Heads up! We’re working hard to be accurate – but these are unusual times, so please always check before heading out.
The best theatre to watch online right now
Stream these amazing plays, musicals and dance shows at home – because right now, your couch is the best seat in the house
Many thousands of theatres across the globe lie empty, devoid of performers, audience, artistry and applause. The worldwide shutdown has hit actors, dancers and other performing artists hard, and shut spectators away in isolation. Luckily, the internet has opened up a lifeline, allowing performing arts institutions to keep the lights on – virtually, at least. From New York’s Broadway and London’s West End to the vibrant Australian theatre scene and beyond, digital stages have been opening their archives and broadcasting legendary past performances featuring star actors, boundary-pushing directors and incredible sets and costumes. And although you can’t be there in person, these online streaming theatre, dance and opera shows have some advantages over the IRL theatre experience: you’ll always get the best view in the house, and it’s often for free.
Like you, we can’t wait to get back out there and support the theatre in person. But for now, here are the best ways to bring the experience home.
RECOMMENDED: The absolute best things to do at home
The best theatre shows streaming now
The best New York theater to stream online, updated daily
Time Out New York’s lead theater critic, Adam Feldman, rounds up the best theater, opera, dance and cabaret shows from New York City and beyond that you can watch at home every day – from Broadway concerts to the best of the underground theater scene.
The Metropolitan Opera is streaming whole operas every night
New York’s Metropolitan Opera is providing ‘grand opera solace’ while everyone is stuck at home, streaming a different encore presentation from its award-winning Live in HD series every night for the duration of the closure
The best London theatre to stream online right now
Time Out London’s theatre editor, Andrzej Lukowski, picks the best streaming shows and platforms to get your thespian fix while theatres are shut.
Here's how to watch Hamilton on Disney+
A five-step guide to experiencing the cultural event of the season
‘The Shows Must Go On!’: Watch hit musicals streaming free on YouTube
After streaming seven Andrew Lloyd Webber productions, the YouTube channel The Shows Must Go On! has announced that it will continue to share a musical every week for the foreseeable future. Each show goes live on the channel on Friday and remains viewable for 48 hours afterward.
The Royal Opera House streams opera and ballet for free
London’s operatic institution is presently shuttered indefinitely, but tune in to its Facebook page or YouTube channel at the right time and you can bring a programme of high art into your living room.
Four of Matthew Bourne’s amazing ballets are now available to stream
For the first time ever, four of the radical choreographer’s archive productions are available to watch online, including Bourne classics ‘Swan Lake’ (2019), ‘Romeo and Juliet’ (2019), ‘Cinderella’ (2017) and ‘The Car Man’ (2015).
Stream fringe theatre from around the world
It’s not just major institutions that are making their catalogues available online to theatrophiles. A whole host of smaller venues and companies have uploaded videos to Scenesaver, a new pay-what-you-wish streaming website giving independent, fringe theatre a presence during lockdown. The productions are mostly from the UK but also include shows from Ireland, the USA and even Namibia.
Stream classic operas by Verdi, Mozart and Puccini for free
Streaming platform OperaVision has vastly expanded its free online programme in the wake of the global lockdown, and has just announced twice-weekly streams starting on April 3. This month the theme is Italy, the birthplace of opera, and its continuing influence around the world.
London’s home of dance is streaming shows for free
London’s most famous dance theatre, the legendary Sadler’s Wells, has had its entire programme suspended. Fortunately, it’s opening up its substantial digital vaults during our current crisis, presenting new content on its streaming platform Digital Stage.
The Australian Ballet performs Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella and Romeo & Juliet
The Melbourne-based company is popping cinema-quality classics from its back catalogue onto its website – including artistic director David McAllister’s celebrated take on ‘The Sleeping Beauty’.
Watch shedloads of plays with a Marquee TV trial
Marquee TV has a huge amount of top-notch Royal Shakespeare Company stuff, Oscar Wilde plays, ballet work and operas – and it’s offering a 30-day free trial. Whatever happens, we’re all gonna come out of this terrible thing a lot more cultured.
Watch classic musicals with a BroadwayHD trial
A streaming service specifically aimed at theater lovers, BroadwayHD offers a slate of almost 300 whole, high-quality, professionally filmed live performances from Broadway, the West End and beyond. Subscriptions cost just $8.99 a month – and for new subscribers, the first week is free.
A pioneering theatre company will be broadcasting new plays during lockdown
‘Unprecedented: Real Time Theatre from a State of Isolation’ is a series of new, digital short plays created using a team of socially distanced actors and playwrights via digital conferencing technology, that will be performed partially live, partially pre-recorded in April.
Also streaming: concerts by top musical artists
Awesome live-streaming concerts and DJ nights to enjoy from home
With music festivals and venues closed for the foreseeable future, artists are doing what we’ve all been doing—that is, taking to the digital realm and essentially living there for the time being