Liza Minnelli & Jane Fonda ~ Easter Bonnet Raises $3,402,147 for BC/EFA

Liza looks beautiful, look at those eyes!

The 23rd Annual Easter Bonnet Competition, which took place on Monday and Tuesday afternoon at Broadway's Minskoff Theatre, raised an astounding $3,402,147 from the 58 participating Broadway, Off-Broadway, and National Tour companies to benefit Broadway Cares/ Equity Fights AIDS. Since it began in 1987, the 23 editions of the competition have raised over $39 million for BC/EFA.The company of "33 Variations" took top honors for bonnet presentation, bonnet design, and top Broadway fundraiser.Doris Eaton Travis at age 105 appeared with the cast of "Billy Elliot," teaching Greg Jbara, Liz Pearce and the corps of young, wannabe ballerinas “Ballin' the Jack,” a number she performed over 80 years ago. Travis made her Broadway debut at the age of 14 in 1918 in the legendary Ziegfeld Follies at The New Amsterdam Theatre. Other higlights included:
Liza Minnelli’s surprise performance of “New York, New York” during the opening number entitled “Broadway Don't Bring Me No Bad News.”The cast of "Mary Poppins" presented “I Think We Need a Tap Number Here,” showing how adding a tap number to "West Side Story," "Jersey Boys," "Wicked," and "South Pacific" would ensure a long run.After 9 year absence at the competition, the cast of "Chicago" re-entered the fray with a hilarious take-off of “The Cell Block Tango,” entitled “The Chopping Block Tango” in which characters from "Spamalot," "Gypsy," "Young Frankenstein," "Hairspray," "Spring Awakening," and "Grease" sing of the end of their respective runs on Broadway.The "Avenue Q" presentation, “You're Nothing Without Me,” reunited current cast members Benjamin Schrader and Howie Michael Smith along with “Rod” with original cast member John Tartaglia.Trevor Braun (Flounder in "The Little Mermaid") rebuffed his agent's suggestions that he audition for age-appropriate roles in "Billy Elliot," "Oliver," and "13" and instead auditioned for the upcoming revival of "Dreamgirls" with a performance of “And I Telling You I'm Not Going.”Jane Fonda leading the cast of "33 Variations" in a “Voluntary Rehearsal” which, in fact, becomes a 80's style “Jane Fonda's Workout” pre-show warm-up.