'Night Of Broadway Stars' A Monumental Good Time; Ted Leonsis Honored!

SOUTHEAST -- When you’re the owner of the Washington Capitals and the Washington Wizards, you’re bound to have a lot of friends. But when Jekyll, Hyde, Jean Valjean, and the Beast count themselves among them, you know you’re in the presence of someone truly special.

Honorary Co-Chairs The Honorable Vincent C. Gray and Linda Mercado Greene presenting Theodore” Ted” Leonsis with the Covenant House Lizzie Award (Photo: Ronald G. Baker / Solid Image Photographic Service).
And so Internet/AOL pioneer, Monumental Sports & Entertainment majority owner, and philanthropist Ted Leonsis found himself being honored on Wednesday night, during Covenant House Washington’s second annual gala.

Chuck Wagner, Her Excellency Tebelelo Seretse, and Councilmember Marion Barry (Photo: Ronald G. Baker / Solid Image Photographic Service).
Titled ‘A Night of Broadway Stars’, the festive affair served to highlight Leonsis’ support of the nation’s largest privately funded nonprofit organization in responding to the needs of young people who suffer from homelessness, abuse, and neglect.

Covenant House Washington youth performing (Photo: Ronald G. Baker / Solid Image Photographic Service).
First established in 1972 to serve homeless young people in the New York City area, the organization has since expanded both its mission and geographic footprint to help individuals in more than 20 cities in the United States, Canada, and Central America.

Broadway performers Rita Harvey and Ron Bohmer (Photo: Ronald G. Baker / Solid Image Photographic Service).
Wednesday’s gala kicked-off with a tented cocktail buffet reception at the Town Hall Education Arts and Recreation Campus (THEARC). Guests were then invited inside to the venue’s theater for a series of amazing performances by some of Broadway’s brightest young stars, with master of ceremonies and renowned composer/lyricist Neil Berg presiding.

Broadway Performer Jason Bernard Performing (Photo: Ronald G. Baker / Solid Image Photographic Service).
Chuck Wagner, Rita Harvey, Andrea Rivette, Jason Bernard, Ron Bohmer, Sophia Ramos, and Rob Evan delighted audience members, including many of the city’s business, political, cultural, and philanthropic leaders, with a medley of popular show tunes from everything from Phantom of the Opera to Beauty and the Beast to Les Miserables.

Rhoda and Don Friedman, Linda Roth, Paul Cohn, and Elizabeth Scott (Photo: Ronald G. Baker / Solid Image Photographic Service).
It was a night where “Be Our Guest” truly took on a special meaning!