2016 Broadway & Ballet HERO Awards to Honor Donna McKechnie, ABT Star and More; Performers Set!

October 24th from 7pm at Stage 48, 605 West 48th Street, HIV HERO will present the third annual HIV HERO Broadway & Ballet HERO Awards.

Honorees are Tony Award winner Donna McKechnie and ABT international ballet star Marcelo Gomes. Receiving the John Adams HERO Award is Star of Cirque du Soleil's Paramour, Ruby Lewis, and accepting the 2016 HERO Partner Award, on behalf of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, is Tom Viola, Executive Director, Broadway Cares.

The awards are given to those organizations and individuals who have gone above and beyond to help the HIV/AIDS community.

Directed by Patrick Boyd, with technical direction from Tommy Mazza, produced by Stephen Leff, the show will be emcee'd by Jonathan Lovitz (Senior Vice President at the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce), and is being sponsored by NEXT Magazine, Dancers Responding to AIDS and Ferragamo. Tickets are $25 General Admission and $100 for VIP Seated tickets, available at www.hivhero.org.

This spectacular event will feature 14 original performances and a cast of over 30 stars from the worlds of Broadway and ballet including: (honorees) Donna McKechnie (A Chorus Line, Broadway HERO Awardee), Ruby Lewis (Cirque du Soleil Paramour, John Adams HERO Awardee), ABT international ballet star, Marcelo Gomes (and Ballet HERO Awardee), Michael Leon Wooley (Little Shop of Horrors, American Buffalo, The Princess and the Frog), Stephen Hanna (An American In Paris, On The Town, Billy Elliot, Principle dancer, New York City Ballet), Michael Cusumano (All Shook Up, Chicago, American in Paris), Attila Joey Csiki (An American in Paris), Brandon Leffler (Trip of Love, On The Town, Cinderella) Patrick Boyd (Grease, The Wizard of Oz, Gypsy, Touch: A Love Story), Clifton Oliver, (Kinky Boots, Lion King) Donna Vaughn (The Lion King), Sean Stewart (American Ballet Theatre), Alina Faye (American Ballet Theatre alumni), Carmen Salta (Washington Ballet), Luis Villabon (A Chorus Line) Morgan Stinnett (soloist with Connecticut Ballet, member of Aijkun Ballet Company), Shomari Savannah (Alvin Ailey), Alexis "Tilly" Evans-Krueger (Sonya Tayee Dance Company BODYTRAFFIC, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, Jordan Samuels (How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Newsies), Melanie Fields (Evita, The Visit), Marcus Williams (Debbie Allen's Hot Chocolate Nutcracker, Alvin Ailey Ame­­­rican Dance Theater), Cristy Candler (Rock of Ages, Chicago) and Sean Rozansai (Dirty Dancing, Gus Giordano, Jazz Dance), a special performance by the dance and theatre departments of Pace University, Ray Mercer (The Lion King, Award Winning Choreographer), who will be choreographing the opening number, and more.

HIV Experience Resources Organization (HERO) is a completely volunteer-based non-profit 501(3)(c) organization founded in 2009 by Michael Cavnaugh, former vice president of Event Presentation at Madison Square Garden. HERO helps people find the most pressing, up-to-date information available critical to their heath, including sharing extensive video coverage from current national and international AIDS conferences. HERO's websites, HIVhero.org and HEROnews.org, provide local, national, and international resources and interactive tools which provide assistance in: finding doctors, getting medication, mental health counseling, housing, financial assistance, medical insurance, and much more. It also serves as a portal site providing free content and video production, promoting the services, activities, and fundraising efforts of many community/partner organizations, including red carpet coverage of high profile events and one-on-one interviews. Seen throughout their video archive and messaging, HERO founded the #condomsarehot movement, with the help of stars such as Angela Lansbury, Matt Bomer, Mary Louise-Parker, Rosie Perez, David Hyde Pierce, Bebe Neuwirth, Blythe Daner, and many more to build more awareness for sexual health and STD prevention. Special thanks to OUT Magazine for their ongoing support.

Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS is one of the nation's leading industry-based, nonprofit AIDS fundraising and grant-making organizations. By drawing upon the talents, resources, and generosity of the American theatre community, since 1988 BC/EFA has raised more than $285 million for essential services for people with AIDS and other critical illnesses across the United States. Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS is the major supporter of the social service programs at The Actors Fund, including the HIV/AIDS Initiative, the Phyllis Newman Women's Health Initiative and the Al Hirschfeld Free Health Clinic. Broadway Cares also awards annual grants to more than 450 AIDS and family service organizations in all 50 states.