Where theatre is streaming and what it could mean for fans going forward
The inherent inaccessibility of theatre is something often romanticized. Theatre is ephemeral. It takes place in real time, in a certain place, and is a unique experience shared by the actors and the audience. Arts columnist Mark Harris remarked recently that the be-there-or-be-square nature of theatre is “part of the sorrow and joy that give those of us who care about it such an emotional attachment.”
This may be true for some fans, but implicit to this way of thinking is the idea that people who can’t regularly go to the theatre are obliged to not just take their lumps, but a martyrly pleasure in the fact they will simply never see the vast majority of plays because such is the tragic beauty of theatre. This is problematic because much of the time, attendance comes down to class and geography, not interest. Great theatre happens everywhere, from high schools to the Hayes Theatre, but big-budget, groundbreaking spectaculars like Hamilton and The Lion King have long been accepted as shows for the wealthy who can afford their astronomically expensive tickets; Hamilton tickets, for example, are commonly over $1,000 each and sometimes over $3,000 from the professional scalpers who hack StubHub to buy and resell an enormous percentage of tickets. This idealized elitism is used to justify high price tags and producers’ reluctance to record and distribute popular productions. But when not even the rich can go to the theatre, it turns out that ephemerality isn’t so important after all.
In light of COVID-19, most theatres are closed, and many actors, directors, and producers have popped up with no end of online performances — many of them free, or by donation to support unemployed actors and pay overhead costs. These range from short videos of cast members singing together over Zoom, to line readings, to the temporary release of pro-shots: professionally filmed and licensed recordings of plays, musicals, ballets, and operas.
Broadway has been shut down since March 12, and insiders say that it will likely take steep discounts to draw in customers when theatres can reopen, but this isn’t feasible given the profit model of most productions. Musicals especially are expensive to put on and face immense pressure to turn a profit right away; even Beetlejuice, a newcomer which was a consistent top earner for most of its run, was facing eviction prior to Broadway’s shutdown because of its rocky start in May of 2019. But discounts will only help attract audience members who are already nearby — and during the 2018-19 season, 65 per cent of Broadway’s revenue came from tourists.
Producers are typically wary of distributing pro-shots due to fears that they’ll cut into box office profits. But if fans can’t or won’t buy tickets in the future, it may not be so far-fetched to hope that online distribution will be embraced as a substitute for ticket sales. Many free pro-shots have hundreds of thousands of views, and though the success of associated fundraisers has been modest, it’s clear that the audience for digital distribution exists — and is willing to put money toward it, even at a time when many are struggling financially.
As a theatre fan in the Fraser Valley, I hope that the theatre industry’s forced acceptance of online distribution is more than just temporary. While we all wait to find out, here are some sites where you can get your theatre fix.
This YouTube channel by Universal posts a new pro-shot each week for 48 hours, from 11 a.m. Friday to 11 a.m. Sunday. The series began with several Andrew Lloyd Webber productions, followed by The Sound of Music and Hairspray Live!. Upcoming releases are announced on Wednesdays, and viewers who are able are asked to make donations to the Actors Fund COVID-19 Emergency Relief.
The National Theatre of Great Britain’s YouTube channel offers full-length plays for a week at a time, often with well-known celebrities like Benedict Cumberbatch in Frankenstein and Gillian Anderson in A Streetcar Named Desire. Their channel also offers plenty of permanent videos on theatre-making. This week’s play is Coriolanus with Tom Hiddleston, and will stream from June 4 – 11.
Shakespeare’s Globe posts a new pro-shot of a Shakespeare play on YouTube every two weeks in addition to a recording of its recent production of Macbeth, which will be available until the U.K.’s schools re-open. They’re free to watch, but viewers are asked to make donations to support the theatre.
Except for the fact that it’s over $13 a month, it’s hard to knock BroadwayHD. It has pro-shots of musicals, plays, ballets, and operas with both recent, popular productions and older, more obscure, and foreign plays. If you’re looking for current blockbusters like Beetlejuice or Hamilton, you’re out of luck, but if you’ve burned through all the free pro-shots on YouTube, there’s a lot here.
Broadway on Demand is a free streaming service with a few pro-shots, unique kids’ shows, behind-the-scenes content, and daily live programming, including follow-along workshops on dance and performance with stage professionals. For those interested in the technical side of theatre, or the creative processes behind Broadway productions, this is a great free option.
