On June 28, Playbill presented its Pride Spectacular concert in celebration of Pride and the culmination of the 2020 Pride Plays festival.
The concert special featured iconic musical numbers that highlight LGBTQIA+ stories in musical theatre sung by members of the Broadway LGBTQIA+ community and its allies—as well as appearances from theatre greats. Watch highlights in the video above.
In addition to songs from well-known musicals like La Cage aux Folles, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, The Prom, and Rent, the show highlighted songs from contemporary works like the Pulitzer Prize-winning A Strange Loop and West End hit Everybody’s Talking About Jamie. Playbill also showcased tunes from musicals aiming for larger productions.
As featured in the video above: “Runnin’” from Beau by Douglas Lyons and Ethan D. Pakchar, “Ignoring Truth” from Eighty-Sixed by Sam Salmond, “Woman Is” from Lempicka by Matt Gould and Carson Kreitzer, “Invisible Thread” from Witness Uganda by Gould and Griffin Matthews, and the new original song “On the Shoulders of Giants” by the Spectacular’s Grammy and Emmy–winning music director John McDaniel.
The one-night-only event streamed free as a benefit for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Thanks to matching sponsor the Seaport District NYC, all donations up to $10,000 were matched dollar for dollar.
The full cast is comprised of Jelani Alladin, Alexandra Billings, Billy Bustamante, Jenn Colella, DeMarius Copes, Wilson Cruz, Robin De Jesús, Lea DeLaria, Brandon Victor Dixon, Eden Espinosa, Niani Feelings, Harvey Fierstein, Gaby Gamache, Celia Rose Gooding, Matt Gould, James Harkness, Curtis Holland, Cheyenne Jackson, Jawan M. Jackson, Michael R. Jackson, Francis Jue, Andrew Keenan-Bolger, Caitlin Kinnunen, L Morgan Lee, Raymond J. Lee, Matthew Lopez, Rick Lyon, Cheech Manohar, Matt Manuel, Griffin Matthews, Anastacia McCleskey, John McDaniel, Michael McElroy, John McGinty, Gerry McIntyre, Chris Medlin, Ezra Menas, Paul HeeSang Miller, John Cameron Mitchell, Mary Kate Morrissey, Javier Muñoz, Alan Muraoka, Shakina Nayfack, Ariana Notartomaso, Diana Oh, Ken Page, Lauren Patten, Clint Ramos, Jelani Remy, Matt Rodin, Jai Rodriguez, Mj Rodriguez, Mars Rucker, Sushma Saha, George Salazar, Miriam Shor, Jason Tam, John Tartaglia, Sonya Tayeh, Sergio Trujillo, Vishal Vaidya, Nik Walker, BD Wong, Iain Young,and Brittany Zeinstra. These artists performed with the permission of the performers’ unions via Theatre Authority, Inc.
The 90-minute musical evening included accompaniment by Dan Berkery, Justin Craig, Charity Wicks, Matt Gould, McDaniel, and Meg Zervoulis and appearances by Matthew Lopez, Clint Ramos, Sonya Tayeh, and Sergio Trujillo. Executive produced by Ruthie Fierberg and produced by Michael Urie, Doug Nevin, and Nick Mayo of Pride Plays the special featured video editing and production by Roberto Araujo, songs mixed and edited by Michael Croiter.
Thanks to our presenting sponsors Gilead and Nissan, as well as featured sponsors Ketel One, Geico, and Audible, audiences tuned in to the complementary broadcast. Don’t forget to donate to Broadway Cares!
You can also purchase Playbill Pride mementos here.
