10 Shows to Watch, Including WOS Awards, Young Vic's Cat, Matthew Bourne's Car Man
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THIS WEEKEND
(© Danny Kaan)
1. The 2021 WhatsOnStage Awards will stream on March 14 at 2pm ET. This year, TheaterMania's sibling site across the pond will celebrate 21 "Angels" nominated by audiences for their love and care during the ongoing pandemic. These "Angels" will be announced by hosts Jodie Prenger and Tom Read Wilson during the show, and they will be honored with a night of live theater when shows return. The streaming event will feature performances from all kinds of musicals that were cut short during 2020, along with brand-new shows hoping to open in 2021. For tickets, click here.
2. In the tradition of the "one man composer shows" adding operatic voices when called for, Puccini — Live From Florence, starring Hershey Felder, will take place on March 14 at 8pm ET. The show tells the story of the great composer's deliciously scandalous life, his female characters, and how the real women in his life affected the women he created onstage. Filmed live on location in the places where these events and these compositions and premieres actually took place, Puccini will include music from La Bohème, Tosca, Turandot, and more. Purchase includes the live stream and a week of ON DEMAND viewing access to the recording of the live stream (through 3/21). For tickets and more information, click here.
(© Johan Persson)
3. The Young Vic's West End production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams has been added to the National Theatre at Home streaming service. The production stars Sienna Miller as Maggie, Jack O'Connell as Brick, Colm Meaney as Big Daddy, Lisa Palfrey as Big Mama, Hayley Squires as Mae, Brian Gleeson as Gooper, Richard Hansell as Doctor, and Michael J. Shannon as Reverend. To subscribe and watch, click here.
(image via the Strand Theatre)
4. Middletown, a new play by Dan Clancy, is currently streaming through April 4. The production stars Didi Conn (Grease), Sandy Duncan (My One and Only), Adrian Zmed (T.J. Hooker), and Don Most (Happy Days). The play is presented as a reading, with the actors standing at four podiums with scripts. Middletown tells the story of two couples, Peg and Tom, and Dotty and Don, as they "endure the roller coaster of life together in this exhilarating and universal depiction of love, life, and friendship." For tickets, click here.
5. In celebration of International Women's Day, Disney on Broadway has announced free registration, programming, and participants for the 4th annual Women's Day on Broadway virtual event on March 12 at 1pm ET. All gender identities and expressions are welcome. To learn more about the event's programming and to register for free, click here.
6. New York City Center will present a streaming festival of ballets by choreographer Matthew Bourne, running through April 4. Tickets are $15 per production, with a package including the full lineup for $50. Next in line is The Car Man, a loose adaptation of Bizet's Carmen, available March 12-21; Cinderella, with a score by Prokofiev, available March 19-28; and Romeo and Juliet, also featuring a score by Prokofiev, available March 26-April 4. Each title will be remain on demand for 10 days. For more information, click here.
(© David Gordon)
7. Richard Greenberg's Three Days of Rain will stream on demand March 11-21, and feature original stars Patricia Clarkson, John Slattery, and Bradley Whitford. Evan Yionoulis directs the Manhattan Theatre Club presentation. For tickets and more information, click here.
8. NNR – New Normal Rep has announced its inaugural four-play season, featuring works by playwrights Julia Blauvelt, Jack Canfora, Pulitzer Prize-winning and Tony-nominated playwright Nilo Cruz, and Obie winner and Pulitzer nominee Nikkole Salter. Jericho, the first play, which streams March 4-April 4, will be directed by four-time Academy Award nominee Marsha Mason and feature Golden Globe and an Obie Award winner and Emmy nominee Jill Eikenberry. For tickets and more information, click here.
9. Actors from Broadway and London's West End have teamed up for the Shakespeare@ Home, all-free radio play Julius Caesar. Tony-nominated actor Patrick Page (Hadestown) stars in the title role with Jordan Barbour (Broadway's The Inheritance) as Brutus, Sky Lakota Lynch (Dear Evan Hansen) as Lucius, and Keith Hamilton Cobb (American Moor) as Cassius. The final installment of Julius Caesar will take place on March 15. Tickets are free, and donations are welcome. Find out more here.
(© Lowell Thomas)
10. Steppenwolf Theatre Company has released a streaming world premiere production of Duchess! Duchess! Duchess!, written by Vivian J.O. Barnes and loosely inspired by the struggles of Meghan Markle and the British royal family. Duchess! Duchess! Duchess! uses the monarchy to investigate how society's institutions of power affect Black women. The two-hander is directed by Weyni Mengesha and stars Chicago-based actors Sydney Charles and Celeste M. Cooper, who filmed the play in their separate homes. Duchess! Duchess! Duchess! is available via the Steppenwolf Now Virtual Stage, which can be found here.
