The 34th annual “Jane Elissa Extravaganza” took place at the Marriott Marquis in Times Square on Monday, November 18th. This benefit for the Jane Elissa Endowment Fund aids leukemia and cancer research. It was founded in 1989, when Jane Elissa’s mother was diagnosed with leukemia.
The benefit’s committee consists of Annie Albarian, M.D., Michael James Caldwell, Maria Colon, AnneMarie Donelin, Terry Jacobs Robin Kaufman, Steve Kaufman, Jennifer Nason-Brown, and Debra Rosenstock.
This was an intimate event which featured The Boy Band Project , comprised of such talented performers as Travis Nesbitt , Sam Harvey, Nic Metcalf, and Jonah Mayor, as well as two-time Tony winner Dale Badway (the president of the Theatre World Awards ), the iconic Megan Thomas, and Ashlyn Combs, among many others. If that weren’t enough, this benefit featured songs from three upcoming theatrical New York City productions such as “Dear Ruth,” “Dark of the Moon,” and “The Monarch Butterfly.” The Boy Band Project stole the show with their boy band numbers, where they tipped their hats to the Backstreet Boys and NSYNC.
It was neat that they included Jane Elissa in one of their numbers, and they serenaded her in a true boy band fashion. Dale Badway praised Jane Elissa for being a “great woman” and that this event was a “great cause.” “I love doing this every year,” Badway admitted.
Badway tipped his hat to the slain “General Hospital” actor Johnny Wactor with a powerho.