Tony winner Alex Newell stepped into the role of Mother from Ragtime March 11 at the New Amsterdam Theatre for this year's installment of Broadway Backwards, the annual benefit concert celebrating the LGBTQIA+ community. Hear Newell's roof-raising rendition of "Back to Before" in the video above.
Newell made history last Broadway season as the first openly non-binary actor to win a Tony Award, taking home the Tony for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for their performance as Lulu in Shucked. Newell's Broadway credits also include the 2018 revival of Once on This Island.
Broadway Backwards 2024 raised a record-breaking $917,651 to benefit Broadway Cares and The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center in New York City. Included in that tally was a check from presenting sponsor City National Bank, which was represented by Senior Vice President Erik Piecuch, who shared a $100,000 check with Broadway Backwards creator Robert Bartley. The 2024 total bested the record set last year by more than $152,000. The one-night-only, annual event was produced by Broadway Cares.
The Set List: See Who Sang What Songs at the 2024 Broadway Backwards Concert
The evening featured more than 100 performers, including Shoshana Bean (Hell’s Kitchen), Julie Benko (Harmony), Jonathan Bennett (Spamalot), Todd Buonopane (Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella), Tituss Burgess (Moulin Rouge! The Musical), Tony winner Norbert Leo Butz (My Fair Lady), Tony winner Len Cariou (Sweeney Todd), Bradley Dean (Here We Are), Darius de Haas (Shuffle Along), Robin de Jesús (The Boys in the Band), Jordan Fisher (Hadestown), Joshua Henry (Into the Woods), Arielle Jacobs (Here Lies Love), Likes (Back to the Future: The Musical), John McGinty (King Lear), Shoba Narayan (Aladdin), Tony winner Alex Newell (Shucked), Courtney Reed (Moulin Rouge! The Musical), Remy (Back to the Future: The Musical), Tony winner Lillias White (Hadestown), Constance Wu (Little Shop of Horrors), Tony Yazbeck (Flying Over Sunset), Chip Zien (Harmony), and the Grammy-nominated Broadway Inspirational Voices, plus Joe Chisholm, Daniel Marmion, Nicholas Park, Morgana Shaw, and Jamison Stern.
Video: Watch Julie Benko Belt Out 'Luck Be a Lady' at 2024 Broadway Backwards Concert
The artists were backed by a 13-piece orchestra. Check out photos from the event below.
Creator Bartley returned to direct and choreograph the show, joined by music supervisors Ted Arthur and Mary-Mitchell Campbell, music director Michael Gacetta, associate music directors Nicholas Connors and Nick Wilders, and choreographers and associate directors Skye Mattox and Adam Roberts. ARC’s Mark Brandon and Jarrett Reiche were the casting consultants, Christopher Tester was the director of American Sign Language, and E. Sara Barnes was the production stage manager.
The evening also featured lighting design by Carolyn Wong, sound design by Maria Renee Foucher, prop design by Jenna Snyder and Alexander Wylie, hair design by Ian Joseph, and makeup design by Megan Burke. Costume designers were Kitty Cassetti, Jess Gersz, Vanessa Leuck, Natalie Loveland, Tyler Carlton Williams, and Nicole Zausmer.
What began as a small, grassroots concert performed at The Center in 2006 has grown into a highly anticipated event. In its 17 editions, Broadway Backwards has raised more than $7.9 million for Broadway Cares and The Center.
Broadway Cares 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 theater community, since 1988 Broadway Cares has raised more than $300 million for essential services for people with HIV/AIDS and other critical illnesses across the United States.
Visit BroadwayCares.org.
Julie Benko
Jenn Colella
Casey Likes and Jelani Remy
Eric Piechou and Robert Bartley
Debra Monk
Lillias White
Tony Yazbeck and Darius de Haas
Norbert Leo Butz
Bradley Dean
Tituss Burgess
Shoba Narayan and Courtney Reed
Robin de Jesús
Arielle Jacobs
Constance Wu
John McGinty and Jordan Fisher
Len Cariou and Chip Zien
Shoshana Bean
Jonathan Bennet
Joshua Henry and Broadway Inspirational Voices
Joshua Henry and Broadway Inspirational Voices
