Broadway Cares

Broadway Cares
Name	Broadway Cares
Formation	1988
Type	Nonprofit
Headquarters	New York City
Area served	United States
Focus	Health care, emergency relief, performing arts community

Broadway Cares is a nonprofit organization that mobilizes the theater community to raise funds for health and human services, particularly supporting people living with HIV/AIDS, cancer, and other critical illnesses. It channels donations from Broadway, off-Broadway, touring productions, and the wider performing arts sector into grants distributed to social service agencies, medical providers, and emergency relief organizations. The organization works closely with producers, unions, performers, and advocacy groups to coordinate large-scale fundraising and volunteer initiatives.

History

Founded in the late 1980s amid the AIDS crisis in the United States, the organization emerged when leaders from the Theatre World Awards, Actors' Equity Association, Theatrical Syndicate, and various Broadway productions sought coordinated responses to escalating health needs. Early collaborations involved benefit performances, telethons patterned after efforts by MTV, The Public Theater, and celebrity-driven campaigns like those organized by Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson. The organization expanded through the 1990s alongside campaigns by The AIDS Memorial Quilt, partnerships with The Shubert Organization and Jujamcyn Theatres, and donor events featuring performers associated with Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall. In the 2000s, it integrated newer fundraising models used by United Way, Red Cross, and arts philanthropy groups linked to Kennedy Center initiatives. The organization's history also intersects with major productions and personalities from Hamilton (musical), Les Misérables, The Phantom of the Opera, Wicked (musical), A Chorus Line, Funny Girl, and actors represented by Screen Actors Guild affiliates. Responding to disasters and public-health emergencies, it coordinated relief similar to efforts by Feeding America and Federal Emergency Management Agency partners.

Mission and Programs

The stated mission focuses on providing emergency assistance, medical support, and essential services to members of the theatrical community and related families, reflecting models used by Gloria Vanderbilt-era philanthropic efforts and arts-focused grantmaking seen at National Endowment for the Arts. Programs include grants for housing, medication, specialized medical equipment, and counseling that complement services offered by Mount Sinai Health System, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, and community clinics affiliated with City University of New York partnerships. It maintains programs addressing long-term health crises and episodic disasters, aligning operational practices with nonprofit standards observed at American Red Cross chapters and volunteer-driven efforts like those from Habitat for Humanity. Educational and outreach efforts collaborate with unions and training institutions such as Juilliard School, The Actors Studio, and Tisch School of the Arts to promote health awareness among emerging performers.

Fundraising Events and Campaigns

Signature annual events leverage theatrical conventions and celebrity participation, often modeled after large-scale benefit concerts like those produced by Live Aid and televised galas similar to Tony Awards broadcasts. High-profile campaigns include gala auctions, benefit performances, and themed drives that bring together casts from Broadway transfer productions, touring companies affiliated with Nederlander Organization, and special events at venues like Radio City Music Hall and Al Hirschfeld Theatre. Notable fundraisers frequently feature stars associated with Stephen Sondheim, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Stephen Schwartz, and Stephen King–adjacent theatrical adaptations, drawing donors from foundations tied to Ford Foundation, Carnegie Corporation, and celebrity endowments curated by figures like Sting and Bruce Springsteen. Seasonal campaigns and one-night benefit concerts have mirrored the scale of events organized by Comic Relief, Stand Up To Cancer, and music-driven philanthropy such as Concert for New York City.

Partnerships and Community Impact

The organization partners with hospitals, social service agencies, and arts institutions to distribute funds and organize volunteer efforts, aligning with beneficiary organizations similar to GMHC, The Trevor Project, Planned Parenthood, Citymeals on Wheels, and neighborhood-based community health centers in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island. Collaborative initiatives have involved producers and companies like Cameron Mackintosh, Disney Theatrical Group, Roundabout Theatre Company, and Second Stage Theater, amplifying impact through joint donor campaigns and emergency-response networks. Its community impact includes direct grants to front-line agencies, assistance to theater workers affected by closures, and support for mental-health services analogous to programs run by NAMI chapters and local behavioral-health nonprofits. Partnerships with unions and guilds such as Actors' Equity Association, Screen Actors Guild ‒ American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, and American Federation of Musicians enable targeted outreach to stagehands, musicians, and backstage professionals.

Governance and Funding

Governance structures reflect a board-led nonprofit model with oversight by trustees and executive leadership drawn from theater producers, philanthropists, and arts administrators, paralleling governance seen at Metropolitan Opera, American Ballet Theatre, and major cultural institutions like Museum of Modern Art. Funding sources include individual donations from patrons associated with theaters on Times Square, corporate sponsorships from entertainment companies, proceeds from benefit performances, and grants from foundations such as Rockefeller Foundation-linked funds and family foundations of notable donors. Financial management follows nonprofit accounting practices similar to those used by United Way affiliates and regional arts councils, with audits and donor reporting consistent with standards of the Internal Revenue Service nonprofit regulations.

Recognition and Awards

The organization and its contributors have received acknowledgment from theater-industry entities and civic bodies, mirroring honors conferred by Tony Awards, Drama Desk Awards, Outer Critics Circle, and municipal proclamations from the Mayor of New York City. Individual performers, producers, and volunteers involved in campaigns have been recognized by cultural institutions including Lincoln Center, Juilliard School, and philanthropic awards given by foundations like MacArthur Foundation and Guggenheim Foundation for community service and arts philanthropy.

Category:Non-profit organizations based in New York City