Equal Pride hosts bash to celebrate Pride Month, magazine covers featuring Broadway stars
NEW YORK CITY (WABC) -- June is Pride Month, a celebration and acceptance of the LGBTQ community, and on Monday night, there was no shortage of well-known celebrities at a party focused on Broadway.
The Out and Advocate Pride Cover Party: Pride of Broadway honored members of the LGBTQ+ and allied theater community.
It was hosted by Equal Pride, the publisher of 'Out' and 'The Advocate' magazines. They put together the bash to celebrate the start of Pride Month and its new covers, which feature two Broadway stars.
The editor of 'Out,' Daniel Reynolds, talked about his publication and Monday night's event.
"The covers of 'Out' and 'The Advocate' are celebrations of two of its biggest stars right now Jonathan Groff and Wayne Brady. So, we're excited to have him here at the event and to really celebrate the Great White Way, this is really a community that uplifts LGBTQ folks. We'd love to see them," Reynolds said.
Reynolds says, 'Merrily We Rolled Along,' starring Jonathan Groff, and 'The Wiz,' starring Wayne Brady, are both must-see shows.
"It's surreal to be standing in front of a picture of myself on the cover of Out," said Jonathan Groff, who is nominated for a Tony for 'Merrily We Roll Along.' "As a closeted teenager in Pennsylvania I never imagined this would happen. I'm super prideful and super honored.
Brady is on the cover the The Advocate, and currently plays the wizard in 'The Wiz.'
"'The Wiz' is a moment... loud and energetic moment and I was so proud to be a part of it," Brady said.
While this is a celebration of pride, Reynolds says the community needs to stand strong.
"We have seen so many attacks, politics, trans youth drag bans, it is so important to be out there in the streets waving our rainbow flags. We're here, we're queer," Reynolds said.
WABC-TV's Sam Champion, who served as the event's emcee, echoed that sentiment. He's concerned young people may take the rights they have today for granted.
"I'm worried that this generation that had it, received it, doesn't understand how important it is to fight for it and I hope they do because we are back in the fight for our lives," Champion said.
Pride Month is a celebration and also a time for advocacy for the LGBTQ community. It all culminates on June 30.
Sam Champion and Lauren Glassberg will host the New York City Gay Pride March.
Coverage of the parade kicks off on Channel 7 at noon on June 30.
