In years past, I've used this day to talk about the sobering statistics of this deadly disease that affects tens of millions around the world. This year, I'd like to remind you of the wonderful work that the fine people at Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS provide. They're once again in the midst of one of their annual giving campaigns. If you've been to a Broadway show in recent weeks, you'll likely have heard from the stage about this great organization's continuing efforts.
Even if you're nowhere near Broadway, please consider giving to this industry-based, nonprofit AIDS fundraising and grant-making organization by going here to make a donation. As many of you know, I dug deep into my pocket earlier this fall, but that isn't deterring me from digging even deeper today by giving again. I hope you'll join me in giving. No gift is too large or too small.
If you're looking to receive something in return -- in addition to my sincere appreciation -- you might also consider joining me in purchasing one of BC/EFA's annual snow globes like the one designed by Broadway's very own David Gallo. For more details, please go here.
Here's to your good health and all the best for your loved ones. Thank you for your support.
In keeping with the Federal Trade Commission regulations (FTC) that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value in exchange for promotional consideration, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post.
An Important Message From Broadway: It Gets Better
In the wake of the epidemic of LGBT suicides across the nation, some of Broadway's finest voices are singing a message of hope, in unison, to young people everywhere that "It Gets Better."
"It Gets Better" will become available on iTunes on October 19 with all downloads benefiting The Trevor Project. You can join me in giving directly by clicking here.
If you need a lifeline, please call 1.866.488.7386. Remember, it gets better.
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post.
Today marks the 20th anniversary for World AIDS Day 2008, and bloggers from around the world are uniting to join in the observance.
Worldwide an estimated 33 million people are living with HIV. In the United States, an estimated one million Americans are living with HIV.
In the U.S., both the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of HIV/AIDS Policy’s AIDS.gov have come together to share HIV/AIDS information with the blogging community, including Bloggers Unite, for World AIDS Day 2008.
Bloggers Unite is an attempt to harness the power of the blogosphere to make the world a better place. By asking bloggers to write about a particular subject on 1 day of the month, a single voice can be joined with thousands to help make a difference; from raising awareness for cancer, to an effort to better education systems or supporting 3rd world countries.
This month, Bloggers Unite is working with NIDA and AIDS.gov because they value and recognize the power of a voice. Multiply that voice by the thousands and the sound of humanity will echo the blogosphere. HIV/AIDS affects too many in our communities to ignore. Be a part of a growing community of leaders that lift their voices.
This is also a perfect time to give to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Even if you're nowhere near Broadway, please consider giving to the nation's leading industry-based, nonprofit AIDS fundraising and grant-making organization by clicking here to make a donation.
Here's to your good health and all the best for your loved ones. Thank you for your support.
As Hurricane Gustav gave way to Tropical Depression Gustav, that huge collective sigh America heard was one of immense relief that New Orleans didn't experience a catastrophic repeat of Hurricane Katrina.
The levees held, even as water sloshed over their tops, and while the worst of the storm has passed, flood watches along Lake Pontchartrain remain in effect until 10 a.m. CDT.
New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin has promised that "re-entry is only days away, and not weeks."
UPDATE (9/2/08, 12:50 p.m.): MSNBC is reporting:
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal said he has received reports of widespread damage across three parishes — Terrebonne, Lafourche and St. Mary — near where the eye of the storm hit. Helicopter crews were expected to search the area for anyone injured or killed.
With millions still displaced from their homes, as well as damage in the wake of Gustav requiring attention, including from relief agencies like the American Red Cross, I strongly encourage you to join me in giving to this organization. To donate, simply click here.
Much to my relief, one of my dear friends from New Orleans, MB, commu-nicated with me last evening, even as Hurricane Gustav comes barreling toward the southwest of the Big Easy as a Category Three storm. She reassured me that she was to board a flight to Atlanta today.
But I'm still waiting to hear from my college friend Rick Duplantier, who rebuilt after Katrina. Rick, if you're out there and read this, please let me know you're OK!
As noted above, MB sent me a quick e-mail, reassuring me:
After massive search and many calls, found two Sunday tickets to Atlanta on AirTran -- too much money, but it was that or drive or bail! With the traffic, it would have been 24 hours, I'm sure.
But our concerns about a trip are miniscule. I don't know how my many friends -- and thousands of others -- who lost everything last time are coping now. I'm emotionally fragile, and I can just imagine how they feel.
At least this time, people are getting out of town. Now.
Maybe it'll miss us. But then again, that means it's going to hit someone else. Then again, where is safe? Sacramento has the same levees we do; California has the earthquakes, midwest the storms, east coast the hurricanes.........
Too many musings, back to work, then to pack!
I'm hoping her flight made it out as scheduled.
As I noted yesterday, while it may not be much, I donated to the American Red Cross in recognition that they're already hard at work in preparing for the eventual disaster relief they'll be providing in Gustav's aftermath. Additionally, as my friend Alicia reminded me , another key way to help is to donate blood.
I strongly encourage you to to what you can. To donate, simply click here.
After having just been in New Orleans at the beginning of the week and departing the city's Louis Armstrong Airport as the remnants of Fay were blowing through, I am absolutely heartsick that the Big Easy -- so ravaged by Hurricane Katrina three years ago yesterday -- is now bracing for Hurricane Gustav.
Unlike Michael Moore, I'm not laughing and find it repulsive that anyone would use such a devastating event to score cheap political points when so many lives have already been lost in this hurricane's wake.
While I'm awaiting word from my friends who live in New Orleans -- hoping they're in a safe place, and if not, wishing them Godspeed -- the seeming inevitability of Gustav striking Louisiana and Texas has me wishing I could do something. Anything.