(© Tricia Baron)
Nick Blaemire will lead a virtual concert featuring Broadway performers and promising students from Washington, DC's Duke Ellington School of the Arts on March 19 at 7pm. Performances will showcase original student works. The concert, which is open to the public as a free webcast, is the culmination of the second annual ASCAP Foundation Andrew A. Isen Musical Theater Songwriting Workshop. To register, click here.
Sleep Squad is a family-friendly, interactive, virtual theater experience that turns your home into a rocket ship to launch kids into their dreams. Featuring brand-new, unique, kid-driven comedy and music from the Story Pirates that you can't see or hear anywhere else, this world premiere on-demand production creates a new kind of bedtime ritual for kids ages 4-12. Sleep Squad stars Tony Award nominee Lilli Cooper as the Dream Queen, who guides adventurers through three different enchanting virtual experiences, adapted from stories written by real kids. Check out the trailer and buy tickets above.
Christopher Carter Sanderson's film telling of Shakespeare's Macbeth up close and personal in the 9/16 aspect ratio with a stellar cast led by TV's Leajato Robinson (Bull, Orange Is the New Black, Boardwalk Empire), based on the long-running critical success. Check out the trailer and buy tickets above.
ON THE HORIZON
(© T Charles Erickson)
Lincoln Center Theater will begin streaming its archival recordings of Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, The Wolves, and more. Each production will stream for free on Broadway On Demand, with Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike beginning on March 18. Dates for Sarah DeLappe's The Wolves, directed by Lila Neugebauer, Marco Ramirez's The Royale, directed by Rachel Chavkin, and Jackie Sibblies Drury's Marys Seacole, directed by Lileana Blain-Cruz, are still to be announced. For more information, click here.
(© David Gordon)
Lupita Nyong'o and Juan Castano will star in Romeo Y Julieta, a bilingual audioplay edition of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, available for free beginning Thursday, March 18. Directed by Saheem Ali, the production is based on the Spanish translation of Shakespeare's text by Alfredo Michel Modenessi, with adaptation by Ali and Ricardo Pérez González. It is presented by the Public Theater and WNYC Studios, and will be available wherever podcasts are available.
(© Matthew Murphy)
The filmed production of the Broadway musical Allegiance, starring George Takei, will join the BroadwayHD streaming platform exclusively on March 18. It will be available around the globe, except in Asia. Allegiance features a book by Marc Acito and music and lyrics by Jay Kuo, with direction by Olivier Award nominee Stafford Arima. To subscribe, click here.
(© image provided by the production)
Bobby Conte Thornton and Alex Prakken will star in a free streaming production of Gutenberg! The Musical!, set to air on March 18 at 8pm ET as a benefit for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. The show will stream on the Broadway Cares YouTube channel. To learn more and to donate, click here.
Irish Repertory Theatre will stream The Aran Islands: A Performance on Screen March 16-28. The play by J.M. Synge is a haunting and visceral experience built around "a hypnotic performance" by Brendan Conroy, one of Ireland's finest actors, as he captures the spirit of Synge in Joe O'Bryne's theatrical adaptation. Tickets are free, but donations are welcome. For tickets and more information, click here.
(images provided by the production)
A starry cast headed by Fionn Whitehead will perform a contemporary adaptation of Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray, streaming March 16-31. Whitehead will take on the title role, alongside Alfred Enoch as Harry Wotton, Joanna Lumley as Lady Narborough, Emma McDonald as Sibyl Vane, Russell Tovey as Basil Hallward, and Stephen Fry as the Interviewer. The play is written by Henry Filloux-Bennett and directed by Tamara Harvey. For tickets and more information, click here.
(© Tricia Baron)
Maulik Pancholy will star in George Street Playhouse's streaming production of Becky Mode's solo show Fully Committed, available March 23-April 11. Fully Committed is based on characters created by Mode and original star Mark Setlock. Pancholy will play more than 40 characters in the work, which follows a day in the life of Sam, a reservation-line receptionist at one of New York's trendiest restaurants. For tickets and more information, click here.
