35+ Stage Performances to Watch This Weekend February 19-21
Friday, February 19
La MaMa: Downtown Variety: Serbia Edition
On Friday at 4 p.m. ET, go avant-garde at East Village mainstay La MaMa with this special international edition of Downtown Variety showcasing the experimental work underground artists are doing in Serbia. Eho animato curates and hosts this evening of drag, film, sound art, puppetry and digital arts. Watch for free on La MaMa’s website though donations are encouraged.
Virtual Halston: Megan Hilty and Brian Gallagher
On Friday at 5 p.m. ET, Julie Halston welcomes Tony-nominated Smash diva Megan Hilty and her singer-songwriter husband Brian Gallagher to this weekly chatfest. Watch for free on YouTube.
M-34 Productions: Franz Kafka’s Letter to My Father
On Friday at 7 p.m. ET, M-34 Productions presents Franz Kafka’s Letter to My Father, a one-man dramatization of the anguished but unread 1919 missive the German author wrote to his dad. James Rutherford directs Michael Guagno in this digital production exploring alienation and isolation. Tickets are pay-what-you-wish.
New Ohio Theatre: Hotel Good Luck
On Friday at 7:30 p.m. ET, New Ohio Theatre and The Cherry Artists’ Collective present Hotel Good Luck, Alejandro Ricaño‘s surreal play about a late-night radio deejay who tumbles down a rabbit hole of alternate realities in search of what he has lost. Performed and streamed live from Ithaca’s State Theater, the show stars Seth Soulstein and is directed by Samuel Buggeln. Tickets start at $15.
The Metropolitan Opera: Don Giovanni
On Friday at 7:30 p.m. ET, the Metropolitan Opera presents Franco Zeffirelli‘s staging of Mozart’s Don Giovanni, featuring Samuel Ramey in the title role of the world’s most notorious lover. The production was filmed for the company’s Live in HD series in 1990 and costars Carol Vaness, Karita Mattila, Dawn Upshaw, Jerry Hadley, Ferrucio Furlanetto and Kurt Moll. Watch for free for 23 hours after the start time on the Metropolitan Opera’s website. You can still stream yesterday’s opera, Tosca, until 6:30 p.m. ET today.
Irish Repertory Theatre: The Weir
On Friday at 8 p.m. ET, this winter, the venerable Irish Rep is presenting encore streams of its entire digital season. Tonight, catch The Weir, Conor McPherson‘s haunting 1997 drama about a quartet of Irishmen sharing ghost stories at a pub in order to impress a comely lass. The theatre originally mounted the play in 2013; this virtual adaptation reunites director Ciarán O’Reilly with three cast members from that production, Dan Butler, Sean Gormley and John Keating, along with Amanda Quaid and Tim Ruddy, who appeared in its 2015 encore run. Tickets are free but required to receive the viewing link; donations are encouraged.
Stars in the House: Game Night with Andréa Burns
On Friday at 8 p.m. ET, guest host Andréa Burns invites her stage pals over for a Game Night on Stars in the House. Watch for free on YouTube though donations to The Actors Fund are encouraged.
The Shared Screen: Tape
On Friday at 8 p.m. ET, The Shared Screen presents a Zoom adaptation of Stephen Belber‘s mind-bending Tape, about the tense and toxic reunion of three high school friends whose troubled past bleeds into the present. Usually set in a motel room, this production reimagines the meeting as a video call. Register to receive the free viewing link and stick around for the post-show talkback—this play leaves you with a lot to discuss!
Skylight Music Theatre: Fortunate Sons
On Friday at 8:30 p.m. ET, Milwaukee’s Skylight Music Theatre presents a concert reading of the new musical Fortunate Sons, featuring songs by the legendary Paul Williams. Set in 1969 during the turbulent Vietnam War era, the show examines the impact the draft had on the young generation. Reservations are required to receive the free viewing link.
The Tank: Borders
On Friday at 9 p.m. ET, indie theatre incubator The Tank presents a live performance of Borders, Nimrod Danishman‘s timely play exploring the challenges of modern-day virtual romance, as two men from different countries fall for each other on Grindr. Eli M. Schoenfeld and Adrian Rifat star, and Michael R. Piazza directs. Tickets start at $10.
Saturday, February 20
Irish Repertory Theatre: Love, Noël
On Saturday at 3 p.m. ET, this winter, the venerable Irish Rep is presenting encore streams of its entire digital season. Today, catch Love, Noël, a virtual reinvention of its 2019 celebration of playwright, songwriter and sparkling wit Noël Coward. Barry Day devised this two-person tribute featuring seasoned cabaret stars Steve Ross and KT Sullivan singing Coward’s songs, such as “Mad About the Boy,” “Together with Music” and “I’ll Follow My Secret Heart,” and channeling his famous friends, including Gertrude Lawrence, Marlene Dietrich, Greta Garbo and Elaine Stritch. Tickets are free but required to receive the viewing link; donations are encouraged.
