Each spring Broadway Cares holds their annual charity drive to raise money for the Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.
This year the event set a new record; bringing in over $7 million with their red bucket collections and a few auctions. Leading the way was the bow tie worn by Jonathan Goff as Bobby Darin in “Just in Time”.
A total of 54 Broadway and Off-Broadway productions participated in the annual event March 13 to April 26. With the bow tie auction, “Just in Time” raised nearly $1 million; with the Daniel Radcliffe one-man show “Every Brilliant Thing” coming in second with nearly half a million.
The Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS raises money for the National Grants Program that ” ensure nourishing meals, lifesaving medication, vital health care, and hope for people in need across all 50 states, Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico, as well as providing a safety net of services for those in entertainment and the performing arts.”
Executive director of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS Danny Whitman spoke on the fundraising event in a statement saying, “the companies behind each of these 54 shows and theatregoers joined forces to turn a moment in a lobby into meaningful, lifesaving support. At a time when budgets are being slashed and so many are navigating rising costs and uncertain access to care, this compassion and generosity ensure people across the country can count on meals, medication and critical health services when they need them most.”
Since the Red Bucket campaign began in 1988, “Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS has awarded more than $300 million for essential services for people with HIV/AIDS and other critical illnesses across the United States.”