BC/EFA to Stream NEXTGEN SPOTLIGHT Featuring Jelani Remy, LaChanze, Garrett Clayton and More

The leaders of Broadway Cares' young professionals group, the NextGen Network, are hosting their first virtual fundraiser, NextGen Spotlight, at 8 pm Eastern on Monday, July 27, 2020.

The event will benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and feature the next generation of actors, writers, dancers and teachers. The show is directed and hosted by Jelani Remy, star of Broadway's Ain't Too Proud - The Life and Times of the Temptations.

Remy, who also conceived the event, has amassed an impressive roster offering performances and conversations from talent onstage and off with special appearances by Marina Brabender, Joanna Burns, Garrett Clayton, Marti Gould Cummings, Nia Imani Franklin, Mila Jam, LaChanze, Jonny Lee, Jr., Storm Lever, Justin Anthony Long, Douglas Lyons, Matt Manuel, Shereen Pimentel, Matt Rodin, Analise Scarpaci, Kellen Stancil, Sergio Trujillo, Natalie Weiss and more to come.

The stream is free, but advance registration is required. Sign up at broadwaycares.org/nextgenspotlight.

VIP and sponsorship opportunities, which include access to virtual cast party, are also available at broadwaycares.org/nextgenspotlight. All donations during the stream will be matched dollar for dollar up to $5,000 by the NextGen Network executive board, the NextGen Advocates. Donations can be made at broadwaycares.org/spotlight2020.

The NextGen Network (broadwaycares.org/nextgen) is a community of young professionals committed to supporting the important work of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Its mission is to build a sustainable foundation for Broadway Cares and the vital annual grants made to The Actors Fund and more than 450 social service organizations in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C.

"One of my favorite quotes is 'Be the change you wish to see in the world,'" Remy said. "I want to be the change that unites our theater community and celebrates our individuality and talent. Thanks to the NextGen Network and Broadway Cares, we are creating this platform to do just that and more for the next generation."

NextGen Advocates chair Chris Guimarin said: "I am very excited to combine the fundraising efforts for Broadway Cares with showcasing the next generation of Broadway talent. The NextGen Network's mission focuses on introducing our peers inside and outside the Broadway community to the valuable work of Broadway Cares and this creates an opportunity for all to participate and join this community of fundraisers."

Every dollar donated will help provide healthy meals, lifesaving medication, emergency financial assistance, housing, counseling and more to people across the country, including those in the entertainment industry, whose needs are heightened by the COVID-19 crisis. The donations also support and champion organizations focused on social justice and anti-racism.

Thus far in response to the pandemic, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS has given $6 million to The Actors Fund, ensuring thousands who work in theater and the performing arts receive help getting essential medications, housing, food, utilities and health insurance support. Broadway Cares provided another $2 million to vital organizations across the country facing unprecedented challenges from the pandemic. And on behalf of Broadway and the entire theater community, in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, Broadway Cares provided $125,000 in now-annual grants to The Bail Project, the Broadway Advocacy Coalition, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and Color of Change.

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 affected by HIV/AIDS, COVID-19 and other critical illnesses across the United States.