Theater Treasure Troves in Shubert Alley: The Broadway Flea Market

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Broadway Flea Market in Shubert Alley on September 22, 2013. (Tyler Martins/The Observer)

By TYLER MARTINS

Broadway Flea Market in Shubert Alley on September 22, 2013.(Tyler Martins/The Observer)
Broadway Flea Market in Shubert Alley on September 22, 2013.
(Tyler Martins/The Observer)

Every year, thousands of Broadway lovers gather in Shubert Alley and West 44th Street for the Annual Broadway Flea Market and Grand Auction, which benefits Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aid. Now in its twenty-seventh year,  the Flea Market attracts theater aficionados who can sort through boxes of old playbills, buy old merchandise from shows that have closed years ago and even old costumes and props used by some of Broadway’s most famous stars.

The profits from the event are all donated to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids, one of the nation’s leading nonprofit AIDS fundraising organizations.

In addition to access to counters overflowing with Broadway treasures, fans also get the opportunity to meet over sixty of their favorite stars at the autograph table and photo booth, as well as bid for walk-on-roles in Broadway shows.

This year, the twenty-seventh Annual Broadway Flea Market & Grand Auction raised a grand total of $10.3 million.