“The greatest challenge and greatest joy is to understand where our clients of all ages are in the continuum of life, and to help people feel in control enough that they can experience the joys of living,” Curtis said.

In 1996, Broadway Cares expanded its support of the Fund beyond the HIV/AIDS Initiative to provide initial funding to launch the Phyllis Newman Women’s Health Initiative. In 2023 alone, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS awarded the Entertainment Community Fund $7.64 million, supporting The Friedman Health Center for the Performing Arts, the HIV/AIDS Initiative, the Phyllis Newman Women’s Health Initiative, Senior Services, Addiction and Recovery Services, Artists Health Insurance Resource Center, The Dancers’ Resource, The Stage Managers’ Project and a safety net of other lifesaving services.

This expansion of services supports how the HIV case work is enhanced by and operates in tandem with other programs offered at the Fund.

“Nine times out of 10, referrals for new HIV infections come directly to us from The Friedman Health Center right above me, on the 12th floor of this building,” Curtis said from the Fund’s NYC Theater District offices on Broadway. “A case worker heads upstairs, and we give the clients education and emotional support. When younger people in the industry hear they’re HIV positive, their minds go to 30 years ago. We are in a very different phase of the disease, but we help people sit with the information.”

The case workers at the Fund schedule a follow-up appointment. Once immediate needs are met, such as emergency financial assistance or medication, the case workers identify other relevant services based on individual need.

“We’ll help them apply for a grant, and then analyze why they needed that grant,” Curtis said. “Have they not been able to work for a while? Then we’ll connect them with the Career Center for workshops and resume help. Have they been steadily making money but lack a good financial model? Here are financial wellness courses and housing workshops.”

McNutt emphasized that health insurance is also an important aspect of early case management. “We always want our social workers connecting HIV clients to our Artists Health Insurance Resource Center,” he said. “Our health insurance counselors know this industry and how people are in and out of union-based insurance, and can best connect them to resources.”

McNutt, who currently serves as the director of the western region at the Entertainment Community Fund, started his tenure at the Fund in 1996. Since the earliest days, his work has been powered by a desire to give back to the community that has given so much to him.

“The only way I kept my sanity, coming out of the closet in a small town in Ohio, was from people in the arts,” McNutt said. “I got through by listening to Motown music on my little AM radio and watching TV and movies. Once I got to the Fund, it clicked that this was the place I needed to do this work because I had such gratitude for creative people in the world.”

“The greatest challenge and greatest joy is to understand where our clients of all ages are in the continuum of life, and to help people feel in control enough that they can experience the joys of living.”

- Kent Curtis

Since that first funding in 1988, Broadway Cares’ donors and supporters have helped ensure more than $140 million have sustained and helped expand the programs of the Fund. Broadway Cares remains the single largest financial supporter of the safety net of social service programs at the Entertainment Community Fund.

“I don’t know that there’s ever been a partnership in the history of medicine or social work that has stepped in so completely as Broadway Cares has with the Fund,” McNutt said. “Because of that profound support and this vital partnership, we were able to create services that could meet the needs of our community. And that remarkable work truly saves people’s lives in the darkest moments.”

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The Stage Managers' Project

Paul Libin Center Looking

Flu Shot Program

South African Grants

New Grantee Offers Empowering Programming to At-Risk Youth

One in 300 young people in KwaZulu-Natal, a coastal South African province, are infected with HIV each week. In KwaMashu, a township on the outskirts of Durban in KwaZulu-Natal, Intuthuko Yabantu Community Project is doing critical work in creating safe and empowering programs that support children directly and indirectly affected by the virus.

The project was added this year to Broadway Cares’ South African grants efforts. Since The Lion King opened 26 years ago, a portion of the proceeds the show raises for Broadway Cares has been shared with local social service organizations identified by the South African cast members. Earlier this year, Broadway Cares sent $210,000 to 16 organizations serving South Africa, including health clinics, food pantries, orphanages and jobs programs.

The 2024 awards pushed Broadway Cares’ all-time total in South African grants to more than $6.1 million.

The services offered to children and their families at Intuthuko Yabantu Community Project include academic and artistic after-school programs, warm meals and community engagement campaigns around HIV/AIDS. And, connecting back to their friends

in the Pride Lands on Broadway, the project offers resources and space for children to explore their passions for the performing arts, visual arts and costume design.

Organizations like Intuthuko Yabantu are introduced to Broadway Cares by The Lion King’s South African cast members themselves, supporting the urgent needs of their hometowns. Company members also serve on the grant-making committee, playing a first-hand role in providing meals, medication and more lifesaving support back home.

Broadway Cares sent $210,000 to 16 organizations serving South Africa

Broadway Backwards

Star-Studded LGBTQ+ Celebration Shatters Records and Warms Hearts

Abrilliant string of 11-o’clock numbers, standing ovations and LGBTQ+ joy reverberated through the historic walls at Broadway’s New Amsterdam Theatre on March 11, when Tony Award winners, Broadway legends and newcomers alike spectacularly shared LGBTQ+ stories through show tunes at Broadway Backwards

The show raised a record $917,651 to benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center (The Center) in New York City. The 2024 total bested the record set last year by more than $152,000. The one-night-only, annual event is produced by Broadway Cares.

Jenn Colella hosted the event, warmly welcoming returning guests while ushering in a new generation of Broadway Backwards attendees. Colella led a cast of 101 performers, a 13-piece orchestra and a standing-room-only audience in the event’s celebratory 18th edition.

Breakout star Julie Benko opened the show with a flirty and fierce rendition of “Luck Be a Lady” from Guys and Dolls. She coquettishly rolled the dice alongside a high-rolling ensemble of women, leading them in a spirited, larger-than-life dance number.

John McGinty led a powerful number as a college student confronting his mother about her insensitivities around his sexuality and deafness. He passionately signed “Listen” from the

Dreamgirls film as the powerhouse vocals of Jordan Fisher served as his voice, reflecting the fiery plea. Daniel Marmion and Morgana Shaw played McGinty’s parents.

In an Italian-American fever dream, Bradley Dean portrayed a Godfather archetype advising his son’s suitor, played by Nicholas Park, to “Be Italian” in the signature song from Nine The full-out production number had a gregarious gaggle of gangsters dancing sensually amid red-checkered tablecloths strewn with glasses of merlot. The number also featured Todd Buonopane, Joe Chisholm and Janelle Farias Sando.

The lineup of performers who delivered rapturous solos included Shoshana Bean, Jonathan Bennett, Tituss Burgess, Norbert Leo Butz, Arielle Jacobs, Alex Newell, Lillias White and Constance Wu. Robin de Jesús’ number was in tribute to the song’s original Broadway performer, Chita Rivera, who passed away earlier this year.

The night’s delightful duets featured Len Cariou and Chip Zien; Casey Likes and Jelani Remy; Shoba Narayan and Courtney Reed; and Tony Yazbeck with Darius de Haas, featuring Jamison Stern.

Joshua Henry, joined by the Broadway Inspirational Voices, closed the show with a rousing rendition of “Climb Ev’ry Mountain.” It served as a rallying cry for the LGBTQ+ community to be authentically, unabashedly themselves.

Tony and Emmy Award winner Debra Monk made a special appearance to share the impact of supporting the lifesaving work of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and The Center.

Presenting sponsor City National Bank was represented by Senior Vice President Erik Piecuch who shared a $100,000 check with Broadway Backwards Creator Robert Bartley, who returned to direct, write and choreograph the show.

Ted Arthur and Mary-Mitchell Campbell served as music supervisors, Michael Gacetta as music director, Nicholas Connors and Nick Wilders as associate music directors, Skye Mattox and Adam Roberts as choreographers and associate directors, and Christopher Tester as director of artistic sign language. E Sara

Barnes served as production stage manager, leading a team of 10 stage managers. Mark Brandon, CSA, and Jarrett Reiche from Casting by ARC joined as casting consultants.

The evening featured lighting design by Carolyn Wong, sound design by Marie Renee Foucher, prop design by Jenna Snyder and Alexander Wylie, hair design by Ian Joseph and makeup design by Megan Burke. Costume designers included Kitty Cassetti, Jess Gersz, Vanessa Leuck, Natalie Loveland, Tyler Carlton Williams and Nicole Zausmer.

