BC/EFA Begins Fall Fundraising Tonight

Cast members from Broadway, Off-Broadway and national touring shows across the country will fill their theatre lobbies, with Broadway Cares' signature red buckets in tow, to begin six weeks of fundraising tonight, Friday, October 19, 2019, for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.

The Broadway shows beginning fundraising tonight are Aladdin, Anastasia, The Book of Mormon, The Lion King and Summer: The Donna Summer Musical, plus Off-Broadway's Avenue Q. Joining in the efforts throughout the weekend and next week are The Band's Visit, Dear Evan Hansen, Frozen, Hamilton, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Kinky Boots, Mean Girls, Once on This Island, The Phantom of the Opera, Pretty Woman, School of Rock - The Musical and Wicked, plus Off-Broadway's Apologia.

The national tours that will be fundraising include Aladdin, Bat Out of Hell, Beautiful - The Carole King Musical, The Book of Mormon - Jumamosi tour, Come From Away, Dear Evan Hansen, Hamilton - Angelica tour, Hamilton - Chicago, Hamilton - Philip tour, Les Misérables, The Lion King - Rafiki tour, Love Never Dies, On Your Feet!, The Phantom of the Opera, School of Rock - The Musical, The Play That Goes Wrong, Waitress and Wicked - Munchkinland tour. National tour fundraising dates may vary city.

More shows will be added throughout the six-week period.

Every dollar placed in the iconic #redbuckets will help provide lifesaving medication, healthy meals, emergency financial assistance and more to the most vulnerable among us. A $10 donation covers HIV tests at a health clinic. A $50 donation provides 20 nutritious meals in a soup kitchen for the most vulnerable among us.

The fundraising will culminate in a vaudeville-style production of songs, dances and skits at the Red Bucket Follies. Performances are set for 4:30 pm Monday, December 3, and 2 pm Tuesday, December 4, at the New Amsterdam Theatre (214 West 42nd Street, New York City). As previously announced, the Red Bucket Follies (#RedBucketFollies) builds on the 29-year legacy of the Gypsy of the Year Competition.

Tickets to Red Bucket Follies are available now at broadwaycares.org.

Last year, 56 Broadway, Off-Broadway and national tours raised $5.6 million. Beginning in 1989, the 29 editions of Gypsy of the Year raised $76 million to benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Red Bucket Follies will build on that tradition.

The Red Bucket Follies is sponsored by The New York Times and United Airlines.

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 Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS has raised more than $300 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 Samuel J. Friedman Health Center for the Performing Arts. Broadway Cares also awards annual grants to more than 450 AIDS and family service organizations in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C., providing lifesaving medication, healthy meals, counseling and emergency assistance.

For more information, please visit Broadway Cares online at broadwaycares.org, at facebook.com/BCEFA, at instagram.com/BCEFA, attwitter.com/BCEFA and at youtube.com/BCEFA.