Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS’ “Rent, the 30th Anniversary Concert” raised a total of $4,571,464 for the nonprofit organization. Held on Oct. 26 at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, the concert reunited performers from “Rent”’s original Broadway cast and replacements from throughout its 12-year Main Stem run, in addition to performers from various touring productions and other Broadway talent.
Funds raised by the concert will support Broadway Cares in its mission: providing grants to service organizations that, in turn, provide medication, food, counseling and emergency assistance to people living with HIV/AIDS and other illnesses across the U.S. as well as emergency financial aid to other humanitarian causes worldwide.
The concert was livestreamed in collaboration with the League of Live Stream Theater, with more than 70,000 viewers tuning in at home. The livestream was directed by showrunner Andrew Shaw. ViiV Healthcare served as the presenting sponsor for the main event, with the Gates Foundation matching donations received from every livestream ticket purchase up to $525,600 in a nod to the lyrics from the “Rent” ballad “Seasons of Love.”
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Broadway’s original Mark, Anthony Rapp, began the concert by performing “Rent”’s opening monologue and dedicating the show to its writer, the late Jonathan Larson. Original cast members Yassmin Alers, Gilles Chiasson, Darius de Haas, Shelley Dickinson, Taye Diggs, David Driver, Rodney Hicks, Wilson Jermaine Heredia, Idina Menzel, Adam Pascal, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Byron Utley and Fredi Walker-Browne also appeared throughout the evening.
“Rent, the 30th Anniversary Concert” was helmed by original “Rent” director Michael Greif with original music supervisor Tim Weil leading a band of original “Rent” musicians Kenny Brescia, Jeff Potter and Daniel A. Weiss, joined by Steve Gelfand. Choreographer Marlies Yearby also appeared in the concert.
“Thirty years ago, Jonathan Larson and ‘Rent’ changed Broadway,” said Broadway Cares executive director Danny Whitman following the performance. “‘Rent’ brought stories to the stage, ones we needed to hear, and gave voice to a generation confronting unimaginable loss, uncertainty and fear. But what makes ‘Rent’ so extraordinary is not just the story it tells — it’s the community at the heart of that story. In the face of devastation, this community created something that would change countless lives, and you all did that again tonight.”
“Rent, the 30th Anniversary Concert” was produced by Broadway Cares and Andy Jones.