Broadway Backwards began as a grassroots concert performed at The Center in 2006 and has since grown into one of the most anticipated annual celebrations on Broadway. In its 18 editions, Broadway Backwards has raised more than $7.9 million for The Center and Broadway Cares.

The presenting sponsor was City National Bank. Additional generous support was provided by lead corporate sponsors A&E; Greenberg Traurig; Jean Paul Gaultier; KPMG; McDermott Will & Emery; O'Melveny & Myers; The New York Times; True Crime Obsessed Podcast; United Airlines, the official airline of Broadway Cares; and Warner Media.

PHOTOS & VIDEO

National Food Grants

Food Grants Change Lives Along National Tour Routes

On a February afternoon, 11 floors above the hustle and bustle of Times Square, 18 dedicated Broadway actors and stage managers gathered as part of Broadway Cares’ food grants committee. Six weeks of dedicated Red Bucket Fall Fundraising culminated in this moment - the opportunity to distribute lifesaving aid in the form of meals, meal deliveries and congregate meal programs to countless people facing hunger and isolation across the country.

“The entire process was truly eye-opening for me,” said Edmond O’Neal, a stage manager and first-time food grants committee member. “It can be all too easy when you are in the middle of appeals seasons or the Broadway Flea Market & Grand Auction to lose sight of the ‘why.’”

O’Neal helped award a record $2.83 million in grants to 146 food service and meal delivery programs across the country. Reaching often underserved and under-funded programs and organizations large and small - across 38 states, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C. - these grants will offer relief and a helping hand to communities and individuals seeking warm, healthy meals and food programs.

Broadway Cares’ National Grants Program will award additional grants this spring to nationally recognized AIDS service organizations, health clinics and advocacy organizations and to theater and entertainment industry social service agencies. This summer,

grants will be awarded to social service organizations whose work includes direct services, emergency financial assistance, harm reduction programs and quality of life services. In 2023, Broadway Cares provided $9.1 million through its National Grants Program across all three grant rounds.

O’Neal is currently on the road stage managing the California tour of A Strange Loop after completing a year-long stint as assistant stage manager at the Tony Award-winning hit Hadestown. At the food grants committee table, he shared his wonder at the breadth and reach of these food grants. He wasn’t fully aware of the extensive impact he was making in the very communities he was working in while on tour with Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations.

Edmond O’Neal

“Just knowing that I can rely on the Aliveness kitchen when I need it for meals is a big stress reliever for me."

-

Dan, a client of the Aliveness Project

“It was really nice to see that the communities that we are raising money with are also the very same communities that are receiving the support and assistance,” O’Neal said.

“It felt great to be able to see exactly the impact all of our work as a theatrical community has on those around the country that need the additional support and assistance.”

Here are three organizations that received this vital support along O’Neal’s Ain’t Too Proud national tour route.

Aliveness Project in Minneapolis

In June 2022, the Ain’t Too Proud tour performed at Minneapolis’ storied Orpheum Theatre. Just three miles away, the Aliveness Project, an organization that supports people living with and at the greatest risk of HIV, serves healthy, warm meals through its congregate meal program. Congregate programs allow clients to enjoy a meal with each other, removing the solitude and stigma that can accompany an HIV diagnosis.

“Just knowing that I can rely on the Aliveness kitchen when I need it for meals is a big stress reliever for me,” said Dan, a client of the Aliveness Project.

Resource Center of Dallas

Later that summer, Ain’t Too Proud performed at Dallas’ Music Hall. The Resource Center of Dallas has been providing myriad services to the LGBTQ+ and HIV/AIDS communities in Dallas-Fort Worth for four decades. Those services include its food pantry and hot meals program, which is planned specifically to address the caloric needs of individuals impacted by HIV/AIDS.

“The food pantry is an excellent resource,” said Helen, a client of Resource Center of Dallas. “I love that I can pick what I want to eat, and eat what I need for my survival and health. The Resource Center saved my life, because when I was lost and didn’t know where to turn, they were here for me.”

Jewish Family Service of Colorado in Denver

Toward the end of O’Neil’s time on tour, the company had a two-week run at Colorado’s Denver Center. Jewish Family Service of Colorado is doing critical work in improving the lives of Denver residents through a full suite of services, including disability care, employment training and mental health counseling. Also among those offerings is the Weinberg Food Pantry, which assists individuals and families facing hunger and food insecurity.

“JFS is like building a foundation on a house — my foundation for a new life,” said David, a client of Jewish Family Service of Colorado.

Education Outreach

WNew and Established Initiatives Bring Broadway Traditions to Schools

hether they’re creating new traditions or continuing decades-long legacies, high school and college students are providing essential support to people in need in their hometowns and across the country with Broadway Cares’ Education Outreach.

West Chester University of Pennsylvania has produced its annual Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit for 24 years. This completely student-run event features performances from the university’s theater department, as well as on-campus dance, improv and vocal groups. The students also organize a silent auction, offering local theater tickets, restaurant gift cards and Broadway memorabilia to the highest bidders in an effort to provide even more lifesaving support for people in need. While the benefit offers an enjoyable evening of performances, the students know that the impact of their work is greater than that.

“As performers, we love to make people happy,” Courtney Parker, the student choreographer for 2023’s benefit, said. “We love to evoke emotion from audiences, but to know that our work is really going toward something tangible that is helping real people is extremely rewarding and makes the work of the show that much more meaningful.”

Jack Pasquale led the charge to start making a difference at his school. An existing supporter of Broadway Cares, Pasquale collaborated with Broadway Cares to add a Red Bucket fundraiser to his school’s winter musical, Curtains

“It was awesome to get so much support in bringing the iconic Red Buckets to Bronxville High School from students, teachers, administrators and the local community,” Pasquale said. “The fact that we were able to join together and do our part to raise money to provide meals, medication and health care to those in need across the country made Curtains even more meaningful and impactful.”

First-year student Cooper Indiana Caruso added: “We will happily continue this as a tradition at Bronxville, and hopefully inspire other schools to join in on it.”

Whether it is their school’s first year participating or the 24th, young artists are providing support to those in need today, while planting the seeds for a lasting commitment to giving back. As they sing, dance and hold Red Buckets, these students not only develop essential skills in collaboration and community engagement, but also learn the importance of thinking beyond themselves.

At Bronxville High School in New York City, intrepid student

Hudson Valley Dance Festival

ICaptivating and Diverse Dance Breaks Record at Annual Festival

nside a converted warehouse nestled amid foliage-flecked trees on the banks of the Hudson River, the 10th anniversary of the Hudson Valley Dance Festival on October 7 featured two standing-room-only performances of captivating dance.

A record-breaking $167,082 was raised at the annual event, produced by and benefiting Dancers Responding to AIDS, a program of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.

The 10th anniversary edition welcomed audiences to Historic Catskill Point in Catskill, NY, with a diverse and distinctive program that featured three world premieres.

Capital District Arts Initiative opened the show with the world premiere of Take the “A” Train, an effervescent tap dance, featuring co-founder Corey John Snide, that reflected the communal and spirited subway experience. FJK Dance’s world premiere of Mashaallah (ما شاء الله), an athletic solo performed by company founder Fadi J Khoury, brought his Middle Eastern experience and flair to the stage. Reed Luplau shared his world premiere of Love Lines, a tender, intimate duet between two men falling in love. Love Lines is an excerpt from When We Touch, Luplau’s full-length piece currently in development.

Alison Cook Beatty Dance shared an excerpt of MURMURATION, which imaginatively offers vignettes of daily life for a flock of birds. EMERGE125 shared its exuberant Memphis Hesitation, choreographed by company founder Tiffany Rae-Fisher, which had its dancers displaying show-stopping musicality as they exuberantly bounded barefoot across the stage.

Contemporary company Doug Varone and Dancers’ Maybe had a duo entangled in the push and pull of a romantic relationship, seamlessly alternating between lifting each other up, pulling each other across the stage and falling apart. The Verdon Fosse Legacy performed Sweet Gwen Suite, an endearing and energetic number created for Verdon’s 1960s performances on Bob Hope’s television specials and The Ed Sullivan Show.

Choreographer Holly Curran shared Half-Light, an elegant and entrancing duet at the intersection of modern and ballet. In its Hudson Valley Dance Festival debut, Parsons Dance closed the performance with an excerpt from Swing Shift, a joyous study of fervorous dancing and precise partnering that celebrated the number’s 20th anniversary.

In honor of the festival’s 10th year and its generous supporters, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS provided additional discretionary grants of $2,500 to the 15 Hudson Valley organizations that are part of Broadway Cares’ National Grants Program.

Hudson Valley Dance Festival began in 2013 as a single performance at Historic Catskill Point. It has since grown into an annual audience favorite for the Hudson Valley region, raising more than $1.3 million through its 10 iterations.

Hudson Valley Dance Festival is made possible, in part, by generous support from corporate sponsor The New York Times

Pioneering Choreographer Shares

Ever-Changing Tides of Hope

Amid the loss and isolation of the pandemic, celebrated choreographer Sonya Tayeh was driven to channel her complex emotions into art. That work became OH COURAGE!, an excerpt of which was intimately performed by Gibney Dance for Dancers Responding to AIDS’ Inside Dance Series on February 20.

“I felt this soul march to renew, reassess and excavate possibility, in courage and hope and love,” Tayeh said.

OH COURAGE! features a collective of dancers navigating change through pulsating and electric movement, exploring both a sense of loss and euphoric possibility. The performance seamlessly shifted between joyous sequences where the full group moved in tandem, solos impassioned with moments of sadness and loss, and athletic pairings complete with gravity-defying lifts. The dancers embodied the universal feelings of resilience and promise that permeated the early days of the pandemic.

At Inside Dance, the piece was performed by Graham Feeny, Miriam Gittens, Eddieomar Gonzalez-Castillo, Eleni Loving, Jesse Obremski, Jordan Powell, Jie-Hung Connie Shiau, Madi Tangua, Jake Tribus and Zack Sommer. Gibney Dance’s Gina Gibney and Gilbert T Small II introduced the piece.

Following the performance, Martin Wechsler, senior advisor for dance presentations at The Music Center in Los Angeles and producer for NYC Center’s Fall for Dance, moderated a discussion with Tayeh, who shared an inside look into her experiences and what’s next for her career.

In addition to her celebrated choreography across dance repertoires and celebrity performances, Tayeh is known to many as a Tony Award winner for Moulin Rouge! The Musical and for her Emmy Award nominated choreography on So You Think You Can Dance

When asked whether she planned on pursuing directing or choreography, Tayeh wryly replied: “I want to combine them. A lot of men do that.”

The audience of supporters and dance enthusiasts cheered her answer. Mirroring the emotions stirred in the piece they just witnessed, the room was imbued with a sense of hope.

And those feelings of hope ring especially true as just a few weeks after Inside Dance Series, Tayeh was announced as the director and choreographer for the workshop of the upcoming Black Swan musical.

The performance was part of Inside Dance Series, an evening that offers supporters an exclusive look at dance with performances featuring acclaimed dance companies and choreographers, as well as a moderated discussion.

Monthly Donors Provide Stability and Support Amid Uncertain Times

Tony Award-winning actor Celia Keenan-Bolger has been a stalwart supporter and friend of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS across her nearly two decades on Broadway. Beyond her commitment to holding Red Buckets after shows, signing autographs at the Broadway Flea Market & Grand Auction and appearing in annual benefits, she felt a call to do more.

“Once I learned about the incredible reach and breadth of Broadway Cares’ support, I wanted to continue making an impact — even when the Red Buckets are put away for the season,” Keenan-Bolger said. “That’s why I became a monthly donor.”

Broadway Cares’ Supporting Players Circle offers donors the opportunity to provide a steady safety net of support through recurring monthly donations. This means that even when other donations ebb and flow, and between annual events and Red Bucket fundraising, people in need across the country will still receive the vital support they deserve.

In addition to providing a reliable flow of support that lasts all year, being a member of the Supporting Players Circle takes the guesswork out of giving back. And for actors like Keenan-Bolger, it’s comforting to know that she’s continuing to provide meals and medication, health care and hope, even when her focus is on performing eight shows a week.

“During my busiest times at work, when making an online donation isn’t necessarily top of mind, it’s nice to feel that my impact and commitment endures,” Keenan-Bolger said.

Just like there are no small roles, there is also no effort too small to make a tangible impact. Just $10 committed monthly will provide 48 meals a year to someone who is hungry.

“There are so many reasons I feel grateful to be part of the New York theater community,” Keenan-Bolger said. “Being a member of the Supporting Players Circle is a way for me to participate and show my gratitude in a role offstage.”

To join the Supporting Players Circle, visit broadwaycares.org/ supportingplayers

GAngels Circle Members Share Generosity on Both Sides of the Bucket

irlie Chang first encountered Broadway Cares’ iconic Red Buckets after seeing Les Misérables in 1995, shortly after moving to New York for school.

“In the ensuing years, I would eagerly wait to see those Red Buckets again,” Chang said. “It became a tradition, something to look forward to, something to celebrate and be delighted by. I never thought that one day I could be part of the Bucket Brigade, creating lasting memories or traditions for someone else.”

For Becky Goldring, who grew up going to Broadway shows from her hometown in New Jersey, “Getting to hold a Red Bucket was my equivalent of reliving a childhood memory.”

And for Ken Cooke, holding a bucket is a commitment of compassion. “I lost a dear family friend, Charles B. Carter IV, to HIV in January 1997,” Cooke said. “I promised him as he transitioned to his ‘next adventure’ that I would be dedicated to services and organizations that help those in need.”

Chang, Goldring and Cooke are among a legion of Angels Circle members who have furthered their commitment with Broadway Cares, iconic Red Buckets in hand. As Angels, they help provide a sustainable foundation of essential support with an annual contribution of $1,000 or more — but they felt the call to make an even bigger difference with the organization, this time on the other side of the bucket.

Participating in the time-honored tradition of Red Bucket fundraising often stirs a deeper connection among volunteers, Broadway Cares’ mission and the theater industry as a whole.

“I thought Charles would have been proud to see me standing there and hamming it up with a smile to raise funds,” said Cooke, who’s an

Angel through Dancers Responding to AIDS, a program of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.

While personal stories may shape each volunteer’s experience, the palpable energy and generosity that fills each theater participating in Red Bucket appeals is undeniably universal.

“The Red Bucket experience was unlike anything I could have imagined,” Goldring said. “You get to be in the theater during the applause and feel the love and gratitude flowing between the audience and performers. The Red Bucket represents that extension of this community, and the love and care that theater makes us feel.”

And these Angels Circle members know that every dollar dropped in a bucket translates into tangible, life-affirming support for those inside the industry and beyond.

“As an adult, I’ve learned the importance of reliable, stable housing and access to health care,” Goldring said. “Broadway Cares plays an integral role, acting as a safety net for people — whether they need help with rent, a doctor’s appointment or fresh groceries.”

Chang said: “I admire the work that Broadway Cares does to help members of the entertainment community. The shows and musicals put on by Broadway creators and performers over the years have been an integral part of my life, and I am grateful for the opportunity to support them.”

Cooke added: “The Red Buckets represent heart and a chance. I know every dollar raised is helping people in a meaningful way.”

For more information about the benefits of the Angels Circle or to express interest in joining the Bucket Brigade, please contact Sarah Cardillo, deputy director of development, at cardillo@broadwaycares.org or 212.840.0770, ext. 275.

Visionary Circle and Angels Circle

The following are members of the Visionary Circle and Angels Circle as of March 15, 2024. Names in bold indicate Premier Visionaries and Archangels, donors who increased their gift by 25 percent or more over the previous year. Contributions are not related to event ticket or merchandise purchases.

We thank these Visionaries and Angels who provide essential support for those affected by HIV/AIDS and other life-threatening illnesses across the country.

For more information about the benefits of the Visionary Circle or Angels Circle visit broadwaycares.org/angels or contact Sarah Cardillo at cardillo@broadwaycares.org or 212.840.0770, ext. 275.

