Jessica Radetsky of Broadway Hearts chatted about her latest endeavors with this nonprofit organization, which helps children.
Originally from Santa Cruz, California, Jessica began studying classical ballet at the age of 5 and began dancing professionally as a teenager. She has performed with The Kirov Opera Ballet, The San Francisco, and Los Angeles Opera Ballets, among others.
In love with eras past, she also performs with the Jazz Age dance group The Canarsie Wobblers. They can be seen performing at Jazz Age events around the country, including The Jazz Age Lawn Party on Governor’s Island.
In 2009, after losing her beloved father to BRCA-related pancreatic cancer, Jessica became active in genetic cancer outreach and advocacy. Raising awareness for BRCA-related cancer prevention and quality of life issues around the country, she found a true passion in outreach.
In 2017, Jessica founded Broadway Hearts. Inspired by experiences with Make-A-Wish recipients, she focused on the idea of bringing Broadway performers to kids in children’s hospitals, who might not be able to make it to the theater.
Expanding on the mission, Broadway Hearts now reaches kids in children’s hospitals nationwide, offers a multitude of programs, and continues to evolve. Broadway Hearts is dedicated to her father, Peter Radetsky.
Jessica currently performs on Broadway in The Phantom of the Opera.
Q & A interview
Broadway Hearts has helped so many children. What is the inspiration behind its creation?
Thanks! One night at Phantom of the Opera on Broadway in 2017, I came downstairs from my dressing room at the ‘places’ call, and there was a sign posted on the call board about a Make-A-Wish child coming to see the show that night. Those shows were some of my absolute favorites to be a part of as we had the option to stay after the show to meet with the child and their family.
Meeting and getting to know these kids’ stories was very impactful to me and became some of the most memorable moments in my life. On this particular evening, the child was unable to attend the show. It affected me in a profound way and I found myself continuing to think about this child in the following days. It was then I had the thought that I should take the burden off of these kids to come to us and that I should figure out a way to bring Broadway to them. Broadway Hearts was born!
Success means different things to different people. What does success mean to you?
That’s a difficult question. Success has meant so many different things to me at different times in my life. I think right now, success means living in a healthy and present way and continuing to grow as a person and hopefully make a difference. Success is also being able to be supportive and loving and the best version of myself for the people that I love.
When you founded Broadway Hearts, and saw how much it helped children to experience the magic of Broadway. Talk to us about that connection with your past roles as a dancer and how that joy and love transcend over to the children you help?
I grew up with one thing on my mind, and that was ballet. It was what I dreamed about, and spent every waking moment focused upon. As a kid, I was fortunate enough to see some really extraordinary artists perform.
From those performances, I not only gained an incredible education, but such profound inspiration, and I remember standing outside of stage doors after performances waiting for autographs from my favorite dancers. I remember every word of encouragement, every piece of advice, and every kindness. It greatly enriched my own path to becoming an artist and very much informed me how I wanted to present myself in the world.
The impact that artists can have on the younger generation is immense. We are so fortunate, at Broadway Hearts, to be able to have weekly virtual visits with kids in treatment all over the country. They’re able to really get to know us and we’re able to become a more consistent part of their lives.
We also offer our hospital’s special One-On-One visits. If a child is in need of a little something extra, we’ll try to pair them with their favorite Broadway star for a private visit, and those are often our celebrity volunteers. These are so fun! We’ve been able to make some really exciting things happen for these exceptional kids.
Starting a foundation like this is no small feat, what was one of your biggest challenges, and conversely one of your biggest successes?
My biggest challenge is always the next challenge. For example, over a year ago I had the dream to create our Broadway Hearts Backstage program, where we bring a medically cleared child and their family into the city for a magical Broadway experience (Hotel, Dinner, A show of their choice … The Works), and we’ve just launched it! There were many challenges that went on during those months, so many moving parts to make the dream into a reality, but it keeps me on my toes for sure!
My biggest success … same thing! The way this foundation keeps growing and evolving! I keep setting a goal for us and then another and another … And we continue to add hospitals, reaching more kids (and these kids are extraordinary), and adding additional programs and volunteers. It is such an unbelievable feeling. We just keep moving ahead and with so much heart.
Talk to us about the Phantom of the Opera and its connection to Broadway Hearts as well as to you personally, after performing in the show there has to be a sense of family, tell us a little bit about that connection and some of the highlights that captured you over the years?
Well, as we spoke of, Phantom set the stage for my initial connection to Make-A-Wish kids, which led to the idea for Broadway Hearts! And my two dear friends who signed Broadway Hearts into a 501(c)(3) with me, Elizabeth Welch and Erin Byrne are both colleagues from Phantom!
And many of our wonderful volunteers are a part of the Phantom ‘Phamily’. Also, some of my very closest friends in my life are friends whom I met while performing in Phantom.
We’ve had some epic celebrations with the show! One of the most memorable was our return to Broadway, post-pandemic. They closed down 44th St. in Times Square, right outside The Majestic, our theater, following our opening night’s performance and Andrew Lloyd Webber DJed for 45 minutes.
They asked the dancers from the show, myself included, to dance on our theater balcony right above his DJ booth, in our ‘Masquerade’ costumes from the show, with smoke effects and strobe lights! It was a media frenzy, avenue to avenue packed with people and beyond surreal.
But the two best highlights of my time at Phantom for me are easy … When I had my parents, together, in the audience. They watched the show so many times, I’m so lucky, and I could always pick out my father’s laugh. And then just knowing they were out there together. I think about that all the time. And… I met my fiancé at Phantom! Does it get any better than that?
To learn more about Jessica Radetsky and Broadway Hearts, visit her official homepage.
