12 Stage Performances to Watch Today, April 20
London’s Hampstead Theatre continues its #HampsteadTheatreAtHome series with a recording of its 2014 production of Tiger Country, Nina Raine’s play about the behind-the-scenes drama in a busy hospital over the holidays. It’s eerily timely. Watch it for free anytime through Sunday, April 26 on the company’s website.
At 2 p.m. ET, Shakespeare’s Globe in London shares a recording of its 2009 mounting of Romeo & Juliet, directed by Dominic Dromgoole and starring Ellie Kendrick and Adetomiwa Edun. Watch it for free anytime through Saturday, May 3 on the theatre’s YouTube channel.
At 6:30 p.m. ET, a reading of Jeff Cohen’s The Soap Myth, a searing drama exploring whether Nazis turned the corpses of some of their Jewish victims into soap, is available to watch for free anytime on WNET’s All Arts website. But in honor of Holocaust Remembrance Day, there will be a free panel discussion at 6:30 p.m. featuring stars Ed Asner and Tovah Feldshuh alongside Holocaust scholar Michael Berenbaum and anti-Semitism expert Ira Forman. Advance registration is required, and participants are encouraged to watch the play beforehand.
At 7 p.m. ET, CreateTheater.com, an online hub for play development, continues its live Monday Night Reading Series with Manuel Igrejas’ Instimacy about a gay couple whose relationship is disrupted by a third party. The performance takes place on the free app Zoom, which you’ll need to download in advance. Get a link to the event by requesting a free ticket.
At 7:30 p.m. ET, the Metropolitan Opera shares its 2016 mounting of Strauss’s Elektra, starring Nina Stemme, Adrianne Pieczonka, Waltraud Meier and Eric Owens, and conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen. 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, Der Rosenkavalier, until 6:30 p.m. today.
At 7:30 p.m. ET, run away with the Bindlestiff Family Cirkus at the troupe’s weekly live-streamed variety show, hosted by adorkable ringmaster Keith Nelson. Enjoy a cavalcade of jaw-dropping acts, including hula hooper Honey Goodenough, tightwire walker Logan Kerr, Mark Lohr and his juggling family and aerialist Francis Stallings. Watch for free on Bindlestiff’s Facebook page.
At 8 p.m. ET, it’s a Difficult People reunion on Stars in the House. Many of the cast members of this Hulu cult comedy are NYC stage vets, including Derrick Baskin (Tony nominee for Ain’t Too Proud), two-time Tony winner Andrea Martin, downtown stalwarts James Urbaniak and Cole Escola. Plus stars and series creators Billy Eichner and Julie Klausner are . This twice daily series hosted by Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley supports The Actors Fund, and you can watch for free on the organization’s YouTube channel.
At 8 p.m. ET, cabaret maven Jim Caruso welcomes renowned singers and up-and-comers at Cast Party, a live-streamed version of his popular weekly gatherings that have taken place at Birdland for decades. Tonight’s lineup includes two-time Tony nominee Kate Baldwin, Aladdin‘s Telly Leung, jazz singer Veronica Swift, and country crooners and spouses Gary Burr and Georgia Middleman. Watch for free on YouTube, though tips via the Venmo app are appreciated.
Remember to check out our roundup of performances you can watch online anytime.
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Top image: Rob McClure in Mrs. Doubtfire at Seattle’s 5th Avenue Theatre. Photo courtesy of the theatre.
RAVEN SNOOK