(image via Broadway's Best Shows)
Bobby Cannavale, Keanu Reeves, Heidi Schreck, and Alia Shawkat will star in a streaming production of Larissa FastHorse's The Thanksgiving Play, airing March 25 at 8pm ET. The comedy will be directed by Leigh Silverman. In FastHorse's satire, "a troupe of terminally 'woke' teaching artists scramble to create a pageant that somehow manages to celebrate both Turkey Day and Native American Heritage Month." Proceeds from ticket sales will benefit the Actors Fund. For tickets and more information, click here.
(© Tristan Fuge/David Gordon/Tricia Baron)
The second season of the Spotlight on Plays reading series will begin streaming on March 25. The lineup of plays includes The Thanksgiving Play by Larissa FastHorse (March 25); Angry, Raucous and Shamelessly Gorgeous by Pearl Cleage (April 9); Watch on the Rhine by Lillian Hellman; Ohio State Murders by Adrienne Kennedy; Dear Elizabeth by Sarah Ruhl; The Baltimore Waltz by Paula Vogel; and The Sisters Rosensweig by Wendy Wasserstein. Actors scheduled to take part include Debbie Allen, Ellen Burstyn, Bobby Cannavale, Kathryn Hahn, Kevin Kline, Audra McDonald, Phylicia Rashad, Keanu Reeves, Heidi Schreck, Alia Shawkat, Heather Alicia Simms, and Alicia Stith. For tickets and more information, click here.
Broadway & Beyond: Access for Stage Managers of Color's next event aimed at providing opportunity, education, and vital industry connections for stage managers of color will be held virtually on March 31, 6pm-8pm ET, and will offer stage managers of color the unique opportunity to connect directly with industry professionals who are in positions to share advice and personalized counsel and – crucially – to hire. Attendance is free, and interested candidates must register here by 5pm ET on March 27. Participation is capped at 100. Panelists will be provided with the résumés of all confirmed participants in advance of the event and will engage directly with attendees in small break-out groups.
Maestra Music will hold its first annual concert event on March 29 at 8 pm, with an interactive pre-show beginning at 7 pm. Directed by Kate Baldwin and produced by Baldwin, Georgia Stitt, and Laura Ivey, Amplify 2021 is hosted by Brooks Ashmanskas and Andréa Burns. This eclectic concert will feature stories, conversations and musical performances from Ashley Park, Nikki M. James, Brandon Victor Dixon, Tanya Birl, Kenita Miller, Shelley Thomas, Eva Noblezada, and Reeve Carney, along with appearances from Anais Mitchell, Kirsten Childs, Helen Park, Rona Siddiqui, Britt Bonney, Kristy Norter, Dionne McClain-Freeney, Meg Zervoulis, Kat Sherrell, Nicole Rebolledo, Maestra founder Georgia Stitt, and a special appearance by Bernadette Peters'''. For tickets and more information, click here.
(© David Gordon)
American Conservatory Theatre has announced casting for its upcoming filmed reading of Alice Childress's Trouble in Mind, directed by Awoye Timpo and streaming on demand March 29-April 4. The company will be led by Patrice Johnson Chevannes, alongside David Harbour as Al Manners, Lauren Spencer as Millie Davis, Anthony Fusco as Bill O'Wray, Kadeem Ali Harris as John Nevins, Dakin Matthews as Henry, Steven Anthony Jones as Sheldon Forrester, Eliza Kaye as Judy Sears, and Johnny Rice as Eddie Fenton. Childress's masterpiece would have been the first play by a Black woman produced on Broadway if she had agreed to the producers' demands that she soften its message. For tickets and more information, click here.
(© Tricia Baron/David Gordon)
Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS has announced casting for its 2021 Broadway Backwards benefit, streaming for free March 30-April 3. In this virtual production, Jay Armstrong Johnson will star as an isolated New Yorker who dreams a fantastical journey guided by a late-night television host, portrayed by Jenn Colella. This year's streaming event also includes a special opening number featuring Stephanie J. Block, Deborah Cox, and Lea Salonga, plus performances and appearances by Matt Bomer, Darren Criss, Ariana DeBose, Robin De Jesús, Cynthia Erivo, Joshua Henry, Cherry Jones, Kelli O'Hara, and Jim Parsons. More of this year's special guests will be announced in the coming weeks. For more information, click here.
(image provided by the Old Vic Theatre)
London's Old Vic Theatre will present a live-streaming production of Dr. Seuss's The Lorax for six performances only, April 14-17. Adapted for the stage by David Greig, with a score by Charlie Fink, The Lorax will star Jamael Westman as the Once-ler, with Audrey Brisson, David Ricardo-Pearce, and Ben Thompson as the Lorax. Richard Katz, Melanie La Barrie, and Silas Wyatt-Barke round out the cast. The show chronicles the plight of the environment and focuses around a confrontation between the Lorax, who speaks for the trees, and the Once-ler, who causes destruction. For tickets and more information, click here.
