The Actors Fund, the national human services organization for everyone in performing arts and entertainment, announced today that SiriusXM Broadway host Seth Rudetsky and his husband, producer James Wesley, will produce daily online mini-shows, entitled “Stars In The House”, featuring stars of stage and screen singing and performing live (from home!) to promote support for The Fund’s services for those most vulnerable to the effects of Coronavirus (COVID-19).
Stars In The House will kick off TONIGHT with Kelli O’Hara joining Seth & James at 8PM ET/5PM PT on The Actors Fund YouTube channel, as well as Playbill and BroadwayWorld.com.
New shows will be produced DAILY at the traditional theater times of 2 and 8 pm ET. Each star will be singing a mix of their hit songs and/or something unexpected. And between each song, Seth will interview the star as he does on SiriusXM, leading them to give fun, inside stories about their careers. Both the star and Seth will encourage people watching to donate at ActorsFund.org/Donate and James will be giving updates from The Fund as well as giving shout-outs to people donating in real time.
“Our main concern is raising spirits and helping The Fund help those who are suffering,” Seth said. “We’re hoping that everyone watching will not only enjoy the amazing singing and the inside Broadway stories, but also donate to ActorsFund.org/Donate. And, because social distancing is so important right now, every star will be singing from his/her own home!”
Confirmed celebrities include: Iain Armitage, Sara Bareilles, Shoshana Bean, Laura Benanti, Sierra Boggess, Wayne Brady, Betty Buckley, Laura Bell Bundy, Andréa Burns, Kerry Butler, Norbert Leo Butz, Ann Hampton Callaway, Liz Callaway, Carolee Carmello, Kristin Chenoweth, Gavin Creel, Melissa Errico, Raul Esparza, Christopher Fitzgerald, Kathryn Gallagher, Ana Gasteyer, Mandy Gonzalez, Justin Guarini, Debbie Gravitte, James Monroe Iglehart, Rachel Bay Jones, Jeremy Jordan, Marc Kudish, Judy Kuhn, Anika Larsen, Linda Lavin, Beth Leavel, Telly Leung, Beth Malone, Melissa Manchester, Lesli Margherita, Lindsay Mendez, Idina Menzel, Varla Jean Merman, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Jessie Mueller, Julia Murney, Rosie O’Donnell, Kelli O'Hara, Christine Pedi, Alice Ripley, Adam Pascal, Faith Prince, Keala Settle, Marc Shaiman, Kate Shindle, Jennifer Simard, Elizabeth Stanley, Patrick Wilson, Marissa Jaret Winokur, Scott Wittman, and many more to be announced!
Added Seth: “Yes, we have to social distance, but the good news is, some celebs live together! So we have some fabulous couples performing due concerts!”
Confirmed celebrity couples include Sebastian Arcelus and Stephanie J. Block, Will Chase and Ingrid Michaelson, Jen Cody and Hunter Foster, Jenn Colella and Chilina Kennedy, Colin Donnell and Patti Murrin, Santino and Jessica Fontana, Andy Karl and Orfeh, Liz Larsen and Sal Viviano, Audra McDonald and Will Swenson, Steven Pasquale and Phillipa Soo.
“Now more than ever, people in our community are depending on The Fund’s vital services,” said Fund Chairman Brian Stokes Mitchell. “It’s critical that we be there for those in need, in particular our seniors and the immunocompromised individuals who need our help, as well as those in financial distress.”
James added, “Seth and I started working on this idea Saturday morning and, because artists have such huge hearts, we had dozens of amazing performers lined up within hours! We’re not the most tech savvy, at all, but we spent Sunday trying various sites and we think we found a great way to put on a great concert. And, PS, we’re committed to doing this until Broadway re-opens.”
Stars In The House will air twice daily at 2 pm and 8 pm, and can be viewed online at youtube.com/theactorsfund as well as Playbill.com and BroadwayWorld.com, beginning Monday, March 16 at 8 PM ET.
As the situation with Coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to evolve, The Actors Fund recently announced a temporary transition to online and phone-based services, which remain available for everyone in the performing arts and entertainment community.
These services include: Artists Health Insurance Resource Center, The Career Center, Housing Resources, Addiction & Recovery, HIV/AIDS and Senior Services, Counseling and Emergency Financial Assistance, as well as The Friedman Health Center for the Performing Arts in New York City.
To make a tax-deductible donation to The Actors Fund, visit www.actorsfund.org/Donate.
The Actors Fund is a national human services organization that fosters stability and resiliency, and provides a safety net for performing arts and entertainment professionals over their lifespan. Through offices in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, The Fund serves everyone in film, theater, television, music, opera, radio and dance with programs including social services and emergency financial assistance, health care and insurance counseling, housing, and secondary employment and training services.
Seth Rudetsky has been helping raise money for the Actors Fund since 2001 when he began his yearly concerts that included Dreamgirls with Audra McDonald, Heather Headley, Lillias White and Billy Porter, Funny Girl with Sutton Foster and Idina Menzel, Chess with Josh Groban and Adam Pascal and more. James Wesley and Seth have been married since 2012 and have been working together constantly on projects to raise money and awareness for a number of social justice organizations. In 2016, they formed their 501c3 called Your Kids, Our Kids with its initial mission being to directly help one of the most vulnerable populations in our society -- children -- through creative means. Voices for the Voiceless: Stars for Foster Kids is one of their yearly projects, raising millions for You Gotta Believe which helps find families for older foster youth. These concerts have starred celebs like Tina Fey, Rosie Perez and Chita Rivera. In June of 2016, they organized Broadway for Orlando in the wake of the massacre at the Pulse Nightclub. Uniting the Broadway community to sing “What the World Needs Now is Love” (in the style of “We Are the World”), the single featured over 50 Broadway stars like Bernadette Peters, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Sara Bareilles and charted on Billboard’s Hot 100, selling over 50,000 copies and raising over $100,000 for the Orlando LGBT community. On January 20, 2017, they presented the first edition of Concert for America, which premiered at The Town Hall in NYC, raising money and awareness for civil rights organizations, as well as infusing Americans with hope and inspiration and the desire to become more active citizens. To date, there have been 13 editions performed around the country, including in Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, and Atlanta. James and Seth are the proud recipients of the 2016 National Leadership Award from the LGBTQ Task Force for their work on Broadway for Orlando’s What the World Needs Now is Love. In 2018, Seth and James also received the NYCLU Liberty Award for their contributions to the LGBT community.
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