Seth Rogen’s Hilarity for Charity event raises money to fight Alzheimer’s disease

Comedy. Music. Food Trucks. Alcohol. And not a single performer was named.

Those words alone on an Evite and website as well as the promise of “super secret special appearances” were enough to sell out — long in advance — the sixth Hilarity for Charity event event in Los Angeles. The event was staged March 24 at the Hollywood Palladium by comedian and actor Seth Rogen and his wife, Lauren Miller Rogen.

“I’m glad people trust that we’ll put on a good show,” said Rogen in an interview before the event. “It’s always a cool night with an interesting mix of performers, and now I’m trying to bring a new sensibility to the show — to let people see something they haven’t seen before and also give people at home the experience.”

Anyone who didn’t get to attend the star-studded fundraiser will be able to stream a showing of the event on Netflix starting April 6.

The event

Consisting of stand-up acts, comedy sketches and musical performances, the variety show at the Hollywood Palladium raised money to promote awareness of Alzheimer’s disease, provide funds for research, improve the lives of family members of Alzheimer’s patients and help create the next generation of Alzheimer’s advocates.

The performers

The lineup included Sarah Silverman, Michelle Wolf, Michael Che, James Corden, Sacha Baron Cohen, Tiffany Haddish, Michael J. Fox, Nick Kroll, Kumail Nanjiani, Chelsea Peretti, Chris Hardwick, Craig Robinson, Jeff Goldblum, Jon Lovitz, Ike Barinholtz, John Mulaney, David Chang and the Muppets with a musical performance by Post Malone.

In the audience were Kaley Cuoco and Karl Cook, Scott Eastwood, Mike Posner and Jennifer Morrison.

The scene

Prior to the show, guests ventured into a tent to sample seafood and dig into a hummus bar, pose for photos or slip on a virtual reality headset to battle the disease — or, in Rogen-speak, per the sign atop a booth, “Kick Alz in the Ballz.”

Others chose from lobster rolls, tacos, pizza, poke and other treats from outside food trucks and then huddled beside heat lamps to enjoy their goodies.

The quote

After asking Rogen about his best experiences since starting the event, he talked about the grants the charity gives to in-home caretakers, saying, “I was on a flight, and a woman who received one of our grants came up to me and told me she couldn’t be doing what she was doing except for the grant. … She said she couldn’t have been there — traveling.”

He then added, “I’m also proud of all the people I’ve been able to get involved. I’m amazed and grateful that the most talented people have been willing to help, to give their time [to perform]. I’m really proud of that.”

The numbers

Tickets for the 900 guests ranged from $150 for balcony seating to $1,000 for VIP seats with early access to the food trucks.

Proceeds for this year’s event have not yet been calculated, but according to organizers, more than $7.5 million has been raised since the event began in 2012.