Colm and Ramin

Hurricane Sandy Telethon

The Today Show's Matt Lauer will host "Hurricane Sandy: Coming Together" tonight at 8 PM on the networks of NBC Universal.  Donations will be go to the American Red Cross to help relief efforts.  The concert will feature Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, Jon Stewart, Brian Williams, Christina Aguilera, Billy Joel, Jimmy Fallon, and Sting.

Tig Notaro Live

Tig Notaro's CD Live will be available on Louis CK's website starting 05 October. Part of the proceeds will go to breast cancer charities.

Daily Heroes

Givenik Ambassador Reeve Carney from Spiderman Turn Off the Dark announces the Heroes Initiative.

The Force of Good is Strong with this One

Go to Stand up to Cancer to donate.

Broadway Barks 13

Broadway Barks is this Saturday, 09 July. Scheduled to present the dogs and cats from New York City animal shelters are the following Broadway performers: Sutton Foster, Edie Falco, Victoria Clark, Heidi Blickenstaff, Yul Vazquez, Jackie Hoffman, Nikki M. James, Michael McGrath, Patina Miller, Michael Mulheren, Brad Oscar, Andrew Rannells, Norbert Leo Butz, Bobby Cannavale, Will Swenson, and Joel Grey.

The adopt-a-thon will be held from 3:30 to 6:30 PM.

Happy 4th!

Celebrate the 4th of July by watching Lt. Dan Band: For The Common Good documentary starring Lt. Dan himself, Gary Sinise. You can watch the film online starting July 4th until the end of the month. One out of every 4 dollars will be donated to the Gary Sinise Foundation, which helps the military, veterans and their families.

Here's Stephen Colbert interviewing him last week on The Colbert Report.

The Colbert Report
Get More: Colbert Report Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,Video Archive

Support the troops! Thank you for your service.

Water for Everyone

Dear readers, please consider making a donation to Charity: Water in honor of yesterday's Earth Day.

The Normal Heart

The Normal Heart starts beating on Broadway April 19. Opening night is on 27 April. Set in New York City during the AIDS crisis in the 1980s, the star-studded cast includes Ellen Barkin, John Benjamin Hickey, Lee Pace, Joe Mantello, and Jim Parsons.

If you LIKE their Facebook page and fans reach 10,000, Givenik will donate $10,000 to Freedom to Marry.

Today is Saturday. Yesterday was Friday.

It all started after Stephen Colbert auctioned off his "arted-up" portrait for Donors Choose, fetching a price of $26,000. He said his Best Friend Forever for Six Months, Jimmy Fallon, offered to match that amount. Mr. Fallon claimed that he never said such a thing, and challenged viewers to raise the money until this past Friday, 01 April. If they succeed, Mr. Colbert will go on his show to sing Rebecca Black's Friday.

And perform they did! Bravo to these two guys, the other performers, and especially the generous donors! You have certainly helped students and teachers in need.

Hands for Japan

Actor, social and environmental activist Edward Norton is helping raise money for victims of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami through Crowdrise. Through Hands for Japan, the Ogawa family will match all donations to the Red Cross, with a goal of raising $1 million by the 11th of April.

Again, please click here to donate. Check out the really cool and clever website. And you get hilarious emails, too. It makes donating even more fun.
You can also continue to text "redcross" to 90999 to make a $10 donation.

P.S. I Love You

,
Elena Desserich was a brave little 6 year old who battled inoperable brain cancer. She passed away in August 2007. In the time she had left, she made drawings and wrote notes to her parents and little sister. Elena left them around the house for her family to find. Her parents Keith and Brooke share these and their personal memories in a book called Notes Left Behind. Proceeds from the book go to The Cure Starts Now.

Sweet Charity

Duncan Sheik is doing a good deed. While promoting his North American tour for his new album Whisper House, he is working with Ebay Giving Works to auction off these Meet and Greet packages to benefit Amnesty International USA:

• Vista Theater in Los Angeles, CA on 19 February.
• The Triple Door in Seattle, WA on 28 February.
• The Berklee Performance Center, Boston, MA on 13 March.

The package includes 2 tickets and backstage passes and 2 autographed copies of Whisper House. You'll meet Mr. Sheik before he performs.

Songwriters (or budding musicians), you can bid on a one hour personal songwriting lesson with Duncan in the Sony Music offices in the Big Apple. If you don't live in NYC, you have to provide your own transportation and lodging.

If you can't meet and greet Duncan Sheik, he is also auctioning off the following signed memorabilia, with 100% of proceeds also going to Amnesty International.

1. Lyric Sheet and CD
2. Photographic Print and CD
3. T-shirt and CD
4. CDs

Happy Valentine's Day to all! Sing. Dance. Laugh. Love. Do good.

The Flood

If you wish to help victims of Myanmar's cyclone, click here for a list of agencies accepting donations. The loss of lives is mind-boggling and heartbreaking.

ASTEP

Artists Striving to End Poverty (ASTEP) is a non-profit organization founded in 2006 by music director and orchestrator Mary Mitchell Campbell. In collaboration with Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids, artists go to poverty or AIDS-stricken areas and lead workshops or camps for children. They already have an arts camp program in Homestead, Florida, an arts-based orphanage for "untouchable" children in India, and AIDS awareness projects in South Africa. According to Playbill,

"ASTEP's major public presence in New York City has been its ArtCents Benefit concerts that feature the work of emerging songwriters — as well as Broadway singers showing off their pop sides — in intimate evenings at which patrons show up with a jar of change for admission."

If you're looking for a meaningful way to spend your summer, you can volunteer overseas or in the NYC area.