Set pieces and props from the long-running hit musical Avenue Q are being auctioned off ahead of the show’s May 26 closing performance at New World Stages. Anna Louizos, the show’s Tony-nominated scenic designer, is auctioning the set piecemeal in an effort to save it from being tossed into the dumpster.
Items ranging from Kate Monster’s original front door to Christmas Eve’s original wedding bouquet, Trekkie Monster’s building window, Rod and Nicky’s sofa, and trash cans from the show’s Sesame Street-esque set are among the items Louizos has listed on BroadwayDesignExchange.com.
Launched by Louizos in 2014, Broadway Design Exchange not only gives fans an opportunity to own a piece of their favorite shows, it keeps further waste from being dumped into landfills.
“This effort to salvage pieces of a beloved show represents the mission of Broadway Design Exchange, it is the reason why I established the website in the first place,” Louizos said. “I have seen too many set pieces and props fill dumpsters at the closing of many shows, it is wasteful and environmentally irresponsible. When you consider the collective effort it takes to build the sets, costumes and props, the craftsmanship, the months of preparation, it only makes sense that fans and collectors would appreciate an opportunity to own a piece of a beloved show. I think it is a worthwhile endeavor. My goal for Broadway Design Exchange with this first of its kind auction of Avenue Q set pieces and props will blaze the trail toward salvaging set pieces when possible to live another day as either a memento for a fan, or a decorative piece for a collector.”
The auction continues through May 16. Items will ship or be available for pick-up following the show's May 26 closing performance at New World Stages.
The New York-set coming-of-age comedy played a limited engagement at Off-Broadway's Vineyard Theatre in 2003, transferring to the Golden Theatre on Broadway in July of that year. After winning three Tony Awards including Best Musical, the Jason Moore-directed show celebrated a nearly-six-year run before the cast of humans and puppets took their final bows on September 13, 2009. The closing performance was capped off with a surprise announcement that the musical would transfer Off-Broadway to New World Stages the following month. The Broadway set was dismantled and reconstructed at New World Stages' Stage III.
Featuring a Tony-winning score by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx and a Tony-winning book by Jeff Whitty, Avenue Q follows Princeton, a recent college grad who arrives in New York with a B.A. in English and not much else. Living alongside a crew of neighbors including monsters, a Japanese immigrant, a closeted Republican, and Gary Coleman, he sets off to find his ever-elusive purpose, which doesn't get any easier in adulthood.