Jazz at Lincoln Center: Catherine Russell – Legacies of Excellence
On Saturday at 6 p.m. ET, Jazz at Lincoln Center presents singer Catherine Russell in a family concert honoring the greats of the genre. A six-piece ensemble backs Russell as she celebrates Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald and other jazz icons. Tickets are available from Jazz at Lincoln Center but if you’re a TDF member, log in to buy them at a discount.
New Federal Theatre: The Meeting
On Saturday 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.
New Ohio Theatre: Hotel Good Luck
On Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET, New Ohio Theatre and The Cherry Artists’ Collective present Hotel Good Luck, Alejandro Ricaño‘s surreal play about a late-night radio deejay who tumbles down a rabbit hole of alternate realities in search of what he has lost. Performed and streamed live from Ithaca’s State Theater, the show stars Seth Soulstein and is directed by Samuel Buggeln. Tickets start at $15.
The Metropolitan Opera: Carmen
On Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET, the Metropolitan Opera presents Franco Zeffirelli‘s staging of Bizet’s Carmen, starring Waltraud Meier as the title character, who captivates all the men around her. Angela Gheorghiu, Plácido Domingo and Sergei Leiferkus costar in this 1997 production. Watch for free for 23 hours after the start time on the Metropolitan Opera’s website. You can still stream yesterday’s opera, Don Giovanni, until 6:30 p.m. ET today.
Irish Repertory Theatre: On Beckett / In Screen
On Saturday at 8 p.m. ET, this winter, the venerable Irish Rep is presenting encore streams of its entire digital season. Tonight, catch Tony winner Bill Irwin in a virtual reimagining of his hit solo show On Beckett. Once again, the acclaimed clown takes the stage at the Chelsea theatre to explore the words and work of the groundbreaking Irish playwright Samuel Beckett. Only this time, no one is in the audience, which makes this meditation on Beckett’s themes of loneliness, loss and decay even more haunting. Tickets are free but required to receive the viewing link; donations are encouraged.
Stars in the House: Beautiful Game Night
On Saturday at 8 p.m. ET, it’s a Beautiful Game Night on Stars in the House featuring Tony winner Jessie Mueller and her costars. Watch for free on YouTube though donations to The Actors Fund are encouraged.
The Shared Screen: Tape
On Saturday at 8 p.m. ET, The Shared Screen presents a Zoom adaptation of Stephen Belber‘s mind-bending Tape, about the tense and toxic reunion of three high school friends whose troubled past bleeds into the present. Usually set in a motel room, this production reimagines the meeting as a video call. Register to receive the free viewing link and stick around for the post-show talkback—this play leaves you with a lot to discuss!
Metropolitan Playhouse: Deceivers
On Saturday at 8 p.m. ET, Metropolitan Playhouse, an Obie-winning company that revives forgotten works, presents a reading of Deceivers, an early vaudeville by William C. deMille (brother of Cecil and uncle of Agnes), who had his own stage and screen successes. In this vignette, a married couple’s distrust unwittingly opens the door to a clever burglar. John Long directs Alberto Bonilla, Deanna Gibson and Todd Lawson. Watch for free on the company’s YouTube channel though donations are encouraged.
Skylight Music Theatre: Fortunate Sons
On Saturday at 8:30 p.m. ET, Milwaukee’s Skylight Music Theatre presents a concert reading of the new musical Fortunate Sons, featuring songs by the legendary Paul Williams. Set in 1969 during the turbulent Vietnam War era, the show examines the impact the draft had on the young generation. Reservations are required to receive the free viewing link.
The Tank: Borders
On Saturday at 9 p.m. ET, indie theatre incubator The Tank presents a live performance of Borders, Nimrod Danishman‘s timely play exploring the challenges of modern-day virtual romance, as two men from different countries fall for each other on Grindr. Eli M. Schoenfeld and Adrian Rifat star, and Michael R. Piazza directs. Tickets start at $10.
Sunday, February 21
M-34 Productions: Franz Kafka’s Letter to My Father
On Sunday at 3 p.m. ET, M-34 Productions presents Franz Kafka’s Letter to My Father, a one-man dramatization of the anguished but unread 1919 missive the German author wrote to his dad. James Rutherford directs Michael Guagno in this digital production exploring alienation and isolation. Tickets are pay-what-you-wish.
New Federal Theatre: The Meeting
On Sunday 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.
Irish Repertory Theatre: Give Me Your Hand
On Sunday at 7 p.m. ET, this winter, the venerable Irish Rep is presenting encore streams of its entire digital season. Tonight, catch Give Me Your Hand, a virtual tour of London’s National Gallery featuring Tony nominee Dearbhla Molloy and Dermot Crowley reciting Paul Durcan poems as paintings are projected. Directed by Jamie Beamish, this is a digital reimagining of the company’s 2012 hit production. Tickets are free but required to receive the viewing link; donations are encouraged.