And while it may not be much, I've just donated to the American Red Cross in recognition that they're already hard at work in preparing for the eventual disaster relief they'll be providing in Gustav's aftermath.
I strongly encourage you to join me by doing the same. To donate, simply click here.
If regular readers already know one thing about me, it's that I love snaring great seats whenever I see live theatre.
And if you're anything like me, you also love giving to charitable organizations, not only because it makes you feel good, but especially because you know that your contribution is helping others.
What could be better than when those two great loves come together? That's what Damon Runyon Broadway Tickets service offers.
Operated by the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation, this service offers a limited selection of the most exclusive house seats for over two dozen Broadway performances. Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation offers theatregoers with opportunities to get top-notch tickets -– usually reserved for industry insiders or VIPs -- while also supporting innovative cancer research.
Damon Runyon, of course, was the famed Kansas-born New York writer for the United Press whose legendary "Broadway Stories" during the last century became the fodder for one of my all-time favorite musicals Guys and Dolls. After Runyon died of cancer at the age of 66, Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II created the Damon Runyon Broadway Tickets service to aid the newly-established Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation, enlisting the support of such noteworthy stars as Milton Berle, Marlene Dietrich and Bob Hope.
Essentially, the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation pays the theaters the full box office price for the tickets and then sells them for double the ticket price. The amount above and beyond the box office price is a fully tax deductible contribution.
The best part is that these tickets are typically less expensive than the price brokers are charging for the same premium seats. And, the Foundation allows cancellations without penalty up to a day before the performance.
This past Friday evening, I was about to start eating dinner when the phone rang.
I don't ordinarily answer my phone during meals -- heck, ask anyone if I answer the telephone at all, and they're bound to tell you I don't -- but when I checked the caller ID, I found an unknown 212 area code number ending in a zero pop up on the screen. I don't know what possessed me to answer, but I did.
Twenty minutes later, I found myself as a new subscriber to the Manhattan Theatre Company. To be honest, it wasn't really a very hard sell. I've enjoyed quite a few outstanding, and usually always riveting productions -- mostly at their restored Biltmore Theatre on Broadway, but also a couple over at New York City Center Stage I.
Of course, this is no ordinary subscription where I'm merely paying for tickets (in this case a grand total of 14 for seven productions over the coming year). The lion's share of what I agreed to is a charitable donation for this rarest of rare commodities on the Great White Way: a not-for-profit theatre company.
As you may recall from my nonstop coverage of the recent Broadway stagehands strike, the Manhattan Theatre Club is one of only three non-profit Rialto theatre companies. The other two are Lincoln Center and Roundabout Theatre Company -- both renowned for their range of musical and straight play offerings.
Quite frankly, I love to give. Period.
If you ask me what I would most like to be when I "grow up," I'd probably tell you I wish I could be a philanthropist. While there's nothing quite as admirable as volunteer work, my long work hours just don't enable me to physically offer my helping hand as often as I'd like.
So instead, I try to give as much as I possibly can to the 501(c)(3) organizations that I believe can make a difference, whether it's in helping feed those less fortunate or in providing medical care, or in finding a cure for any number of diseases. Or, naturally, the one where I hope others can be challenged and enlightened, as well as entertained: live theatre.
This is the second not-for-profit theatre company to which I currently subscribe and donate. For the past three years, I've proudly supported Chicago's Steppenwolf -- a worthy investment in the arts if ever there was one. I've never doubted for one moment that every penny I've donated has been worth it. If ever I had second thoughts, they were dashed when I saw how involved Steppenwolf is with its local community, particularly through its outreach to Chicagoland's middle and high schools via its Subscriber School Program.
My only other subscription ever was with Minneapolis' Guthrie. But that was years before they moved into their incredible new facility. Yet I know the vital role this institution has taken on in the Twin Cities, and their own incredible profile of community involvement only continues to grow.
So what was it about the Manhattan Theatre Club that inspired me to give? They asked me.
Which leads me to ask you, have you ever subscribed and/or donated to a nonprofit theatre? I'd love to know which ones and why you subscribed.
From the "What were they thinking?" file comes word that the Actor's Fund benefit performance of Addictionsscheduled for Los Angeles last evening was abruptly canceled.
Seems playwright Tricia Walsh-Smith happened upon a flier for the fundraiser that listed Smirnoff among the corporate sponsors for the evening. No matter that the advance billing clearly stated that "Addictions will benefit the Chemical Dependency Program of The Actors' Fund and is dedicated to the memory of Kevin Walsh."
After just watching the engagingly ironic film "Thank You For Smoking," I find the brazenly calculated sponsorship by Smirnoff akin to a major cigarette company sponsoring an affair aimed at quitting smoking. I'm not opposed to corporate sponsorships per se, but wouldn't it behoove an organization like the Actor's Fund to ensure its sponsors are appropriate for the cause?
Cheers to Walsh-Smith for having the courage of her convictions to just say "NO!" And here's hoping that the Actor's Fund can find more suitable sponsors in the future.
Rain: A Tribute To The Beatles Limited run extended through May 31, 2011 (Show will go on hiatus starting January 15 and reopen at Brooks Atkinson Theatre on February 8)
Rock Of Ages - Open-ended run (Show will go on hiatus starting January 9 and reopen at Helen Hayes Theatre in March)
As someone who has been involved in both politics and public relations, it's no wonder I love watching theatre. Good or bad, it's the raw energy of seeing a live performance that gets my adrenaline pumping. From the moment I saw my very first Broadway show ("Annie" in London in 1979), I was hooked. Now I see as many as 70 shows each year ranging from soaring musicals to two-hander plays. And these eyes just may be in an audience near you!