Luminary

gifts from $100,000 and above

Liz Armstrong

Craig Newmark Philanthropies

The Dream Alliance

The Fred Ebb Foundation

Hugh Jackman

Stanley Newman & Dr. Brian Rosenthal

The Shubert Organization

Peg & Gary Wendlandt

Beacon

gifts from $50,000 to $99,999

John R. Alchin & Hal Marryatt

Jerry & Terri Kohl

Lee Perlman & Linda Riefberg

Thomas Schumacher & Matthew White

The Ted Snowdon Foundation

Brian S. Snyder

Hollis Stern

Jodi & Howard Tenenbaum

Lizzie & Jonathan M. Tisch Anonymous (1)

Trailblazer

gifts from $25,000 to $49,999

Benard L. Maas Foundation

Laura M. Boedeker

James & Debbie Burrows

Gavin Corcoran in memory of Charles Wallace Collier

William W. Donnell

Toni Downey

Mary D. Fisher

Joy Henshel

Judi Krupp in memory of Rebecca Luker

Larry L. Luing Family Foundation

Judith Light & Robert Desiderio

Richard Lin & Evan Zazula

Mary Lea Johnson Richards

1997 Charitable Trust in memory of

Mary Lea Johnson Richards & Martin Richards

Visionary Circle

James L. Nederlander & Margo M. Nederlander

Mary C. & Richard J. Parrish

Vaso Petsagourakis

The Richmond/Ermet Aid Foundation, San Francisco

Jeffrey Seller

The Terrence McNally Foundation and Tom Kirdahy

The Zarley Family Foundation Anonymous (2)

Innovator

gifts from $10,000 to $24,999

Whitney Arcaro

Susan & Crystal Atkins-Weathers

Ward Auerbach & Andy Baker* Bainbridge Foundation

The Barbara Epstein Foundation Inc.

Terry & William Biggins

Walter Bobbie & David Frye

Roy Brayton & Mickey Sullivan

Barbara Broccoli

Butkiewicz Family Foundation in honor of Judy Wheeler & Tim Regan

The Carl Jacobs Foundation

Jill & John Chalsty in heartfelt gratitude to Jessica Molaskey and John Pizzarelli

The Crimson Lion / Lavine Family Foundation

Deborah Dakin

Scott Dainton in memory of Andy Zerman

Charles Deull

The Diller-Von Furstenberg Family Foundation

Frank Duff & John Okuloski

Robert Evers

Jules Fisher & Graciela Daniele

The Fosdick Fund

Ronald & Susan Frankel

Kenneth R. Fulton

Emmanuelle Gattuso

Thomas Gentile in honor of James Raper

George & Irina Schaeffer Foundation

Valerie Gordon-Johnson & Doug Johnson

John Gore & Lauren Reid/ The John Gore Organization

Megan Haller & Peter Rice

Harriett D. Kittner Foundation

Larry Hirschhorn & Melissa Posen

Jeffrey L. Jackman

The John D. Evans Foundation

Ilana Kameros

Greg Kammerer & Frederick M. White

Henry L. Kimelman Family Foundation

Arabella Langhorne

Joe Lanteri*

Deirdre & Mark LeMire

Joseph Levi

Paul & Florence Rowe Libin

Leslie Lyles

Max and Bella Stein

Charitable Trust

Leslie & Jordan Mayer

Irene Mecchi

William Megevick in memory of Larz Anderson

Stephanie & Carter McClelland

Kati Meister

Abigail Merrill

Marianne McGrath Mills

Miranda Family Fund

Javier Morgado in memory of Eddie Sweetnam

Nathan Noh

Rob O'Neill & Shawn Anderson

The Oliver Fund: in loving memory of Babe and Sonny Scott

Stephen Paine

Michael Perez & Jason Lane

Michael C. Ray

Michael Raymond & Andrew Moyer

Barbara Rohdie*

Mickey Rolfe & Bruce Tracy

The Rosenbloom Family

Meryl Rosofsky & Stuart H. Coleman*

The Ross Foundation

Spencer Ross

Paul Rumsey

Wendy B. Samuel

Scarlet Feather Fund

Pieter Schenck & Sioux Logan*

John E. Schumacher in honor of

Joan Johns Schumacher

Isabelle Searle

Jayne Baron Sherman

Amy Sherman-Palladino

Beth Siegelman

Paula L. Sindlinger

Margaret L. Stern

Rob Stoll

Jules, Kate and Elliott Styles

Steve Sweet

Lynn & Bruce Surry

Steve Symonds

The Tapper Gorevic Family

Theatrical Stage Employees

Local One/IATSE

The Venable Foundation

Tom Viola in happy memory of Scott Barnes

John Voege & Geoffrey Paul

David Wackman & Jason Rardin

The Waldman Foundation

Barbara Whitman

The Winston Foundation

Terrence J. Witter & Artie de la Cruz

Diane M. & Kevin Wilshere

Alicia Longobardo Wyckoff

John Yonover

Doc Zorthian in honor of

Ben Lipitz

Anonymous (9) Anonymous*

Guardian

gifts from $5,000 to $9,999

The Al Hirschfeld Foundation

The Alpuche Family

The Alice Ghostley Foundation

Richard Ambrose

Sarah Ashman & Ron Gillespie in memory of Howard Ashman

Bardo Arts (Alex Pearlman)

Douglas Bella & David Hunt

Kristin & Jim Bender

Bendit Family Foundation

Nancy Duggan Benson

Mark Bergamini & Christopher Oates*

Sandy Berlin

Lynn A. Booth

John Bowab

Carol Bresler & Carolyn Billinghurst

Bruce Burg

Patricia & Carroll Cathey

Cathy Chernoff

Mitchell & Christine Clarfield

Paul & Kelly Cole

Dr. Mitchell A. Combs & Frank C. Druse III

James E. Conte

Gavin Creel

E. Gerald Dabbs, M.D.

Mike DelBene

Jamie deRoy in memory of Bradshaw Smith and Clovis Ruffin

Drew Desky & Dane Levens

David DeSocio

Val DiFebo & J Dixon Byrne in memory of Joseph Molfetta

Linda Duncombe

Doug Eichman & Michael C. Yount

Ellen Esposito

Jennifer Flackett & Mark Levin

Barrett Foa

Lauren Foley

Barbara H. Freitag

Joanna Gleason & Chris Sarandon

Judy Gluckstern*

Dan Goggin

Jan & Steven Golann

Peter & Roberta Gottlieb

Amanda Green & Jeffrey Kaplan

Leslie G. Gutierrez

James F. Haag

The Herb Ritts, Jr. Foundation

Theresa D. Herman

Susan R. Hoffman

Angels Circle

The Joe & Hellen Darion Foundation, Inc.

John L. McHugh Foundation

Cherry Jones in memory of Roscoe Gilliam

Kelly Karavites in memory of my loving spouse Francis P. King

Karma Foundation

Gary & Jane Klopfer

LaFountaine Family Foundation**

Kelly Lake

Carol Leif

Tom Lombardi

Jennifer Manocherian

Tom Marshall & Kathy Keneally

Elizabeth Martinez & Nicholas Baldick

Heather J. McDonald

Jacque & Charles McLaughlin

Jennifer Melin Miller & David Miller

Miriam Schaeffer Family Foundation

Jerry Mitchell & Ricky Schroeder

Ira Mont & Jill Cordle Mont in memory of Annette & Stuart Mont, Dan Cordle and in honor of Joan Cordle

William Morey in memory of Christopher Tisone

Janissa Muller

Sarah Anne Munson

Thomas M. Neff

Judith A. Nelson** in memory of Wayne McCarthy

Nora Roberts Foundation

Lisa Orberg

Tony Origlio & Kip Vanderbilt

The PATH Fund/Rockers on Broadway

Petty Hefte Family Foundation

Randall A. Shields & Harrison Yeoh

Monica & Greg Reid

Stephen Kroll Reidy* in memory of Carolyn Kroll Reidy

Bob Rhodehamel & Dana Snyder

Richard and Diane Weinberg Family Foundation

Richenthal Foundation

Norman Rubenstein

Paul Russell & Beryl Raff

Randal B. Sandler

Megan M. Savage

Ryan SchultzCherry City Metals

Barbara Schrader

James L. Simon

Barry Skovgaard & Marc Wolinsky

Robin Skye

Eileen R. Stein

Abbie Strassler

John Tartaglia

Carol Terry

Theatrical Wardrobe Union Local 764 IATSE

Seth Tribble & David Vansuch

Twelve Thirteen Ninetyone Fund / Bugged Out

Richard J. Underwood

Judy Vincent

David J Wermuth & Jennifer Kroman

Jayne Williams

Russ Woolley

Robert E. Zimmerman

William P Zanetis in memory of Christopher Tripp Zanetis

David Zippel & Michael Johnston

Anonymous (10) Anonymous (3)

Champion

gifts from $2,500 to $4,999

Kathleen Aber

Randy Adams

David Alperson

Gerry & Hank Alpert*

Maryann F. Antell

Gerald M. Appelstein*

Kathleen E. Bandhu

Anne Banfield

Catherine Bannister

Jordan Barbakoff & Philip Jeffery in loving memory of Rob Sinacore

Bob Barrack & Barbara Leistner in honor of John Schumacher

Jack W. Batman & Sidney J. Burgoyne

Benjamin & Seema Pulier Charitable Foundation, Inc.

