20+ Stage Performances to Watch February 22-23
Monday, February 22
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene: Zalmen Mlotek Living Room Concert for Purim
On Monday at 1 p.m. ET, Zalmen Mlotek—the artistic director of the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, which produced Yiddish Fiddler—performs songs in honor of Purim, a holiday commemorating the saving of the Jewish people from Haman’s murderous plot, as recounted in the Book of Esther. Watch for free on Folksbiene’s website.
On Monday at 5:30 p.m. ET, the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts presents a concert of songs from You Wish!, a jazz-infused musical by emerging duo David Kornfeld and Kyle Segar, who started collaborating at NYU Tisch’s prestigious Graduate Musical Theatre Writing program. Register to receive the free viewing link.
New Federal Theatre: The Meeting
On Monday at 7 p.m. ET, in honor of Black History Month, Woodie King Jr.’s half-century-old New Federal Theatre presents a series of readings of important plays from its past. Tonight, catch Jeff Stetson‘s 1987 drama The Meeting, which imagines a fictional chat between Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X in a Harlem hotel in 1965. Ajene Washington directs Joseph L. Edwards, Tyler Fauntleroy and Beethovan Oden. Watch for free on New Federal Theatre’s website though donations are encouraged.
La MaMA: Experiments: Iseult et Tristan
On Monday at 7 p.m. ET, La MaMa presents Iseult et Tristan, Pia Wilson‘s contemporary reimagining of the old romantic tragedy about the relationship between an Olympic-level boxer struggling with addiction and her attraction to her sister’s fiancé. Watch for free on La MaMa’s website though donations are encouraged.
SCOWL: Digital Defenestration
On Monday at 7 p.m. ET, TDF’s multitalented Tyler Riley is one of the theatre artists behind SCOWL, a NYC-based stage combat and comedy troupe that presents monthly Digital Defenestration smackdowns. Expect punches, punch lines and plenty of puns in the ongoing saga of John Jacob “Formerly The Jingle Hammer” Schmidt, who’s being sued by the dastardly Pat Riarchy, along with other antics. Watch for free on SCOWL’s Facebook page.
Red Bull Theater: The Belle’s Stratagem
On Monday at 7:30 p.m. ET, NYC’s Red Bull Theater, known for reinvigorating forgotten classics, presents a live reading of The Belle’s Stratagem, Hannah Cowley’s 1780 comedy of manners and courtship about a clever young woman who hatches a plan to beguile her condescending fiancé. Former Tootsie costars Lilli Cooper and Santino Fontana headline this romp of mistaken identity and comeuppance; Gaye Taylor Upchurch directs. Watch for free on Red Bull’s YouTube channel though a $25 donation is suggested. A recording will be viewable until Friday at 7 p.m. ET.
The Metropolitan Opera: Il Trovatore
On Monday at 7:30 p.m. ET, the Metropolitan Opera shares David McVicar‘s mounting of Verdi’s Il Trovatore, starring Marcelo Álvarez as Manrico, the passionate troubadour, Sondra Radvanovsky as his lady love and Dmitri Hvorostovsky as the evil Count di Luna who stands in the way of their happiness. Watch for free for 23 hours after the start time on the Metropolitan Opera’s website. You can still stream yesterday’s opera, Turandot, until 6:30 p.m. ET today.
Bindlestiff Family Cirkus: Open Stage Variety Show: Quarantine Edition
On Monday at 8 p.m. ET, the Bindlestiff Family Cirkus continues its live weekly variety show hosted by adorkable ringmaster Keith Nelson. Tonight’s awe-inspiring lineup includes hula hooper Sarah Teakle, juggler Kellin Quinn, aerialist Megumi Yamada and magician David Walbridge. Watch for free on Bindlestiff’s YouTube channel though donations are encouraged.