(image provided by the production)
Veteran cast members from across the world will come together to celebrate the 30th-longest-running show in Broadway history on April 24 with the live Rock of Ages: All-Star Reunion Concert. Featuring a "supergroup" cast, the show will include live performances of the greatest hits of the 1980, with performances at the Rock of Ages Hollywood stage at the Bourbon Room and in New York City. For more information on the show's streaming platform, click here.
(© Tristan Fuge)
The nonprofit organization Target ALS will host a one-night-only concert tribute to Rebecca Luker on May 4, at 7:30pm. The fundraiser, titled Becca, will feature Laura Benanti, Sierra Boggess, Michael Cerveris, Victoria Clark, Santino Fontana, Judy Kuhn, Howard McGillin, Norm Lewis, Kelli O'Hara, and Sally Wilfert. Tickets are $20 with 100 percent of sales sales and donations benefiting ALS research. For to find out more and to purchase tickets, click here.
CURRENTLY RUNNING
10×10 is back to shake those winter blues away, from the comfort of your own home! Filmed live on Barrington Stage Company's Boyd-Quinson Stage, this year's selection of ten 10-minute plays is sure to delight. For tickets and more information, click here.
The Atlantic Council's Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center has launched Stories of Human Resilience — a groundbreaking video project with Emmy- and Pulitzer Prize-nominated playwright, actor, author, journalist, and educator Anna Deavere Smith. Stories of Human Resilience premieres with a story about the escalating challenges facing frontline healthcare workers in New York City in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic (above, you can watch the first episode, "Facing the Frontline: Healthcare Workers in the Early Days of the Pandemic"). In April, Smith will present a story about the extraordinary life of Tony Award-winning actor LaChanze. And in May, Smith will focus on the migration crisis through stories of migrants in Latin America. For future episodes of Stories of Human Resilience, you can subscribe to Atlantic Council's YouTube channel here.
Jim Henson's The Muppet Show is airing on Disney Plus. The variety show, which introduced the world to characters like Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Fozzie Bear, and more, feature weekly guests culled from the world of Hollywood and Broadway. You can sign up for Disney Plus here.
(© Disney)
The much-loved 1997 Wonderful World of Disney presentation of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, starring Brandy and Whitney Houston is now on Disney Plus. Cinderella stars Brandy in the title role and Houston as her Fairy Godmother, alongside Whoopie Goldberg as Queen Constantina, Bernadette Peters as the evil Stepmother, Paolo Montalbán as Prince Christopher, Victor Garber as King Maximillian, Jason Alexander as Lionel, Natalie Desselle as Minerva, and Veanne Cox as Calliope. To watch, sign up for Disney Plus here.
MasterVoices is presenting a new digital film series inspired by Adam Guettel's song cycle Myths and Hymns. Conceived by artistic director Ted Sperling, Myths and Hymns is divided into four chapters. The first edition of the digital series, titled "Flight," premieres January 13 at 6:30pm ET on the MasterVoices YouTube channel and will be available through June 30. It will include the songs "Prometheus," performed by Anderson & Roe; "Saturn Returns: The Flight," performed by Joshua Henry; "Icarus," performed by Mykal Kilgore and Norm Lewis; "Migratory V," performed by Julia Bullock, Renée Fleming, and Kelli O'Hara; "Pegasus," performed by Jose Llana, Capathia Jenkins, and Elizabeth Stanley; and "Jesus, the Mighty Conqueror," performed by Take 6. Watch the video above.
The Al Hirschfeld Foundation celebrates Black History Month with its latest online exhibition, Amplified Dignity: Black Dancers Drawn by Hirschfeld. The exhibition, which will be available though March 13, features Hirschfeld's reflections of legendary 20th-century artists including Sammy Davis Jr., Josephine Baker, Nicholas Brothers, Bunny Briggs, Judith Jamison, Hinton Battle, Maurice Hines, and Honi Coles. To view the collection, click here.
Shakespeare Theatre Company is streaming Tony nominee Patrick Page's All the Devils Are Here: How Shakespeare Invented the Villain through July 28. Page explores how Shakespeare created the treacherous characters we all love to hate. Read our interview with the Hadestown star here, and watch the show's trailer above. For tickets and more information, click here.