Dr. Benton & Rachel Brown

Andrew Berdon*

Elaine D. Berger

Mark Bernhardt*

Amy Bermudez

Claude Bernstein & Melody Wang

Phillip Bettencourt

Casey Blass & Lee Manford

The Blythe-Kristiansen Family

Ann Marie & Robert Borsdorf

Kenneth Brendlinger & Paul Inver

Scott Brittingham in memory of Christopher Caruso

The Broadway Cruise in Honor of Amelia Freeman

Thomas W. Brock

The Calamus Foundation

Christopher Cara

Andrew Caravella

Cristina Carlson

David Cartee

Cunningham Escott Slevin & Doherty

Marc Chalet & James Ting

Girlie Chang & Michael Vermut

The Charles & Lucille King Family Foundation, Inc. in memory of Bob & Muriel Kennedy

Michael & Diane Christian*

Neel Chopdekar & Thom Allcock

Alissa Cipriano

Gloria & Charles I. Clough Jr. Clinton A. Cobb

Samantha & Drew Cohen in memory of Richard Salfas and Michael Friedman

Ricky Coombs & Seth Stuhl

Robert N. Cory & Shuichiro Takeda*

Susan & Andrew Cott

Thomas Cott* in memory of Philip Carlson

Karen & James Courtney

Michael David & Lauren Mitchell

Jeffrey De Korte

Maria Di Dia in loving memory of Doug Salmon

Joe Dimino

Salvatore E. Dirschberger

Andrew S. Dolkart

Mark Donofrio & Alexander Lach*

Judy & Tim Dove*

Thomas Dwyer

Thor Eckert

Anthony & Kristina Ellenbogen

Theo Elliman*

Deborah & Matt Ellis

Peter Entin & Barbara Janowitz

James T. Evans, PhD, JD

Craig Faircloth

John & Margaret Falk*

James & Anna Fantaci

Robert Faust & Roger Kluge*

James Fedigan

Daniel Feinstein

Doug Fiebelkorn & Andrew Hall

Camden & Debra Fine

Ken Finkelstein

Kelly Finzer in honor of Michael DelBene

Melina Fisher*

Elliot Fishman & Dale Abrams

Kevin & Helen Flanagan*

Charles Flateman & Gail Goldstein

Jonathan Foster, M.D.

Dale J. Fournier & Michael R. Wellington*

Jennifer Futch

Barry Gelda in memory of Irene Lucille Bunis

The Gelfand Family Foundation

Darrell M.W. George & Scott Turner*

Gerda Lissner Foundation Inc. in loving memory of Scott Barnes & Brian Kellow

Michael Gerdes

Richard Gerrig & Timothy Peterson

John Paul Geurts & Robert W. Stolt

Roger Gindi & Gregory Victor

Dale Glasser in memory of Steven Glasser

Justin Gleiberman

Sherri Goldberg

Gramercy Park Foundation

Howard Grossman, M.D.

Addie Guttag

Diann Hall in memory of John Rainwater

Tom Harvey & Manny Correia

Alan Hassell* in loving memory of H. Thomas Axt

Gail L. Heinemeyer

Kurt F. & Margaret Webb Heyssel

Alma M. Hirsch in memory of Judi Hirsch

Susan & Neal Hirsch

William S. Hoover, M.D.

Bill Hutton in memory of Dr. Joel D. Weisman

Kathy Inch

Rach Ireland

Jimmy Jackson

David Kernahan

Jerome S. Glazer Foundation

Gina Purlia Johnson & Kent Johnson

Joe & Jill Kale

Howard & Debby Kaminsky

Mark Kaplan

Milly & Robert Kayyem

Karen E. Kennedy in memory of Muriel & Bob Kennedy

Emily J. Klopfer

Dawn Landino

Aaron Larson

William Lauch

Christopher Leary*

Sunhee Lee & Laird Zacheis

Larry & Beth Lenke

The Lenore & Howard Klein Foundation

Ronald Lieberman & Lauren Schwartz

William Ludel & Tracy Cohen

Eric Luftig

Steve Lukens

Kevin R. Lyle & Renee Chatelain

Mark & William Macatee

Fran Macferran

John J. Mackerey

Barbara Manocherian

John Mansell & Tim House

Nina Matis & Alan Gosule*

Jennifer Mayer

The McCabe Family Foundation

Patrick McCarthy

Richard McCune & Brian Carroll

Mary Beth & Dave McDonough in memory of Eileen Deehan & Emily McDonough

Peter McKown & Kenneth Heng*

Drew & Danyel McLellan

Jeff Meleski & Steve Markov

Elliott & Cathy Masie

Eli Milbaur*

Katherine N. Miller

Michael Mills & Mark McGrath

Art Moore

Joe P & Edna B Moore Jr

William Moore

Morozs Family

Jason & Debbie Moss

Nao Murakami

Nelco Foundation

Bebe Neuwirth & Chris Calkins*

Tony Napoli & Gary Newman

Mr. & Mrs. Frank P. Nocco

Joseph Obermayer

Paul Oppedisano

Michael Paleos

Gregg Passin

Greg & Tracey Petersen

Amy Peterson

The Pietenpol Family

Kat Pinheiro & John Merenda

Gloria Piraino

Julie Plec

Mary A. Qualls

Dr. Judith Quick

Ron Rafay

Ray Wetmore Productions

Jonathan Rebell & Noah Levine

Susan Cohen Rebell

Jana Rich & Jill Nash

Richard F. Walsh/ Alfred W. Di Tolla/ Harold P. Spivak Foundation

Carol Risher

Jose Rojas Jr. & Nina A. Cavalli in memory of Austin Rojas

Rose Brand

Harry B. Rosenberg in loving memory of Adrienne Rosenberg

Sally Rosenberg & Bruce Charendoff

Paul Rossi

Moe & Jack Rouse

Michael J. Rutkowski & Timothy W. Harper

The Sartain and Tamez Family Trust Fund

Nick Scandalios

Schaffer Family Foundation

Matthew Schermerhorn & Andy Rice

The Schroeder Family in memory of John T. Schroeder

Will Schwalbe & David Cheng

Adam Schwab

Jennifer Scott

Jim Scully

John Eric Sebesta & William Tomai

Frank Selvaggi & Bill Shea

Elliott R. Sernel

Ali Sher

Dan Silver & Doug Martino

John Smith & Edward Escoto

Sweet Hospitality Group

Bill & Larry Tabbit-Humphrey

Carol & Bill Gross

Josh Taylor & Joseph Grossmann

Peter M. Thomas in memory of Lori Black Thomas

Amy F. Thompson

Jeffrey Trachtman & Peter Chao

Matthew D. Tumminello & Dominick J. Marangi

Frances & Paul Turner

Mark Tynan

Beth M. Uffner

Robert Viggiano & The Spectrum Charitable Foundation

Carol Waaser

Alice Wang & Peter Spiegelman

Dr. Robert Warner in honor of Eli Faber

Cindy Weil

Todd M. Whitley & Gary O. Holder* in loving memory of James Roe

Mr. & Mrs. Richard C. Wiggers in memory of T. Thorne Wiggers

Scott Wilcox

Jeff Woodman in memory of Melvin Bernhardt

Anonymous (6) Anonymous Anonymous*

Ambassador

gifts from $1,000 to $2,499

Scott & Paula Aaronson in honor of Zach Aaronson

Amy Abrams

Actors' Equity Foundation

Charles & Deborah Adelman*

Carol Aebersold

Richard Ahrens in loving memory of Gloria Rosenthal

Susan M. Allardice

Sally Amoruso

Matthew Amsterdam

Mark Andrews

Lee R. Anisman M.D.