Tuesday, February 23
The Metropolitan Opera: The Queen of Spades
On Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. ET, the Metropolitan Opera presents Elijah Moshinsky‘s powerful staging of The Queen of Spades, Tchaikovsky’s passionate adaptation of Pushkin’s novel of the same name. Plácido Domingo is the self-destructive antihero and Galina Gorchakova is the woman he loves. Elisabeth Söderström, Dmitri Hvorostovsky and Nikolai Putilin costar in this 1999 production. Watch for free for 23 hours after the start time on the Metropolitan Opera’s website. You can still stream yesterday’s opera, Il Trovatore, until 6:30 p.m. ET today.
Available to Watch Both Days
Crossroads Theatre Company: The Colored Museum
New Jersey’s Crossroads Theatre Company presents an archival recording of The Colored Museum, a scathing satire by George C. Wolfe organized as a series of “exhibits” about African-American culture. The landmark play premiered at Crossroads in 1986 and soon transferred to New York’s Public Theater. In 1991, Crossroads restaged the piece with Wolfe directing many members of the original cast, including Loretta Devine and the late, great Danitra Vance, so it could be filmed for PBS’ Great Performances series. Four decades later, it’s more potent than ever. Watch for free until Sunday on Crossroad’s website though donations are encouraged.
Manhattan Theatre Club: The Past Is the Past
Manhattan Theatre Club spotlights important plays from its five-decade history in the new Curtain Call reading series. First up is The Past Is the Past, an early drama by Richard Wesley produced by MTC in 1975, about two seeming strangers, one middle-aged, the other in college, who end up grappling with the past while shooting pool. This Is Us Emmy winner Ron Cephas Jones and Jovan Adepo (Watchmen, When They See Us) star, and Oz Scott directs. Reservations are required to receive the free viewing link. The recording is viewable until Sunday.
BAM: Riz Ahmed’s The Long Goodbye: Livestream Edition
BAM presents Emmy-winning actor, rapper and activist Riz Ahmed in a digital reimagining of his solo show The Long Goodbye, which was originally scheduled to play the Brooklyn venue last year. Inspired by his album of the same name, the piece blends music and storytelling as Ahmed dissects the United Kingdom’s fraught relationship with South Asians and British Asians, using an abusive relationship as a metaphor for racism and anti-immigrant sentiment. Tickets start at £5, approximately $7, and the recording is viewable until Monday, March 1.
Primary Stages: The Night Watcher
Primary Stages presents an encore stream of Charlayne Woodard‘s autobiographical solo show The Night Watcher, about how she’s served as a maternal figure to many loved ones in her life. A Tony nominee for Ain’t Misbehavin’ and a star of TV’s Pose, Woodard originally performed this show at Primary Stages in 2009 and then reimagined it as a virtual theatre piece last year. It’s a wise and empathetic exploration of what it means to mother. Tickets are pay-what-you-wish and the recording is viewable until Sunday at 11 p.m. ET.
TheaterWorks: Talkin’ to This Chick Sippin’ Magic Potion
Hartford’s TheaterWorks presents Talkin’ to This Chick Sippin’ Magic Potion, a new play by up-and-comer James Anthony Tyler about a professional cuddler whose experience with an isolated client inspires her to reach out to her estranged teenage daughter. Awoye Timpo directs Miriam A. Hyman, Sheria Irving, Jules Latimer, Darius McCall and Mateo Ferro in this digital production. Tickets are $25 but if you’re a TDF member, log in to your account to purchase them at a discount. The recording is viewable until Friday, and ASL interpretation and closed captions are available.
All Arts: Isolation to Creation
Since 1984, the Guggenheim Museum has given audiences behind-the-scenes peeks at upcoming shows in its Works & Process series. But when the pandemic hit, the program changed its focus and began commissioning digital shorts from music, dance and theatre artists. All Arts‘ four-part documentary series Isolation to Creation explores how the pieces were created in our new abnormal. Featured artists include Ephrat Asherie, Les Ballet Afrik, Tony-nominated choreographer Joshua Bergasse, Sara Mearns from New York City Ballet, Alvin Ailey’s Jamar Roberts and singer Justin Vivian Bond. Watch all episodes for free on All Arts’ website.
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Top image: Santino Fontana, who’s starring in a live reading of The Belle’s Stratagem by Red Bull Theater and performing a concert with Seth Rudetsky.
RAVEN SNOOK