At the moment, the world is a very strange place, with the majority of us confined to our homes for the foreseeable future. In particular, all theatres have been ordered to close, and many productions cancelled or postponed (including ETC’s production, originally planned for June!).
There are, however, still many ways to enjoy the theatre from the comfort of your own home, and here are just a few things that are available:
CULTURE IN QUARANTINE
As part of BBC Arts new “Culture in Quarantine” initiative, BBC Four will be screening six plays from the RSC (dates to be announced):
· Macbeth (2018)
· Hamlet (2016)
· Romeo and Juliet (2018)
· Much Ado About Nothing (2014)
· Othello (2015)
· The Merchant of Venice (2015)
All six plays will also be available on iPlayer.
NATIONAL THEATRE LIVE
National Theatre Live will be streaming some of their most popular productions on Youtube every Thursday at 7pm, starting from next week:
· 2nd April: One Man, Two Guvnors
· 9th April: Jane Eyre
· 16th April: Treasure Island
· 23rd April: Twelfth Night
For the duration of the Coronavirus pandemic, students of state-funded schools can access the entire NTLive collection (all 24 productions!) through Theatre Online.
MARQUEE TV
Marquee TV offers plenty of recorded theatre productions, including productions by Donmar Warehouse, The RSC and The Globe. A subscription costs £8.99 a month, but with a 30 day free subscription, this might be a perfect opportunity for a theatre binge whilst you’re stuck at home.
The RSC are offering a live “watch along” of their production of Twelfth Night (2017) on Saturday 11th April starting at 7.15pm. Tune in and get involved using the hashtag #AlmostLiveFromTheRSC.
DIGITAL THEATRE
Digital theatre contains productions from a range of practitioners including Frantic Assembly, L.A. Theatre Works and the RSC. Their collections also includes some BBC film adaptations of famous plays. Digital Theatre costs £9.99 a month, or you can rent specific productions for a limited time from £7.99. Digital Theatre Plus offers some of these productions to university students – most students are able to log in using their standard university account regardless of their course of study, and access content for free!
THEATRE ONLINE
Theatre Online offers a range of productions to watch, including the entire NTLive collection, the Classic Spring Oscar Wilde collection and the BBC Hollow Crown series. The site also gives students access to a wide range of scripts, from classic plays to contemporary pieces. All of this can be accessed using your standard university log-in.
ETC ONLINE
Our website also has plenty of scripts to get your teeth into, so why not have a look?
Stay home, stay safe!
Tom Morley, March 2020
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