George Annarella in memory of his wife Corinne Guttman and his brother-in-law

Les Guttman

The Apatow-Mann

Family Foundation

Richard Appel

Chen Arad

Scott Archimbaud & Patrick Douglass

Charles Ardai

Michael Arellano & Tom Burley

Joan Arenstein

David Glenn Armstrong in joyful memory of Peter Frame

Jonathan Aronowitz & Bradley Scalise*

Scott D. Arsham

Austin Community Foundation

Jay Axelrod

Dr. Don Bacigalupi & Daniel Feder

Jon Robin Baitz

Cornelius Baker

Ian & Kim Band

Tobias Banks & Matthew Villegas

John Bantivoglio

Marie E. Barbieri

Christopher & Paris Barclay

John Barnes & Charles Champagne

Sena Baron*

The Barrington Foundation Inc.

Christopher Barth

Kari Bassett

Jennifer Beck

Beech Street Foundation

Neil E. Beecher in loving memory of Vern Richards

Gary Belis

Taffy Benjamin

Kevin Berg

Karen Bergreen

Carol & Walter Berman

Joni Bessler & Casey Baum

Shaul Betesh

Phil & Mary Beuth

Jon Bierman

Robert Billig & Richard Vida

Joseph Billone

Michael Birbiglia

Mark Black & Glen Leiner

Blitzer Family Foundation

Jeff Blumenkrantz & Jeffrey Kwong

David Boger in memory of

Terry Brenneis

Celia Keenan-Bolger & John Ellison Conlee

Matthew Bonilla

Miranda Book & Linda Dingler

BOOM ~ Broadway Official

Online Masterclass ~

Rory Hughes

Diane Borger

Jeff Bova in memory of Doris Bova

Susan Bowman Yvette Bowser

Bob Boyett

Loraine Alterman Boyle

Linda Pritz Boynton

Shirley Brandman & Howard Shapiro

Kevin Breen in memory of Harry Gold

Hilde Breitbart

Nyle Brenner

Betty Broadhurst

Terri Brody

J. Arthur Brost

Barry Brown & Douglas Cohn, D.V.M.

Jeffrey Brown & Anthony Tan

Loren B. Brown

Daniel & Rhonda Bruening

Corey Brunish & Jessica Rose Brunish

Karen & David Brush

Michael Buchanan

Buchwald

Gregg & Christine Buckbinder

Diana Buckhantz/Vladimir & Araxia Buckhantz Foundation

David Burke

Fern & Thomas S. Burr

Katherine Burton in honor of Dale Ellen Leff

Michelle L. Butler

Mr. Lem Byers & Mr. Derek Kuhl

Gary Bynum

Jeffrey D. Byrne*

Michael-Demby Cain*

Kathleen Campbell & William Reed

Steven M. Caplan Esq.

Caplin Foundation in memory of Ruth & Mortimer Caplin

Sarah & Frank Cardillo

Len Cariou & Heather Summerhayes

Debra & Kim Carmichael

The Carol Moss Foundation in honor of Kathryn Gallagher & The Gallagher Family

Frank Carucci & David Diamond celebrating LaMaMa's 62nd Anniversary

Donna B. Case

James Cassaro

Ronald Casty

Deborah & Steven Cavalier

Beth & George Caviness

Christine R. Cerabone

Ken Cerniglia & Adrien Lanusse in memory of Richard Parker

Helen Davis Chaitman

Mr. & Mrs. Henry Chalfant, Jr. Stockard Channing

David Charak

Charles & Margaret Levin Family Foundation

Michael & Karen Charlton

David & Paula Leggett Chase

Chasin/Gilden Family Fund, at the Boston Foundation

Jeffrey Chelesvig

Cheryl Wiesenfeld Productions LLC

James & Susan Clarke

Joseph M. Clement

Edith Cofrin

Evan Cohen

Brad & Kyong Coleman*

Lynn Coleman

Mary & Michael Conklin

Francois Conradie & Nick Smit

Frank Conway*

Casey Cook & Gary Steinkohl

John Cook

Kevin Cook

Kenneth E. Cooke* in honor of Leslie Cooke

Wayne & Lisa Cooper*

Jeffrey Corbin & Massimo Pacilli

William Corsello

Frederick L. Corte Jr

Bronwen Cound & William Brody

Olivia and Grace Cowie

William Cox

Heather Creel

George Crow

Rob Crudden

The Cunin Family

Wojciech L. Czoch, M.D.

Richard Dabbs

Duke Dang & Charles Rosen* in loving memory of David Panzer

Scott & Tonya Daniels

Leonard & Catherine Darby

Heather Davies

Camden Davis & Gregory McKnight

Clive Davis in honor of Richard Weitz

Paula Kaminsky Davis

Miguel De Los Reyes

Louis J. Denkovic

John P. DeWitt & Ghim Lay Yeo

Tim Devin*

Suzi Dietz

Matt Donaldson & Steve Kyriakis

Susan & Robert Doran

David & Shari Dreier

Chelsea Dunlap

Rachel Dvorken

& Harry B. Rosenberg, Jr.

The Eagle

Christopher & Candace Edelmann in memory of Mark McClary

Felice Ehrlich

Valerie Eigner

Sam Ellis in honor of Valarie Silver Ellis

Eric Emeric

Anne & Aaron Epstein

Sabin Epstein

Lori & Mickey Etkin

Joe Evall & Richard Lynn

Bonnie Pfeifer Evans*

Shane Ewen

Katie & Reade Fahs

Laura G. Fahsbender

David Fanger & Martin Wechsler*

Peter Farrell*

T.A. Fassburg

Richard Fatzinger & Ramon Contreras

Sarah Jo Fazio

Vicky Feather

Kenneth & Caryl Field

Elaine Fieldman

The Figtree Family Foundation

Steven Filenbaum & Matthew Woolf, CFP

Donald M. Filicetti

Finke Family

Barry M. Fisher

Jeanne Donovan Fisher

Joal Fischer & Debbie Langsam

Megan P. Fitzgerald

Maggie Flanigan & Richard Dow

Doug Fogel

Scott Wells Ford

Edward & Lori Forstein

Mark Fortier & Jay Pagano*

David Foster

Keith Fox & Tom Keyes

Sara & Michael Frank

Douglas Frantz

Erik Frantzen

Sean Free

Avram & Rhoda Freedberg in honor of Steve & Debbie Faber, Meir & Karen Brunelle, Judith Ehrenshaft, Jules Haimovitz, and Michael & Sandra Kamen

Jon Freedberg & Maren Roccamonte

Jonathan Freeman

Alison & Jim French*

James B. Freydberg

Corey Friedlander*

David Friedman & Shawn Moninger

Judith Z. Friedman

Merle Frimark in memory of James Rado

Pierre Frinault

David M. Fromm in memory of my partner Robert Motley

Susan Frost

Jill Furman

Nancy Gallt

Tom & Judy Garey

Thomas Garner*

David Gaudette & David Maue

Danni Gee* in memory of Alvin Ailey

Bruce & Alice Geismar

Bryan George & Stephen Pielocik

George Zuber & Anthony Snyder

Charitable Fund at Our Fund Inc.

