Yesterday was the annual Broadway Flea Market. I was very disturbed to find out it would be the day before my first rehearsal, because Flea Market Day tends to be incredibly exhausting. For those working the market, it begins at 8:30AM, and ends officially around 6:00PM, but then you have to clean up, and if you work the whole thing it basically means standing outdoors for 10 hours straight. And carrying heavy things up and down stairs over and over at the beginning and end.
But it was a great day, and for the most part the weather cooperated. As always I worked the Phantom table. We raised something in excess of $7,000 for BCEFA, not counting our auction package (didn’t hear how much that went for). Here’s part of our table. That’s me on the far right.
The photo is from BroadwayWorld. BCEFA had their own photographer take a much fancier portrait of all of our people, but I haven’t found it online yet.
One of the things I enjoy most about the Flea Market is that it’s like a real-life Facebook. You stand in one spot all day, and everyone you know passes by. You fill each other in on everything that’s going on in your lives, and then move on to the next person.
The absolute quote of the day, however, came from a member of the Broadway Cares staff, who marveled at how Phantom finds items to sell, and various ways to raise money: “Nothing goes to waste! You guys are like the Native Americans, using every part of the buffalo!”