Towson’s Cynthia Fraser Honored as “Broadway’s Biggest Fan”

Cynthia Fraser, a lifelong theatre enthusiast from Towson, Maryland, was recently named the national winner of the Broadway.com “Broadway’s Biggest Fan” contest. As part of the honor, Fraser traveled to New York City May 27-30, 2025, to fulfill her lifelong dream of experiencing Broadway in New York City and attend the 25th Annual Broadway.com Audience Choice Awards.

Selected by Broadway celebrity judges Josh Lamon (Death Becomes Her), Jasmine Amy Rogers (Boop! The Musical), and Helen J. Shen (Maybe Happy Ending), Fraser’s self-submitted video entry stood out for her deeply moving tribute to a life shaped by a love of the stage and her late mother, who nurtured that passion.

During her NYC trip, Fraser attended performances of all three judges’ shows and was a special guest at the fan-driven Audience Choice Awards ceremony on May 29. The Broadway.com Audience Choice Award is the only major theatrical prize awarded solely by votes cast online by audience members.

“This trip was a once in a lifetime experience,” said Fraser. “I am so grateful for the opportunity and cannot believe I won and am still smiling about this experience! The judges said their shows were all about love and they saw my love for theater and for my mom in my video and they wanted to share that love with me. Their shows were in many ways about love, and we need more of that in the world today,” she continued.

Though she had never been to Broadway before, Fraser’s connection to the theatre world has run deep for decades. Her love for the arts was first fostered by her dad who took her to see productions of Les Misérables and Annie at the Morris A. Mechanic Theatre in Baltimore when she was a child. She began performing in fourth grade at St. Paul’s School and continued through her years at Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA. Her favorite role on-stage was as Miss Prism in Dickinson’s production of The Importance of Being Earnest.

Fraser spent more than 20 years caring for her late mother, whose health prevented travel but never dimmed her love of the arts. Fraser once wrote to Lin-Manuel Miranda for her mother’s birthday and received a heartfelt letter and autograph, which Fraser treasures. From 1988 to 1998, Fraser worked as a TV news producer, where she built a remarkable autograph collection while working behind the scenes booking guests for local Baltimore media outlets like Maryland Public Television and ABC Baltimore. Her collection includes autographs from celebrities like Marvin Hamlisch, John James and many more. Today, she works as Marketing Director for Mahan Rykiel Associates, Inc., where for the past 27 years, she has led marketing efforts for the landscape architecture, urban design, and planning firm with offices in Baltimore and Philadelphia.

Fraser was joined on the trip by her longtime college friend Kim Wright of Wilmington, DE. Together, they experienced the magic of Broadway, attended shows and mingled with theatre stars during a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

“Meeting the stars of many of the Tony nominated shows this year was amazing,” said Fraser. “I’ll never forget the huge hug from Jonathan Groft, the original King George in Hamilton and now starring in Just in Time on Broadway.”