{"id":115810,"date":"2026-01-29T00:45:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-29T00:45:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/115810\/"},"modified":"2026-01-29T00:45:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T00:45:11","slug":"broadway-backwards-20th-anniversary-benefit-concert-will-play-the-gershwin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/115810\/","title":{"rendered":"Broadway Backwards 20th Anniversary Benefit Concert Will Play the Gershwin"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tBroadway Cares<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tBroadway Backwards 20th Anniversary Benefit Concert Will Play the Gershwin<\/p>\n

Broadway favorites will reinterpret iconic songs from the musical theatre through a queer lens to benefit Broadway Cares and The Center.<\/p>\n

\"\"\/<\/p>\n

Cast of Broadway Backwards
\n Rebecca J Michelson <\/p>\n

Broadway Backwards, which reinterprets Broadway songs into\u00a0moments of visibility, freedom, and pride, will celebrate its 20th anniversary March 23 at 8 PM at\u00a0the Gershwin Theatre, home of the long-running hit musical Wicked.<\/p>\n

Produced by Broadway Cares, the one-night-only event benefits Broadway Cares and The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center.<\/p>\n

By transforming showtunes into queer stories, Broadway Backwards stands as the only annual event on Broadway custom-made for the LGBTQ+ community, friends, and allies.\u00a0Guest performers will be announced at a later date.<\/p>\n

Creator Robert Bartley<\/a> will return to direct and choreograph the show with Ted Arthur<\/a> and Mary-Mitchell Campbell<\/a> as music supervisors. Colby Q. Lindeman<\/a> joins as associate choreographer, with Amanda LaMotte<\/a> as co-choreographer and Adam Roberts<\/a> returning as choreographer and associate director. ARC\u2019s Mark Brandon<\/a> and Jarrett Reiche<\/a> will be the\u00a0casting consultants.<\/p>\n

“We first presented\u00a0Broadway Backwards at the LGBT Center in 2006, and I\u2019ve had the joy of watching it grow with hundreds of unforgettable performances across these past 20 years,” said Danny Whitman, executive director of Broadway Cares, in a statement. “This year, these stories matter more than ever. With LGBTQ+ funding at risk and threats rising, Broadway Backwards supports queer communities here in New York through The Center and across the country through Broadway Cares\u2014turning celebration into real, lifesaving impact.<\/p>\n

\u201cBroadway Backwards
\n holds a special place in our hearts. Over the past two decades, we\u2019ve
\nseen this unique production grow into a joyful celebration of LGBTQ+
\ncreativity, community and pride,\u201d said Dr. Carla Smith,
\n CEO of The Center. We are deeply grateful for our longtime partnership
\nwith Broadway Cares\/Equity Fights AIDS and for the artists and audiences
\n who make this night so meaningful. HIV and AIDS prevention and
\nsupport are core to our mission, and this fundraiser helps us continue
\nturning joy into impact, ensuring LGBTQ+ New Yorkers have access to the
\nservices they need to live successful and healthy lives.”<\/p>\n

What began as a small, grassroots concert performed at The Center in 2006 quickly grew into a highly anticipated event presented on Broadway. Last year\u2019s edition raised a record-breaking $1,111,788. In its 19 editions, Broadway Backwards has raised more than $9.7 million for Broadway Cares and The Center.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Broadway Cares is one of the nation\u2019s 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\u00a0has awarded more than $300 million for essential services for people with HIV\/AIDS and other critical illnesses across the United States.<\/p>\n

Tickets are available at BroadwayCares.org<\/a>. Prices start at $100 with VIP packages also available.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Broadway Cares Broadway Backwards 20th Anniversary Benefit Concert Will Play the Gershwin Broadway favorites will reinterpret iconic songs…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":115811,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[75,84,83,9,24,63],"class_list":["post-115810","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-manhattan","tag-manhattan","tag-manhattan-headlines","tag-manhattan-news","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115810","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=115810"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115810\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/115811"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=115810"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=115810"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=115810"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}