12 Stage Performances to See Today, May 5
Ambroise Thomas’ Hamlet at the Met
At 7:30 p.m. ET, the Metropolitan Opera shares its 2010 mounting of Ambroise Thomas’ Hamlet, starring Petersen, Jennifer Larmore, Simon Keenlyside and James Morris, conducted by Louis Langrée. The production was filmed for the company’s Live in HD series, and is available to watch for free for 23 hours after the start time on the Metropolitan Opera’s website. You can still stream yesterday’s opera, Le Nozze di Figaro, until 6:30 p.m. today.
Benj Pasek and Justin Paul on Stars in the House
At 8 p.m. ET, Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley welcome Benj Pasek and Justin Paul to Stars in the House. The Tony and Oscar-winning songwriters behind Dear Evan Hansen, La La Land, The Greatest Showman and Smash are joined by some of the powerhouse vocalists who’ve performed their songs, including Rachel Bay Jones, Jeremy Jordan, Lindsay Mendez and Keala Settle, whose rendition of “This Is Me” from The Greatest Showman is the go-to anthem of self-love and empowerment. This twice daily series supports The Actors Fund, and you can watch for free on YouTube.
New York City Ballet: Rubies
At 8 p.m. ET, New York City Ballet continues its digital spring season with a 2019 performance of George Balanchine’s Rubies from Jewels, featuring Megan Fairchild, Gonzalo Garcia and Mira Nadon in her company debut. . Watch for free on NYCB’s YouTube channel through Friday at 8 p.m.
The Two Noble Kinsmen at Shakespeare’s Globe
London’s Shakespeare’s Globe shares a recording of its 2018 mounting of The Two Noble Kinsmen, a tragicomic love triangle generally believed to be the Bard’s final play written in collaboration with John Fletcher. Watch for free anytime through Saturday, May 17 on the theatre’s YouTube channel.
Frankenstein at the National Theatre
Catch a double creature feature courtesy of the National Theatre. The lauded London company shares its 2011 monster hit Frankenstein, directed by Oscar winner Danny Boyle and featuring Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller alternating in the lead roles. Both versions are available to watch for FREE on YouTube, so it’s your choice whether you want to catch Cumberbatch as the doctor and Miller as his ungodly creation, or see the stars the other way around.
The Wooster Group
Pioneering avant-garde theatre troupe The Wooster Group is posting recordings of some of its seminal works online, including Rumstick Road, Spalding Gray‘s response to his mother’s suicide; To You, the Birdie!, the company’s riff on Racine’s Phèdre; and House/Lights, a mash-up of Gertrude Stein’s Doctor Faustus Lights the Lights and the 1964 B-movie Olga’s House of Shame. If you’ve never seen a show by this influential and iconoclastic company, prepare for nudity, obscurity, multimedia experimentation and Willem Dafoe, who was in many early productions. Watch for free on the Wooster Group’s website.
Sleepover at TADA! Youth Theater
TADA! Youth Theater, NYC’s 35-year-old, Drama Desk Award-winning youth company whose alums include Jordan Peele and Kerry Washington, is sharing recordings of its original hour-long musicals for families. First up is Sleepover, a musical comedy about the drama at a teen sleepover party. The production stars talented tykes from ages 8 to 18 who are members of TADA!’s Resident Youth Ensemble. Watch for free on TADA!’s YouTube channel.
The Misanthrope
Molière in the Park, which usually presents productions in Prospect Park, tried a new venue over the weekend, cyberspace, with a streamed performance of The Misanthrope. You can catch the comedy of manners about a man who rejects social conventions for free anytime through May 6 on YouTube.
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Top image: Jonny Lee Miller and Benedict Cumberbatch in Frankenstein at London’s National Theatre. Photo by Catherine Ashmore.
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