Thousands of Broadway fans, countless theatrical treasures and dozens of Broadway stars lit up New York City’s Theater District – and ushered in a record-breaking fundraising total – when the Broadway Flea Market & Grand Auction returned Sunday, September 22, 2024.

The 38th annual edition of the biggest day for Broadway fans, produced by and benefiting Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, raised $1,421,675, shattering the record set last year.

The day featured 64 shows and theatrical organizations represented at tables, 156 silent auction and 69 live auction lots offering once-in-a-lifetime experiences and rare memorabilia, and 45 of Broadway’s brightest stars signing autographs and taking photos with fans. Attendees were also delighted with starry surprise encounters across the Broadway Flea, including Ana Gasteyer and Michael Urie making a royal visit at the Once Upon a Mattress table, Auliʻi Cravalho saying “Wilkommen” at Cabaret’s post, Hadestown stars Jordan Fisher and Maia Reficco “living it up” at their show’s table and celebrity couple David Burtka and Neil Patrick Harris, who hosted their own table filled with costumes and show memorabilia. Plus, The Outsiders cast came ready to rumble, with cast members Dan Berry, Tilly Evans-Krueger, RJ Higton, Ryo Kamibayashi, Sky Lakota-Lynch, Sarahgrace Mariani, Emma Pittman, Melody Rose, Jason Schmidt and Victor Carrillo Tracey making special guest appearances at their table. 

Among the endless singular and sensational items discovered at Broadway Flea Market & Grand Auction tables were the actual stage door from Broadway’s Barrymore Theatre signed by the entire cast of this season’s Our Town; a plunger used onstage and signed by Bebe Neuwirth in Cabaret; Mary Todd Lincoln boots worn onstage and signed by Cole Escola in Oh, Mary!; and gravel from the stage of this year’s Tony Award-winning Best Musical The Outsiders.

The Broadway shows that filled the streets of the Theater District with stage-used props, costumes, posters, Playbills and more were & Juliet; Aladdin; Back to the Future: The Musical; Cabaret; Hadestown; Hamilton; Hell’s Kitchen; Illinoise; The Lion King; MJ; The Notebook; Oh, Mary!; Maybe Happy Ending; Moulin Rouge! The Musical; Once Upon a Mattress; The Outsiders; Six; Suffs; Water for Elephants; Wicked and Off-Broadway’s Little Shop of Horrors and Titanique. A special Curtain Call table hosted unique mementos from shows that recently ended their runs, including A Beautiful Noise, the Neil Diamond Musical; Company; The Phantom of the Opera; SpongeBob SquarePants; Sweeney Todd and more.

The tables at this year’s market raised a record $694,282, led by perennial top fundraiser the Association of Theatrical Press Agents and Managers (ATPAM) with an all-time table fundraising record of $95,733. 

The Top 10 tables were:

Association of Theatrical Press Agents and Managers	$95,733
The Outsiders	$55,619
Hadestown	$44,258
Telecharge and the Shubert Organization	$33,918
Moulin Rouge! The Musical	$27,083
Suffs	$24,559
United Scenic Artists	$23,830
The Notebook	$20,981
Directors and Choreographers Society	$19,575
Once Upon a Mattress	$17,540

The day concluded with the exhilarating live auction, which raised a record-breaking $524,400.

The most popular live auction lot was a luxurious business-class trip to London, courtesy of Broadway Cares’ official airline United, and tickets to three West End shows of the winner’s choosing. When the auctioneer’s gavel fell, the lot raised a spectacular $26,000.

That was closely followed by the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to “Razzle Dazzle ‘em” with a walk-on role in Chicago, which raised $20,000. Other “Popular” lots were an exclusive screening of the highly anticipated Wicked film at $16,000; the original and only crucifix ever to appear on stage in the first Broadway run of Les Misérables at $12,000; and the opportunity to make a “larger than life” onstage debut in & Juliet at $12,000.

Opening night tickets to 14 of this season’s most buzzworthy new shows raised a staggering $60,900. Faith was found when tickets to Tammy Faye – including an exclusive invitation to the after party – topped the opening night lots, raising $8,500. The show was followed by $8,000 each for the opening night tickets and party passes for Othello and Our Town.

Charismatic auctioneer Nick Nicholson of Heritage Auctions drove the bidding to new heights, alongside host Bryan Batt, Broadway, film and television favorite.

Earlier in the day in Shubert Alley, Todd Buonopane, Jen Cody and Michael Goddard returned to host the silent auction, which raised $184,488. The top-selling lot was a pair of Converse sneakers worn onstage and signed by Tony Award winner Daniel Radcliffe in Merrily We Roll Along, which raised $11,500. Other top lots included a Rent guitar signed by original cast members Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp; Sutton Foster’s stage-worn skirt from Sweeney Todd; and a Merrily We Roll Along poster signed by Jonathan Groff, Lindsay Mendez and Radcliffe.

In addition to exploring the trove of treasures at the tables and the live and silent auctions, fans met and mingled with their favorite Broadway stars at the Autograph Table and Photo Booth, which raised $24,891.

The Broadway favorites who signed memorabilia and snapped photos with fans were Nick Adams, Sonya Balsara, Danny Burstein, James Carpinello, Gabriela Carrillo, Wayne Duvall, Biko Eisen-Martin, Eden Espinosa, Andrew Barth Feldman, Jordan Fisher, Santino Fontana, Jasmine Forsberg, Julie Halston, Melora Hardin, Dorian Harewood, Jessica Hecht, Grey Henson, Vincent Jamal Hooper, Sarah Hyland, Amber Iman, Elijah Rhea Johnson, Sky Lakota-Lynch, Storm Lever, Kimberly Marable, Andrea Martin, Isabelle McCalla, Donna Murphy, Paul Alexander Nolan, Emma Pittman, Maryann Plunkett, Maya Reficco, Michael Rishawn, Jasmine Amy Rogers, Didi Romero, Marissa Rosen, Adi Roy, Stark Sands, Jason Schmidt, Kyle Selig, Helen J. Shen, Dennis Stowe, Max von Essen, Khaila Wilcoxon, Joy Woods and Kara Young. The effervescent Jim Caruso, host of Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland served as the Autograph Table and Photo Booth emcee.

In addition to the theatrical treasures from Broadway and beyond offered in the theater district, special “Fleabay” items offered virtually through Broadway Cares’ eBay store offered unique collectibles for fans who were not able to attend in person. FleaBay raised a record $18,505.

The Broadway Flea Market & Grand Auction is one of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS’ longest-held traditions. The event had its humble beginnings more than three decades ago with two tables set up by cast members and stage managers of A Chorus Line outside their stage door in Shubert Alley. Now, the Broadway Flea Market & Grand Auction is one of the most anticipated events of the season for theater lovers.

Last year’s event raised a record $1,237,179. Since 1987, the 38 editions of the event have raised $20.2 million.

The Broadway Flea Market & Grand Auction is supported by Broadway Cares corporate sponsors The New York Times and United Airlines.

Photos by Angela of York, Michael Hull and Rebecca J Michelson
Video by Víctor Rodríguez and Josh Drake; Video editing by Josh Drake