Todd Geringswald

Amy Gewirtz

Denise & Keith Gillen

Bruce & Suzanne Glassman

Joan Glatman

Marcia Goldberg & Paul Garrity

Barbara Golden

Sam Gonzalez

Robyn Goodman

Gina & Kevin Gore

Neal Gorman & David Mann

Stefanie M. Gorman

Jennifer & Mark Greenberg

Steve Greenberg

Douglas Greene

Janet Greene & Chap Chapman

Mr. & Mrs. Ira Greenstein

Mark Greenwald

Emily Grishman & Susan Sampliner

Grossman Family Charitable Funds

Barry & Maggie Grove

Jane Groveman & Cathy Tanelli*

Chris Guimarin

The Gunter Family Fund

Steven Guy

John Hadity

Cheryl & Fred Halpern

John Halpin in honor of the Leadership Council

Elizabeth Halverstam

Christina & Jerry Hamilton

Katie Hangley & Howard Simon

David G. Hanna* in memory of George & Norma Jane Hanna

Deborah & Gregg Hanson

Harbert Family Trust

Rachel Harley in honor of Mark Stine

Carrie Anne K. Harrell

Michael P. Harrell

Harris Family Foundation in honor of Michael Riedel

Geri & Rich Hastings

Jeffrey Hayenga & Michael Belanger

Heather Hayes

Matthew Helmerich in honor of Douglas Ward

Matty Helton

Stephen Henry

Donna Heppermann

Richard Hester & Michael Mastro in memory of Helen Hester

Jerry Hirsch

Lisa Hobbs

Jason Hodes

Jim Hoelz & William Welsh

Eileen S. Hoffman

Marguerite Hoffman

Cliff Hopkins

Craig J. Horsley

Daphne Hsu & Jeff Rosen*

Bob & Tim Huber-Fischer

Dr. Jaime S. Huertas & Kenneth A. O'Brien*

Lyn Hughes & Arthur Ferrara

Moon Hui Kim

The Human Fund/

Mr. Denivaldo G. Dasilva & Ms. Sabrina VasquenzDasilva

Sally Huxley

Roger Hyde & Mark Gibson*

Nicole Hyland

Peter L. Ianniello, PhD

Arthur & Jane Indursky

Helen Jaffe

Waldo & Jeanne Jackson

Tracy Jamar in loving memory of Monty Silver

Keith & Patti James

Thai Jason in honor of

Tom Viola

Jerl Machine Inc.

Jon & Kim Jodka

Stephanie Joel

Earl Johnson & Douglas Ward

Barbara Jolson

Kemarie Jorgensen

Sachin & Suzanne Joshi

Barbara Josso & Liz Miloscia

Stacie Julian

Jessica Kahn & Scott Bieker

Richard Kantor

David A. Karlson

Mary Kaslick

Tom Kazmark

Shoshannah & Kevin Schraven

Judith E. Karp, MD & Stanley Freedman

Karin & Greg Kayne

Maureen Keller & David L. Feinberg

James Kelliher

Jason Kelliher & Brian Rice

Max Kellogg

Samantha S. Kennedy

Mitchell & Julie Kertzman

Richard Kind

Jerianne S. Kladder

Virginia Klunder

F. Gary Knapp

Kathrin Knauf

David & Jennifer Knickel

Ann-Marie & John Knight

David J Knight

Chris & Kelly Koenig

Anne Kolar

Brian Koll, MD & David Altarac, MD

Konigsberg Family Fund

Dr. Ram Koppaka

Sarah Korda

Alix Korey & Randy Hansen

Sue Kroll

David & Helen Kultgen

Robert J. Kunikoff

Richard & Dawn Kurth

Michael Kuzma

Phil Laduca

Craig & Sherri Landauer

Deborah & Rocco Landesman

Stephen & Kristina Lang

Mark Lanspa

Bishop Alexis Larue

Jay Laudato & Thomas Watson

Cyndi Lauper

Lisa K. Lawler

Brian Lawlor

Winston Bernard Layne*

Ginna Le Vine

Victoria McNeil Le Vine

Aster Leach & Family

Sandy & Michael Leahy

Michael & Jenna Lebowich

Mark Lee

Stephanie Lee/ Group Sales Box Office

Hal & Jill Leibowitz

Justin Lehmann

Telly Leung & James Babcock

Abbe Levin

Phyllis Levinthal in memory of Ruth & Sheldon Levinthal

Bjorn Liencres

Daniel Limerick

Jeff Lindsay

Mark D. Lingenfelter

Rosalind Lippel*

Stuart Lippner in memory of

Roberta Romano

Kris Lockley

Ann & Bruce Loeb

David & Angelica Longo

John T Love & Jeni Love

Donna & Larry Ludwig

Daniel Lundberg

Steven F. Lutz

Kelly McCormick & Jonathan Blake

Jonna Mackin*

J. Patrick Mahoney & C. Martin Hicks

Tony Maida & Tony Volpe

Scott Mallalieu & Nat Fuchs

Robin & Stewart Mann

Barbara Brooke Manning

Jesse Manocherian

Judith Manocherian

Barbara & Jeffrey Marcus

Charles & Diane Marino

Thomas Marino

Barbara Marshall

Knox Martin*

Amanda Martocchio

John & Michelle Matteson*

Scott & Harriet Mauro

Gail Mautner and Mario Shaunette

Heather McAdam

Kevin B. McGowan

James McKenzie

Lori McNamara

David Mednikov

Meltsner Strategies

Kim Memeger

Janis & Alan Menken

Neil Meron

Michael Halebian & Co. Inc.

Michael J. Zamkow & Sue E. Berman

Charitable Foundation

Nancy Milasnovich Sympson

Cassandra M. Milbury in honor of E. Van Milbury

Gail Miller in celebration of Sophia Smith

Richard Miller & Roberto Konishi

David Miner

Lisa Mitchell

Dr. James J. Mohr

Kathleen Moloney

Mary Ann Moore

Elizabeth Morton in memory of Elizabeth Wilson

Adele Mouzon & Mark Perry

Scott & Holley Mosley

Sandy Mulligan

Murray Family Foundation

Ruth Nerken

Maury Newburger

Barbara Newman

Paula Wagner & Rick Nicita No Guarantees

Albert Nocciolino

Sandy & Ellen Nusbaum

David O’Brien

Janice Oresman

Jim Ornstein

Joseph J. Palermo & Justin W. Sherwood

Gabrielle & Michael Palitz

Michael Palm & Cameron Adams

Todd Palmer

Philip Paroian

Trish Parsons

The Paul & Emily Singer Family Foundation

Ralph L. Pellecchio & James C. Wernz, M.D.

