''Stars in the House'' is a daily

live streamed Livestreaming, live-streaming, or live streaming is the streaming of video or audio in real time or near real time. While often referred to simply as ''streaming'', the real-time nature of livestreaming differentiates it from other non-live ...

web series A web series (also known as webseries, short-form series, and web show) is a series of short scripted or non-scripted online videos, generally in episodic form, released on the Internet (i.e. World Wide Web), which first emerged in the late 1 ...

created and hosted by

Seth Rudetsky Seth Dennis Rudetsky is an American musician, actor, writer and radio host. He currently is the host of ''Seth's Big Fat Broadway'' and ''Seth Speaks'' on Sirius/XM Satellite Radio's '' On Broadway''. The show focuses on Rudetsky's knowledge of ...

and his husband James Wesley to support

The Actors Fund ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The' ...

and its services. Created in the wake of the

COVID-19 pandemic in the United States On December 31, 2019, China announced the discovery of a cluster of pneumonia cases in Wuhan. The first American case was reported on January 20, and United States Department of Health and Human Services, Health and Human Services Secreta ...

, ''Stars in the House'' debuted in March 2020. ''Stars in the House'' is a combination of music, community, and education (from

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

Chief Medical correspondent Dr. Jon LaPook). Originally airing twice daily (at Broadway showtimes, 2 PM and 8 PM), it now streams daily at 8 PM ET across multiple platforms, including

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

. The show features musical performances by stars remotely from their home and conversations with Seth and James between each tune. Viewers can also donate to the charity and interact with guests in real time. ''Stars in the House'' raised over $50,000 in the first four days of airing and plans to stream daily until

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

re-opens. They have raised a total of $1,074,395 as of September 12, 2021. As of March 8, 2021, they have also raised $203,337 for other 501c3s including

The Trevor Project The Trevor Project is an American nonprofit organization founded in 1998. Focused on suicide prevention efforts for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth, they offer a toll-free telephone number where con ...

, You Gotta Believe,

NAACP Legal Defense Fund The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (NAACP LDF, the Legal Defense Fund, or LDF) is an American civil rights organization and law firm based in New York City. LDF is wholly independent and separate from the NAACP. Although LDF ca ...

, Cats4CovidRelief, Broadway at CBST, Greater Orlando Performing Arts Relief, Cancer Support Community,

New York Gay Men's Chorus The New York City Gay Men's Chorus is a choral organization in New York City that has been presenting an annual concert season for more than four decades. History The New York City Gay Men's Chorus (NYCGMC) was founded in August 1980 by Ed Weav ...

, Youth Pride Chorus, Tonewall, Bullets to Books, and Waterkeeper Alliance.

Development

On March 12, 2020,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Andrew Cuomo Andrew Mark Cuomo ( , ; born December 6, 1957) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 until his resignation in 2021. A member of the Democratic Party and son of former governor Mario Cuomo, ...

and

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Bill de Blasio Bill de Blasio (; born Warren Wilhelm Jr., May 8, 1961; later Warren de Blasio-Wilhelm) is an American politician who was the List of mayors of New York City, 109th mayor of New York City, mayor of New York City from 2014 to 2021. A member of t ...

enacted new restrictions to try to stop the spread of the

Coronavirus Coronaviruses are a group of related RNA viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans and birds, they cause respiratory tract infections that can range from mild to lethal. Mild illnesses in humans include some cases of the comm ...

, which at the time had already infected nearly 100 people. One of the restrictions was banning most gatherings of more than 500 people, which included all Broadway theaters. Quickly after, states like

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

and

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

enacted similar guidelines. With thousands of actors instantly out of work and stuck at home, Rudetsky and Wesley came up with the idea as a way to both raise spirits and help those suffering. The first show aired on Monday, March 16, with

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

winner

Kelli O'Hara Kelli Christine O'Hara (born April 16, 1976) is an American actress and singer, most known for her work on the Broadway and opera stages. An eight-time Tony Award nominee, O'Hara won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her perfor ...

Episodes

A complete list of archived episodes is available on The Actor's Fund's YouTube channel.

Segments

"Plays in the House"

''Plays in the House'' are special episodes of ''Stars in the House,'' one-night only live readings of plays featuring the original performers. ''Plays in the House'' streams every Wednesday and Saturday at 2pm EST, Broadway's standard matinee time.

Television cast reunions

Film cast reunions

Musical cast reunions

Broadway Memorabilia Auction

In addition to direct donations made to The Actor's Fund, viewers can also contribute by bidding on memorabilia donated directly from the stars themselves. Items have included

Tina Fey Elizabeth Stamatina "Tina" Fey (; born May 18, 1970) is an American actress, comedian, writer, and producer. Known for her comedic roles in sketch comedy, television and film, Fey has received List of awards and nominations received by Tina Fe ...

's old headshot,

Betty Buckley Betty Buckley (born July 3, 1947)LuKanic, Steven A (1995). Film Actors Guide'. Los Angeles, CA: Lone Eagle Publishing. p. 55. . is an American actress and singer. Buckley is the winner of a Tony Award, and was nominated for an additional Ton ...

's original wig from ''Cats'', and a gown worn by

Kristin Chenoweth Kristin Dawn Chenoweth (; born Kristi Dawn Chenoweth; July 24, 1968)Kristin Cheno ...

External links

''Stars in the House''
on

IMDb IMDb, historically known as the Internet Movie Database, is an online database of information related to films, television series, podcasts, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and biograp ...

''Stars in the House''
on

References

{{COVID-19 pandemic in the United States 2020 web series debuts Broadway theatre Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the performing arts Cultural responses to the COVID-19 pandemic