DAVID BYRNE FOR PHILIPPINES

To all who came and contributed to The Concert for the Philippines—thank you.

It was amazing, if I’m allowed to say that about something I was part of. It came together incredibly quickly, and the concert version of Here Lies Love was, thanks to this incredible cast and crew, both fun and emotionally overpowering. OK—it wasn’t the fully immersive experience that the show is, but one gets a bit of the narrative at least. One group in the audience showed up with homemade butterfly sleeves—which I hope also happens again when we re-mount the show. More news on that soon.

The show just was voted 2nd best play or musical in 2013 by TIME Magazine. (Matilda was voted number one.) That’s something, as usually it’s the big Broadway shows that get that recognition.

AND we raised over $96,000 thanks in part to the generosity of local concert promoters Bowery Presents—who GAVE us the venue AND covered the union costs, which could have been considerable.

That money goes to Doctors Without Borders who are flagging it specifically for the amazing work they are doing in the Philippines.

Here are some pictures: