Theater News

7 Shows to Stream This Weekend, Including Phantom and a Little Shop Short

Mark your calendars for other shows that will become available soon.

| New York City |

October 8, 2020

With theaters closed around the country, some companies are making their productions available online. Below, you'll find our weekly update of productions, videos, and other theater-related streaming content from across the US and elsewhere. Some streams are free, while others may charge a fee or request a donation. Either way, you're sure to find something to scratch your theater itch. Theaters may be dark, but the shows go on.


This Weekend

1. Pasadena Playhouse's new Page to Stage series takes you behind the curtain to explore the theatrical journey from conception to opening night. In Page to Stage: Little Shop of Horrors, the creative team at Pasadena Playhouse take you from rehearsal to opening night of their groundbreaking revival. The episode features interviews with George Salazar, Mj Rodriguez, and Amber Riley. To watch the free stream, click here.

George Salazar as Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors
George Salazar as Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors
(© Jenny Graham)

2. The Shows Must Go On channel on YouTube will present a re-broadcast of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall for free this weekend. Filmed in 2011 in celebration of the show's 25th anniversary, the production stars Ramin Karimloo as the Phantom, Sierra Boggess as Christine, and Hadley Fraser as Raoul. It will stream beginning at 2pm ET on Friday, October 9, and will remain on YouTube for 48 hours. Go to YouTube here.

A scene from The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall
A scene from The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall
(image provided by Think Jam)

3. A digital Australian production of the musical Who's Your Baghdaddy, or How I Started the Iraq War is available to stream online now. This dark, boisterous and irreverent story follows a handful of mid-level spies whose vanity and office politics contributed to the worst intelligence blunder in modern history.You can stream the production here.


4. Under the Greenwood Tree, which chronicles the Public Works production of Shaina Taub's As You Like It, will stream here beginning October 8. Watch the trailer below:


5. Goodspeed Musicals joins arts organizations around the nation to present the virtual concert event Get Happy: Angela Ingersoll Sings Judy Garland, streaming live from Chicago, Sunday, October 11 at 7pm ET. Patrons may purchase one ticket per household to watch live but may choose to support Goodspeed and the performers by purchasing tickets for all those who will be enjoying the concert. The link to watch will be sent in advance via confirmation email. For more information, click here.


6. Potomac Theatre Project's 34th repertory season, Virtual(ly) PTP/NYC, continues this week with Dan O'Brien's The House in Scarsdale: A Memoir for the Stage, directed by Christian Parker, streaming Thursday, October 8, at 7:30pm ET through Sunday, October 11, at 11:59pm. Next week, Caryl Churchill's Far Away, directed by Cheryl Faraone, will stream. For more information, click here.


7. West End, Broadway, and television stars will join Shakespeare@'s radio play production of Shakespeare's The Tempest, continues with part 2 Thursday, October 8, at 7pm ET and is free to download and stream. The Tempest is airing in four weekly parts. To see the cast and learn more, click here. Debut dates for parts 3 and 4 are subsequent Thursdays in October at 7pm ET (October 15 and 22). Donations are welcome and encouraged.


Upcoming

* On Monday, October 12 at 7:30pm ET, Keith Hamilton Cobb and Josh Tyson will offer an informal reading of Cobb's American Moor, an essential look at the experience and perspective of Black men in America while challenging the capacity of the American theater to make all people fully visible and embraced. Ayana Workman will read stage directions. For free tickets, click here. Click here for our review of the 2019 off-Broadway production.


* St. Ann's Warehouse will stream Phyllida Lloyd's all-female Shakespeare trilogy. Julius Caesar will run October 9-15, Henry IV will air October 16-22, and The Tempest will run October 23-29. It will also be seen over the course of one marathon weekend, October 30-November 1. For tickets and more information, click here.


* The TheaterWorksUSA production of Joe Iconis's off-Broadway children's musical We the People: America Rocks! will debut online throughout the rest of election season, premiering October 24 at 8pm on Stars in the House. Filmed live without an audience at Paper Mill Playhouse, the capture will be made available to schools and theaters throughout the academic year. For more information, click here.


* Ken Davenport presents The Doo Wop Project: Live In Your Living Room, a virtual theatrical concert, broadcast live from Shubert Studios, on Sunday, October 25, at 7pm. For tickets and more infomation, click here.


* Atlantic Theater Company's Fall Reunion Reading Series launches October 22 and will include broadcasts of Skeleton Crew by MacArthur Genius Grant recipient Dominique Morisseau, and Lortel and Obie Award winner Guards at the Taj by Pulitzer Prize finalist Rajiv Joseph. Tickets to the readings, which will be broadcast via Atlantic Theater Company's YouTube channel, are free and available to reserve here, with a suggested donation of $25 per viewer.


'''''Howell Binkley: A Celebration of Light and Love, a video tribute in memory of lighting designer Howell Binkley created by Suspension Productions, will be available for viewing on howellbinkley.com beginning Sunday, October 25 at 8pm ET. Binkley designed the lighting for 52 Broadway shows, received nine Tony Award nominations and won two Tony Awards. Theater luminaries including Ariana DeBose, Chita Rivera, and Paul Nolan''' will join.


* Resounding, a live immersive audio entertainment company, will debut with a production of Dracula, on Friday, October 30, and Saturday, October 31, at 8pm. Based on Orson Welles's radio play, Dracula will star Tony-nominated Norm Lewis as Count Dracula along with Lindsay Nicole Chambers as Mina Murray, Siho Ellsmore as Lucy Westenra, Chris Renfro as Jonathan Harker, Dick Terhune as Prof. Van Helsing, Stuart Williams as Dr. Seward, and John Stimac. For tickets, click here.

Norm Lewis
Norm Lewis

* The Actors Fund and the Lymphoma Research Foundation have announced a one-night concert production of The Nightmare Before Christmas, presented by James Monroe Iglehart in cooperation with Tim Burton, Danny Elfman, and Disney Media Group. The show will take place on October 31 at 7pm. Tickets cost $4.99. Joining Iglehart in the cast are Rafael Casal, Adrienne Warren, Danny Burstein, Nik Walker, Lesli Margherita, Rob McClure, and more to be announced. Purchase tickets here.

James Monroe Iglehart and Adrienne Warren
James Monroe Iglehart and Adrienne Warren
(© David Gordon)

More Streaming Channels

* Lin-Manuel Miranda's blockbuster musical Hamilton streams on Disney Plus, featuring the original cast, led by Miranda as Hamilton, Leslie Odom Jr. as Aaron Burr, Daveed Diggs as Marquis de Lafayette/Thomas Jefferson, Renée Elise Goldsberry as Angelica Schuyler, Christopher Jackson as George Washington, Jonathan Groff as King George, Phillipa Soo as Eliza Hamilton, Jasmine Cephas Jones as Peggy Schuyler/Maria Reynolds, Okieriete Onaodowan as Hercules Mulligan/James Madison, and Anthony Ramos as John Laurens/Philip Hamilton. To find out how to watch, click here.


* Netflix has released Joe Mantello's film remake of Mart Crowley's The Boys in the Band. The company is made up of Jim Parsons (Michael), Zachary Quinto (Harold), Matt Bomer (Donald), Andrew Rannells (Larry), Charlie Carver (Cowboy), Robin De Jesús (Emory), Brian Hutchison (Alan), Michael Benjamin Washington (Bernard), and Tuc Watkins (Hank). In the video below, explore why The Boys in the Band continues to remain relevant today:


* Amazon Prime has released Julie Taymor's Gloria Steinem biopic The Glorias, written by Taymor and Sarah Ruhl, on its Prime Video platform. Spanning five decades, the film has multiple actors playing Steinem at various ages: Ryan Kira Armstrong as Young Gloria, Lulu Wilson as Teen Gloria, Alicia Vikander as Gloria ages 20-40, and Julianne Moore as Steinem through the present. The cast also includes Bette Midler as Bella Abzug, Janelle Monáe as Dorothy Pitman Hughes, Timothy Hutton as Leo Steinem, Lorraine Toussaint as Florynce Kennedy, Enid Graham as Ruth, Kimberly Guerrero as Wilma Mankiller, Monica Sanchez as Dolores Huerta, and Margo Moorer as Barbara Jordan. To watch, click here.

Julianne Moore in The Glorias
Julianne Moore in The Glorias
(© Dan McFadden)

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