Attendees were promised "more than 200 of New York's sexiest and most delectable dancers [who] will take you to a land where rubbing a magic lamp reveals more than just a genie. These storybook happy endings would make seven dwarfs whistle before and after they work," according to BC/EFA notes.
Kyle Dean Massey (Next to Normal) appeared throughout the show as the lead character looking for his fairytale happy ending. Miriam Shor (TV's "GCB") sang the original opening number, "Happy Endings," written by Chad Beguelin and Matthew Sklar, and Rachel Potter (Evita) performed the finale, "Happily Ever After."
The evening also featured special appearances by 2012 Tony winner Judith Light, Academy Award nominee Jennifer Tilly (Don't Dress for Dinner) and legendary New York drag queen Lady Bunny.
Tony nominee Christopher Sieber and Bares veteran Rachelle Rak led the show's "rotation," where the evening's dancers bump and grind to earn more money for the charity. Lee Wilkins (Elf, Spamalot) directed this year's edition of Broadway Bares. The annual fundraiser was created by Tony Award winner Jerry Mitchell, who also serves as executive producer, and is produced by Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, led by producing director Michael Graziano.
The 21st annual Broadway Bares competition, entitled Broadway Bares XXI: Masterpiece, raised $1,103,072, the highest total of any edition of Bares. To date, the 21 editions of Broadway Bares have raised more than $8.6 million for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.
A little Bares history: Nearly 20 years ago, Mitchell, who once danced nearly naked on a drum in The Will Rogers Follies, found himself inspired to take it all off to raise money for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, and Broadway Bares was born. The first year, he and seven other Broadway dancers raised $8,000 for the charitable organization.
Visit Broadwaycares.org. *
Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS is one of the nation’s leading industry-based, nonprofit AIDS fundraising and grant-making organizations. By drawing upon the talents, resources and generosity of the American theatre community, since 1988 BC/EFA has raised more than $195 million for essential services for people with AIDS and other critical illnesses across the United States.
