Broadway’s First Post-Shutdown “Red Bucket” Spring Charity Drive Raises $4.2M, With ‘Music Man’ Setting Record Of $2M

deadline.com:

The red bucket brigades so long-familiar to Broadway spring audiences were back this year after a two-year pandemic absence, and the results were heartening: donations across Broadway, Off Broadway and touring productions to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS totaled $4,288,994.One musical in particular outdid itself: The Music Man, starring Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster, raised a single-show record of $2,071,806 through post-show memorabilia auctions and autographed poster sales.Until the pandemic, spring on Broadway meant onstage, post-show appeals from cast members of participating shows asking audiences to drop some cash into the red buckets in the lobby.

Traditionally, the cast members would old the buckets, offering the fast-moving lines of donors the chance for a quick up-close hello with the stars.

This year, the ongoing threat of Covid infection prevented direct interaction with casts, so Broadway Cares volunteers and staff thanked audiences for the donations.This year’s Broadway Cares’ Spring Fundraising Campaign took place over a six-week period from March 18 to May 1.“Audiences and shows alike greeted the careful and strategic return this spring to a full fundraising campaign with such enthusiasm,” Broadway Cares Executive Director Tom Viola said in a statement. “Throughout the six weeks, productions graciously joined in the effort.

In addition to extraordinary cast support, we extend our sincere thanks to theater owners and producers, and, most especially, to the stage managers who steered efforts behind the scenes and to all onstage, backstage and front of house who made our return to in-theater fundraising such a success.