The Metropolitan Opera: Turandot
On Sunday at 7:30 p.m. ET, the Metropolitan Opera shares Turandot, Puccini’s tale of an aloof princess whose suitors lose their heads over her knotty riddles. Franco Zeffirelli‘s sumptuous staging stars Maria Guleghina as the hard-to-win royal, and Marcello Giordani as the prince who ultimately succeeds. This production was filmed for the Met’s Live in HD series in 2009. Watch for free for 23 hours after the start time on the Metropolitan Opera’s website. You can still stream yesterday’s opera, Carmen, until 6:30 p.m. ET today.
All Weekend
Center Theatre Group: Matthew Bourne’s Romeo and Juliet
On Friday at 8 and 11 p.m., Saturday at 5, 8 and 11 p.m., and Sunday at 4 and 9:30 p.m. ET, Los Angeles’ Center Theatre Group presents Matthew Bourne‘s powerful take on the old Romeo and Juliet ballet, set in the not-too-distant future with the star-crossed couple stuck as inmates in the oppressive Verona Institute. Filmed on stage at Sadler’s Wells in London in 2019, the production features modernized arrangements of Sergei Prokofiev’s score and Cordelia Braithwaite and Paris Fitzpatrick as the titular lovers. Tickets are $10.
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, February 28 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, February 28.
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, February 28 at 11 p.m. ET.
The Joyce Theater: Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE
Chelsea dance haven The Joyce continues its digital season with an evening of solos and duets by Brooklyn-based troupe Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE, which fuses traditional African and Caribbean dance with contemporary movement and spoken word. The program was performed live from the venue on Thursday evening, and a recording is viewable until Thursday, March 4. Tickets are $25.
ACT of Connecticut: Stephen Schwartz’s Snapshots: A Musical Scrapbook
ACT of Connecticut presents Snapshots: A Musical Scrapbook, a chamber musical featuring songs by Stephen Schwartz, the genius behind Wicked, Pippin, Godspell and multiple Disney movie musicals. His iconic hits are integrated into a fresh story about an estranged couple looking back on the decades they shared. The theatre’s artistic director, Daniel C. Levine, helms this intimate digital production. Tickets are $20 but if you’re a TDF member, log in to your account to purchase them at a discount. The recording is viewable until Sunday, February 28.
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, February 26, and ASL interpretation and closed captions are available.
All On Her Own
On Friday at 2:30 and 4 p.m., Saturday at 9:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m., and Sunday at noon ET, Olivier Award-winning British stage star Janie Dee headlines All On Her Own, a 1968 monologue play by Terence Rattigan about a widow reexamining her relationship with her late husband in the middle of an alcohol-soaked night. Alastair Knights directs the half-hour piece, which was filmed at London’s Flemings Mayfair Hotel. Tickets are £11, approximately $15.50.
48Hours in…™El Bronx
The Obie Award-winning theatre collective Harlem9 partners with Pregones / Puerto Rican Traveling Theater for the fourth annual 48Hours in…™El Bronx. Back in December, 30 Latinx theatre artists—six playwrights, six directors and 18 actors—met virtually to conceive, rehearse and record a half dozen shorts in 48 hours, all inspired by the work of the South Bronx photography collective Seis del Sur. These fresh playlets now premiere online. Tickets start at $10 and the recording is viewable until Monday at 7 p.m. ET.
Adjust the Procedure
The pandemic has impacted every industry, but higher education has been permanently transformed. In Jake Shore‘s written-for-Zoom play Adjust the Procedure, a Manhattan university struggles to survive the crises of the past year, including the virus, calls for racial justice, and immigration and mental health challenges. Ed Altman, Adam Files, Meagan Moses and Nicholas Miles star and the playwright himself directs. Tickets are $10 and the recording is viewable until Sunday, March 7.
Theatre Exile: Sin Eaters
On Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., and Sunday at 3 p.m. ET, Philadelphia’s Theatre Exile presents Sin Eaters, a new play by the always provocative Anna Moench about a social media content moderator who comes across a graphic video that derails her life. Matt Pfeiffer directs Bi Jean Ngo and David M. Raine in this adults-only conversation starter. Tickets are $25.
Romeo & Juliet 2021
On Friday at 2:30 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday at 9:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. ET, fall in love with a brand-new digital mounting of Shakespeare’s romantic tragedy Romeo and Juliet. A stage-cinema hybrid filmed last year, the production stars Olivier Award winner Sam Tutty and Emily Redpath as the ill-fated lovers and theatre legend Derek Jacobi narrates. Tickets are £20, approximately $28.
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RAVEN SNOOK