The 36th annual Broadway Flea Market & Grand Auction, raised a record-breaking $1,043,825 for Broadway Cares. Held in the New York City theatre district September 25, the day-long, outdoor celebration began at 10 AM and continued through 7 PM.
The theatrical treasure hunt included 52 tables full of merchandise along West 44th and 45th Streets. Among the shows represented were Aladdin, Beetlejuice, Come From Away, Funny Girl, Hadestown, Into the Woods, The Kite Runner, The Lion King, Moulin Rouge! The Musical, The Music Man, The Phantom of the Opera, SIX, A Strange Loop, and Wicked. Fans were also privy to mementos from the recently closed Company, Dear Evan Hansen, POTUS, and Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, as well as the forthcoming Some Like It Hot, who sold water to the eager crowd.
Theatrical organizations held tables as well, including #BeltTheVote, The Actors’ Temple, ATPAM, Bardo Arts, The Broadway Crew, Broadway Green Alliance, Broadway Makers Alliance, BroadwayCon, Casting Society, Creative Goods, Dancers Over 40, DKC/O&M, Entertainment Community Fund (formerly The Actors Fund), Jujamcyn Theaters, Maestra, Manhattan Association of Cabarets and Clubs, Michael Crawford International Fan Association, MUSE, New York Theatre Workshop, R.Evolución Latina, Rockers on Broadway and The PATH Fund, The Shubert Organization, Second Stage Theater, Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, Stage Managers’ Association, Stars in the House, Squigs’ “The Lights of Broadway,” Sweet Hospitality Group, Telecharge, Theatre World Awards, Triton Gallery, and United Scenic Artists Local 829, plus TDF’s Pik-a-Tkt.
Tony winner Kristin Chenoweth debuted Kristin’s Kloset, where Wicked’s original Glinda sold costumes, clothes, and a wealth of other items for fans to take home with a donation, in addition to a pop-up photo booth with appearances from Joel Grey, Victor Garber, Ann Harada, Marc Kudisch, Ilana Levine, Jennifer Simard, and Jessica Vosk.
The tables raised $482,640, with the Association of Theatrical Press Agents and Managers (ATPAM) raising $49,113, besting the record they set last year by more than $6,000. The second-highest selling table was Beetlejuice, which raised $42,608. Rounding out the top 10 were Hadestown with $27,084; The Music Man with $25,854; The Phantom of the Opera with $25,635; TDF Pik-a-Tkt with $21,410; Kristin Chenoweth’s Kristin’s Kloset with $20,396; Six with $19,893; The Shubert Organization and Telecharge with $19,376; and Funny Girl with $13,848.
The live auction raised $331,700 through through more than 100 different high-ticket lots. Hosted by two-time Tony nominee Christopher Sieber, with Nick Nicholson as the auctioneer, the most popular lots were experiences, including a world-class trip to London to see three West End shows, which went for $20,000; and the opportunity to sit in the orchestra pit and conduct the exit music of The Phantom of the Opera, which sold for $16,000.
Todd Buonopane and Stephanie Gibson co-hosted the silent auction, which raised a record-breaking $229,485, far exceeding the previous record of $183,579 set in 2021. The top-selling silent auction lot was the monkey music box from The Phantom of the Opera, signed by Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber, which went for $12,000.
The annual event had its humble beginnings more than three decades ago with two tables set up by cast members of A Chorus Line outside their stage door in Shubert Alley. Since 1987, the 36 editions of the event have raised more than $17.5 million.
Broadway Cares 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 has raised more than $300 million for essential services for people with HIV/AIDS, COVID-19, and other critical illnesses across the United States.
Visit BroadwayCares.org.
See photos from the event below: