It’s been nearly ten years since stars from “All My Children,” “General Hospital” and “One Life to Live” have come together for a Broadway Cares event, and now some of your favorites are set to reunite in “ABC Daytime: Back on Broadway,” a one-night-only free live streaming concert benefiting Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS as it seeks to help raise money for those impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Taking place on Thursday, February 11 at 8:00 p.m. ET via free live stream, stars from “AMC,” “GH” and “OLTL” will come together for a night of Broadway classics, heartfelt ballads, hilarious skits, and jazzy standards. Director John Dietrich, who directed each of ABC Daytime’s live stage performances benefitting Broadway Cares from 2005-2011, will return in the same capacity for this event. On Saturday, February 13, fans will also have the opportunity to take part in one-on-one virtual meet-and-greets with their favorite soap stars. Information on tickets and the lineup of special guests for that event will be announced later this month.
The star-studded “Back on Broadway” lineup is set to include performances by Bobbie Eakes (ex-Krystal), Melissa Claire Egan (ex-Annie), Vincent Irizarry (ex-David), Eva La Rue (ex-Maria) Susan Lucci (ex-Erica), Cameron Mathison (ex-Ryan), Eden Riegel (ex-Bianca), Chrishell Stause (ex-Amanda) and Walt Willey (ex-Jackson) from “All My Children”; Kristen Alderson (ex-Starr), BethAnn Fuenmayor (ex-Talia), Kathy Brier (ex-Marcie), Kassie DePaiva (ex-Blair), David Gregory (ex-Ford), Renée Elise Goldsberry (ex-Evangeline), Catherine Hickland (ex-Lindsay), Mark Lawson (ex-Brody), Hillary B. Smith (ex-Nora), Jason Tam (ex-Markko) and Brittany Underwood (ex-Langston) from “One Life To Live”; and Bradford Anderson (Spinelli), Brandon Barash (ex-Johnny) and Anthony Geary (ex-Luke) from “General Hospital.”
“This event is truly one of a kind,” Broadway Cares Executive Director Tom Viola said. “We are so thankful to the stars from ABC Daytime for joining us again as we relive moments from this delightful tradition, while helping to provide lifesaving medication, healthy meals and emergency support to those struggling during this ongoing pandemic.”
Beginning in 2005 as a one-night benefit concert to celebrate “AMC’s” 35th Anniversary, the “ABC Daytime Salutes Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS” event ran until 2011, the same year ABC canceled “AMC” and “OLTL.” Over its seven-year run, the event raised $1.85 million.
“It was such an incredible privilege and joy to join my fellow co-stars to perform in the seven “ABC Daytime Salutes” concerts to benefit Broadway Cares/ Equity Fights AIDS,” said Lucci. “There are no fans like ABC Daytime fans. Their love and support continue to astonish us. We can’t wait to share these special performances with them and help raise money for so many in need during this difficult time.”
The event will stream live for free over several outlets, giving fans ample opportunity to watch, have fun, and sing along. First up will be via broadwaycares.org and Broadway Cares’ YouTube Channel. Additionally, the event will be available to stream courtesy of the eight ABC Owned Television stations and their 32 connected TV apps which are accessible via Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV, Roku, and each of the eight stations’ websites, including abc7NY.com. With its more than 8.2 million subscribers, the “Good Morning America” Facebook page will also provide access to the live stream.
Additional details on each event will be available as we get closer to the special live streams.