Dan Savage, Nellie McKay, Andrea McArdle Headline BETTER & BETTER

By: Jun. 07, 2011
Enter Your Email to Unlock This Article

Plus, get the best of BroadwayWorld delivered to your inbox, and unlimited access to our editorial content across the globe.




Existing user? Just click login.

Andrea McArdle, Nellie McKay, and the band BETTY are the musical performers leading the bill at BETTER & BETTER, an event benefiting the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network at The Gramercy Theatre at 7:30 PM on Thursday, June 23.

Hosted by the comedian Alec Mapa ("Ugly Betty") and also starring Mimi Imfurst and Frank DeCaro, the evening will also feature remarks by sex advice columnist Dan Savage, who created the "It Gets Better" video campaign. Tickets for BETTER & BETTER are $20 - $40, available online at www.SpinCycleNYC.com or by calling 212-352-3101. The Gramercy Theatre is located at 127 East 23rd Street at Lexington Avenue. VIP tickets are available for $100, which includes a post-show champagne reception with performers.

Dan Savage is the author of the syndicated sex advice column Savage Love, and frequently appears as a commentator on gay and lesbian issues on television. He is the editorial director of the weekly Seattle newspaper The Stranger, and is the author of five books including It Gets Better: Coming Out, Overcoming Bullying and Creating a Life Worth Living and The Kid, which was recently turned into a hit Off-Broadway musical.

Andrea McArdle rose to fame originating the title role in Annie, for which she received a Tony nomination. Her other Broadway productions includes Les Miserables, Starlight Express, Beauty and the Beast, and State Fair.

Nellie McKay released her debut CD Get Away from Me to Universal acclaim in 2005. Her four successive albums include her most recent, Home Sweet Mobile Home. McKay made her Broadway debut in Threepenny Opera in 2007.

Alternative rock group BETTY, which consists of Alyson Palmer and sisters Amy and Elizabeth Ziff, have released eight albums, the most recent being Light & Dark. The band starred in its autobiographical off-Broadway show BETTY Rules, directed by Michael Grief.

Alec Mapa made his Broadway debut in M. Butterfly. He is best known for his role as Suzuki St. Pierre on Ugly Betty as well as roles on the TV series Half & Half and Some of My Best Friends. Earlier this year, Mapa was a co-host on the Logo-TV show The Gossip Queens.

Mimi Imfurst appeared on the most recent season of RuPaul's Drag Race. Last year, Mimi was the opening act for Kathy Griffin at Milwaukee Gay Pride. This August, her new girl group Xelle will open for Ke$ha in Philadelphia, where her drag cabaret show The Dollhouse Revue has become a long-running hit.

Author and comic Frank DeCaro hosts his own Live National talk show The Frank DeCaro Show every weekday on Sirius/XM. For nearly seven years he co-wrote and hosted the popular Out at the Movies segments on the Emmy Award-winning Daily Show with Jon Stewart on Comedy Central. He also appeared regularly as a panelist on the TV game show I've Got A Secret on GSN.

GLSEN works with educators, policy makers, community leaders and students on the urgent need to address anti-LGBT behavior and bias in schools. GLSEN strives to protect students from bullying and harassment, to advance comprehensive safe schools laws and policies, to empower principals to make their schools safer, and to build the skills of educators to teach respect for all people. GLSEN is one of the recipients of funds raised by the It Gets Better campaign.



Videos