On September 21, Broadway Cares held their annual Flea Market and Grand Auction in Shubert Alley.
Theater fans had 65 tables of memorabilia and various experiences to purchase and place bids. And when the day’s festivities were over, the grand event set a new record with $1,633,803 for Broadway Cares.
Along with the more than 200 auctions and hundreds of items for sale, over 50 Broadway stars were on hand to sign autographs including F. Murray Abraham, Scott Bakula, Alex Newell, Bernadette Peters, and Michelle Williams.
Fans found props, costumes, posters, playbills, and more from numerous shows…past and present including:
“& Juliet”
“Aladdin”
“Beetlejuice”
“Buena Vista Social Club”
“Cabaret”
“Death Becomes Her”
“Gypsy”
“Hadestown”
“Harry Potter and the Cursed Child”
“Hell’s Kitchen”
“Just in Time”
“The Lion King”
“Little Shop of Horrors”
“Maybe Happy Ending”
“Moulin Rough! The Musical”
“Oh, Mary!”, “Operation Mincemeat”
“The Outsiders”
“SIX: The Musical”
“Stranger Things: The First Shadow”
“Wicked”
“Redwood”’
“Sunset Boulevard”
“Titanique”
The flea market tables raised a record setting $851,552; with the remainder coming from the auctions. A pair of shoes autographed by Bette Midler from her recent performance in “Hello Dolly” topped the silent auction list at $8,000.
The live auction was indeed lively bringing in $521,200 with a chance to see “Hamilton” from the orchestra pit topping the list at $21,000.
Even shows that have yet to debut got in on the fun when opening night tickets for 13 upcoming shows brought in a total of $55,050 with “Ragtime” leading the way at $15,000.
Executive director of Broadway Cares Danny Whitman spoke on the event saying, “the Broadway Flea Market & Grand Auction is a joyful reminder of what makes this community so extraordinary. It exemplifies the most brilliant embodiment of creativity, generosity, and volunteerism in action—those who make Broadway magic happen eight times a week and thousands of fans, coming together to celebrate all things theater. All while ensuring meals, medication, housing and more lifesaving and life-affirming support reaches those who need them most.”