Spotlight: Co-Chairs
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Audra McDonald |
Kevin Ryan |
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AUDRA MCDONALD is one of the most honored actors of her generation, entertainment icon, and Covenant House International board member. |
KEVIN RYAN is a Tony, Drama Desk, and Olivier award-winning theatre producer and president emeritus of Covenant House. |
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"I love Sleep Out because you get to meet the Covenant House kids, so ‘homeless youth’ are no longer the distant, camouflaged strangers we too often pass on the streets. It just changes your worldview. It can’t not.” |
“Many of the youth at Covenant House are artists. I watched how art opened up new possibilities for them and it excited me to think of ways to make that happen more routinely. Artists, particularly on the stage, are big-hearted people committed to creating a better world together.” |
Hear what Playbill has to say about our co-chairs!
Backstage Network
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Miriam Silverman Colton Ryan Jason Ralph |
Karlee Fomalont Ruthie Fierberg Geoffrey Soffer Adam Gwon TV: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel |
Claybourne Elder Ken Dingledine TC Chou John Wascavage |
What Past Sleepers are Saying...
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“Sleep Out is intense, wonderfully eye opening, and immensely special. It isn’t about pretending to be homeless. It’s about gathering to hear the stories of these young people and witnessing the work of the Cov staff members. It’s about giving up the comfort of your bed for one night in solidarity with homeless & sexually trafficked youth in order to say 'we see you'.” -Ariana DeBose, 6-Time SleeperWish, West Side Story, Hamilton |
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“My life was profoundly changed by my first Sleep Out. I was 23 years old and in the earlier days of my career. I met a young man who was also 23 at the time. We were sitting across from each other and I was really struck by the idea that, with such a few small shifts in circumstance, we could be sitting on the opposite side of the table." - RACHEL BROSNAHAN, 11-time sleeperThe Marvelous Mrs. Maisel |
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“Sleep Out is a small challenge. It’s sweaty. It’s a little noisy. It’s buggy. But it is not homelessness. It’s an act of solidarity. It’s an exercise in perspective, and also in connection. That’s what I experienced as I bonded with these kids, with the generous and skilled Covenant House staff, and with my peers. Covenant House empowers me to find my place, use my voice, and give back.” -RUTHIE FIERBERG, 6-Time SleeperExecutive Editor, Broadway News |
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“It’s a difficult thing, to ask your friends and family for money for a cause. At first, I found it kind of scary and hard. But once you get behind the cause, I would do anything, and I would ask anyone.” - CLAYBOURNE ELDER, 6-time sleeperThe Gilded Age, Company |
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“I organize a team of casting professionals and friends every year for Sleep Out. It’s a way to represent all of the good our community stands for.” -KARLEE FOMALONT, 6-Time SleeperCasting Director, Rori Bergman Casting |
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“There’s no better way than participating in Sleep Out to expand your empathy when it comes to homelessness. You can read all the articles you want, you can donate all you want, but until you actually meet and listen to people who have experienced homelessness and who are actively working to end it, I don’t think you can fully grasp its nuances and complexities.” -MILES G. JACKSON, 4-Time SleeperStargazers, Problemista, The Other Two |
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"My first Sleep Out really did change my life." - Angela Grovey, 6-time sleeperExecutive Director, Broadway Inspirational Voices |
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“At the very first Sleep Out, in the courtyard of Covenant House, somebody started singing 'Lean on Me.' Just this impromptu singing. And the kids came to their windows. For me, it was such a symbolic moment: you sleep quiet in your bed, we got you. You stand on our shoulders, we’ll protect you. We’ll do all that we can for you.” -CAPATHIA JENKINS, 6-Time SleeperNewsies, Fame Becomes Me, The Wiz Live! |
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“As I listened to [Covenant House] kids tell their stories, it redefined what homelessness was to me. I found myself weeping... I think there’s an empathy and a compassion to Broadway. We rise to the occasion!” - Stephanie J. Block, 8-TIME SLEEPERKiss Me, Kate; Into the Woods; The Cher Show “We’re a loving and spirited crew, so we want to give some of that love back.” - SEBASTIAN ARCELUS, 6-time sleeperInto the Woods, Madame Secretary, Wicked |