Jeff Perlis

Timothy & Suzanne Peterson

Theresa & Pete Piliero

Charles Potts & Barron Segar

Arabella S. Powell in memory of Darius Barnes

Melody A. Powell in honor of John Michael Schott

Belinda Presser

Stephen R. Prest

Paige Price & Nevin Steinberg

Sarah Prinsloo & Dean Rosow

Frances Pu

QINK

Christopher Ranous

Eileen & James Rath

Rosalind Reed*

Dr. Eric Reiner*

Norman & Sandy Reisman in loving memory of Artie Gaffin

Teresa Reyes & Martin Monas*

Michelle & Dyson Richards

Michael Risinger

Rita & Jeffrey Adler Family Foundation

Ms. Janet Robusto

Jonathan Rock & Patrick DelaCruz

Rodger Hess Productions

Lispet N. Roland

Pamella Roland

David Romero & David Greiss

Rosalind Productions

Rick Rosemarin

Kim & Ralph Rosenberg in honor of Sally Rosenberg

Mica Ross

Karen M. Roth*

Randolph & Diane Rowe

Phil & Dawn Rudolph

Michael Ruppal & Jim Roth

Ron Rydarowicz & Bill Figner

S & B Fisher Family Foundation

TJ Saad

Wynn J. Salisch

Rina L. Saltzman

Calvin Sanchez in memory of Nick Cordero

Aaron Sanko: The Cruxory Group

Eddie Sarfaty & Court Stroud

Kat Saunders

Nina F. Sax, MD

Susan & Stephen Scherr in honor of Ellen Greenwald

Valeria & William Schiemann

Carolyn Schiff & Noah Millman

Steven J. Schimmel

Joe & Barbara Schmidt

Michael Schober & Don Harrison

Allison Schultz

Jeanne Schultz

Laurie & Owen Schwartz

Lisa Dawn & Joe Schwarz

Paul & Kate Seavey

Katie & Jim Sebastian

Richard Seer & Doug Wallingford

Debra & Michael Segal

Heidi Seizinger

Scott S. Semester

Seniel Ostrow Foundation, Sara, Samantha Widzer and Family

Jeannette Sessing

Lee Seymour

David Maurice Sharp

Desta & Roland Shaw

Eric Shearin

Erika Sheehan

Dr. E.C. Sheeley

Irene Shen*

David Shmerler

Bennett & Mary Shuldman

Richard Siegmeister

Eliana Silbert

Silva Theatrical Group

Harrison Simmons Epstein

Nancy L. Simon

Ed Simonelli & Hernando Cortez Jr*

Charles & Pat Haynes Sislen

Cathy & Bob Smith

Clark Smith

Michael Smith

Peggy & Stan Smith in honor of Steve Friedman

Matthew Smyth & Christina Engelbrecht

James K. Sokol

Talya Sokoll

Geula Solomon

Nicholas & Barrie Somers

Jeff Soref & Paul Lombardi

Gregory Sparapani

Jai Srinivasan

Irwin Srob

The Stanton Family

Walter Stearns

Sandra Stern

Ruth Stevens & David Olson

Robert Stewart in loving honor of his mother and best friend

Betty Stewart

Eric Stine

David Strassler

Meryl Streep & Don Gummer

Stuart S. Applebaum Giving Foundation in memory of Mr. Vincent Virda

Jill Stute

Veena Sud

Rachel Sussman

Stephen L. Sweet

Ronald J. Szabo

Christopher Taggart & Tim Roberts

John Taylor

Hal Tepfer & Stacie Simon

Stephen Thayer & Howard Terry

James & Eileen Thomas

Neal Thomas

Teresa Throenle-Somaini

Natalie Tierney

Aaron Tievsky

Henry Tisch

Keith S. Tobin, M.D.

Lila & George Todd

David Umbach

Robert M. Unger & Pamela Singer

William and Jo Vanderbeek

Verna Vanis

Greg Vargas & Daniel Crisafulli

Dr. Anthony F. Verdi & Mr. Mark A. Mainville

Marcie Vort

Suzyn Waldman

Lucy R. Waletzky, MD

Allen Walker

Bethe Ward

Timothy Warmath & Edward Comber*

Dawn & Jim Watson

Marcia Weber & James Flaws

Arthur E. Webster, Esq.

Sandra Wegman

Marjorie Weinman

Ira M. Weitzman

Linda Wellendorf

John Weltman & Cliff Atkins in honor of David Kuehn & Tedi Marsh

Lucille Werlinich

Sheri West

WeTwoKings

Carol & Tom Wheeler

Nancy A. Wheeler

Steven Kaplan & Court Whisman

Gina White in honor of James Davis

Kat White

Danny Whitman & Robert Bartley in memory of Francine Whitman and Robert J. Bartley

Lois Whitman

Cliff & Carrie Woolley

Channing Wickham

Miles Wilkin in memory of Stuart Thompson

Mo & Cheryl Willems

Lisa Williamson

Skye Wilson

Alison Wintman in honor of Sherri Goldberg

Jacqueline Wladis

Peter Wright

Supriya Wronkiewicz

Joshua Yankovic

Lori A. Yaspan

Stuart Yothers

Llewellyn Young & Terence Law*

Jean M. Zajac

Sonni Zambino in memory of Panchali & Scott

David Ziff & Alan Bell

Christian Zimmermann* in loving memory of my beloved husband

Richard M. Kielar

Jennifer Zonis

Alan Zucker

Zufall Family Foundation* Anonymous (36) Anonymous Anonymous in honor of Quinto Ott Anonymous*

* indicates members of the DRA Angels Circle

** indicates members of the Broadway Cares and DRA Angels Circle

NextGen Network

The NextGen Network is a group of young professionals committed to providing a sustainable foundation for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. For more information about the benefits of the NextGen Network, please contact Jack Noseworthy, Individual Giving Officer, at noseworthy@broadwaycares.org or 212.840.0770, ext. 281.

Angel ($1,000 and above)

Matthew Amsterdam

Megan P. Fitzgerald

Justin Gleiberman

Chris Guimarin*

Kemarie Jorgensen

Max Kellogg

David Iwanowski

David Mednikov

Nathan Noh*

Megan Savage

Lee Seymour

Talya Sokoll

Henry Tisch

Scott Wilcox*

Anonymous (3)

Leader

($500 - $999)

Tom Blushi

Sam Brahms

Lilly Claar

Ben Fisher

Adriana Nocco

Aaron Sanko: The Cruxory Group

Regina Stuzin*

Torchbearer

($250 - $499)

Jaclyn Bares

Elizabeth Bedley

Lisa Cecchini

Philip Cheng

Nathan Cusson

Matthew D’Arrigo

Sophie Glassman

Alex Hare

Ben Houghton

Michael Hull

Zachary Laks

Phil Makara

Sophia Maoli

Stephen Martyak

Stephanie McCabe

Noah Phillips

Alison Raisian

Francesca M. Romeo

Jelani Remy*

Jake Romanoski

Ari Rubinstein

Elsie Sorenson

Laura Stabbert

Victoria Ungvarsky

Madison Wheeler

Hillary Young

* identifies NextGen Advocate

5 Questions

The success of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS comes not only from those making personal donations of financial contributions, but also those who so graciously offer their time and talents to make a difference. We asked three of those shining lights to share their stories.

How did you first get involved with Broadway

Cares/Equity Fights AIDS?

CAJAI KENNEDY: I was 10 years old and on the first national tour of The Lion King. In each city, we would perform a benefit for a local gay club. Doing this at an early age taught me the importance of giving back to your community and introduced me to the queer community that I am now a part of!

ANGELA F. KIESSEL: When I moved to the city in late 2009, my mentor put me in touch with the production stage manager of Broadway Backwards. This was one of the first shows I worked on in New York City and I was blown away by the scale of the community involved and the amount of coordinated moving parts.

KELLEN STANCIL: I got involved in March 2007 when I joined the national tour of The Lion King. Ben Lipitz, may he rest in peace, was our fearless leader in organizing the appeals and benefit shows. I could have never imagined almost 18 years later that I would still be involved and plan on never stopping!

What motivates you to volunteer with Broadway Cares?

CAJAI: Knowing how massive Broadway Cares’ reach is is a huge motivator in participating in events and fundraising.

ANGELA: I love coming together with the company to focus our energy on a greater goal. Seeing videos of people who have been helped by the food banks, medical services, housing assistance and other resources funded by Broadway Cares makes me feel that every dollar is truly making a tangible difference

KELLEN: The cause! It’s dear to my heart. During my first Equity contract, my dance captain was HIV+ and unfortunately, passed away mid contract. THAT WAS HARD! This man was full of life and joy and could change a space with his effervescent smile instantly. Keeping his spirit and essence alive along with

so many others who are no longer with us is what motivates me to keep giving.

What is your favorite memory of making a difference through Broadway Cares?

CAJAI: The first time I performed and fundraised for Broadway Bares. I never had done fundraising on my own and it was intimidating. I surprised myself by meeting goal after goal and realized how powerful one person can be in making a huge difference in someone else’s life.

ANGELA: I stage managed a number in the 2010 Red Bucket Follies centered around the Legacy Robe. It was very special to see up close the evidence of those who came before us and helped to build Broadway Cares into the far-reaching goodness generator that it is today.

KELLEN: The connections you make and the shared experiences. Every event really brings the community together and allows a safe space for us to share our stories of our “why” and to know we are all here to make a difference. It’s emotional and I truly believe that it's in the human DNA to care, to love, to serve and to provide. That is what Broadway Cares does!

As a member of the theater community, why is it important to you to give back?

CAJAI: This industry teaches you a lot about the ebb and flow of being successful. At my lows, this community has had my back over and over again. I find it hugely important to be able to pay it forward when you are able to.

ANGELA: We have access to the ears and attention of thousands of different audience members, and that provides us with the opportunity and responsibility to share important messages with them. Collecting for Broadway Cares is just one way that we can use this influence to generate positive changes in the world.

KELLEN: It's not just important, it’s vital! Giving back gives you a deeper understanding of what life is about. It gives you purpose. I always say, if you are able to help, why wouldn’t you? It can be from the smallest gesture to the largest donation and it all matters! When we start caring for each other, then the world is a better place.

Describe Broadway Cares in three words.

CAJAI: Important. Inclusive. Lifesaving.

ANGELA: Organized community leaders.

KELLEN: Transcendent. Meaningful. Home.

Cajai Kennedy Actor in Wicked

Angela F. Kiessel

Assistant Stage Manager at Little Shop of Horrors

Kellen Stancil Director of Broadway Bares