From January 24th to January 26th, theatre fans from around the world had the opportunity to celebrate their passion for musical theatre and meet some of their favorite Broadway stars at BroadwayCon. When the opportunity arose to volunteer to register voters at BroadwayCon here in New York City, I immediately said yes. I have loved musical theater ever since I was a kid and I’ve always wanted to attend the convention. Fueled by some iced coffee and a passion for voting, I made my way into the city that Friday morning. I had already been in the Hilton the night before to help set up our booth, but as I entered the hotel that morning, you could feel the excitement in the air.
I worked at the convention on Friday and Saturday and managed to register a ton of new voters. The people who we registered ranged from teenagers dressed up in cosplay who weren’t even aware they could preregister in their state, to older couples who had changed their address and wanted to save themselves a trip to the DMV. For the kids and preteens that wanted to vote but were still too young to, we encouraged them to sign up for the recently introduced “Me+3” program. By writing in their name and their email, as well as the name of 3 people in their lives who were registered to vote, they would get an email once their local and federal elections came around reminding them to remind their friends to vote!
Being present at BroadwayCon was such an amazing experience. The cosplays that people wore were absolutely spectacular! Friday was filled with Beetlejuices and Lydias, while Saturday saw a lot of waitresses, newsies, and queens from the musical “Six”! In addition to marveling at the cosplays, I got to hang out at the marketplace and chat with some of the vendors, including one woman who turns retired theatre backdrops into bags. Everywhere I looked, I was awed at the skill and artistry that these theatre fans put into their work. As my first volunteer experience with Headcount, I could not have imagined a better experience!