TDF Stages

In-person theatre is back in NYC, both on Broadway and beyond. So we'll be phasing out these streaming roundups soon as more shows (re)open. I'm so glad virtual performances helped keep us going while theatres were dark. Below are performances you can watch online this weekend, Friday, September 10 to Sunday, September 12, for free or at low cost.

Friday, September 10

Bryant Park: Classical Theatre of Harlem
On Friday at 7 p.m. ET, Classical Theatre of Harlem presents excerpts from two exciting new works in person at Bryant Park, but you can also stream the performance at home. A Harlem Dream is Peter Francis James' vibrant reimagining of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream set during the Harlem Renaissance. Three-time Tony nominee Joshua Henry stars in Walter Marks' music-filled play Langston In Harlem about legendary poet Langston Hughes. This is a fabulous way to see one of Off-Off Broadway's most innovative theatres in action! Watch for free on Classical Theatre of Harlem's website or arrive at the green space early to attend in person. Entry is first come, first served, and proof of vaccination or recent negative COVID-19 test is required.

Saturday, September 11

Table of Silence Project 9/11
On Saturday at 8 a.m. ET, choreographer Jacqulyn Buglisi presents a hybrid adaptation of her annual Table of Silence Project 9/11, which commemorates the September 11 attacks. In the past, more than 150 dancers have gathered around Lincoln Center's Revson Fountain to perform this moving tribute. But this year in order to avoid crowding, 32 dancers will perform the piece's prologue as well as an excerpt from Buglisi's Requiem, followed by a recording of the 2019 mounting of the full ritualistic work. Watch for free all weekend on YouTube.

Third Rail Projects: Return the Moon
On Saturday at 8 p.m. ET, endlessly inventive immersive theatre company Third Rail Projects (Then She Fell, The Grand Paradise) presents Return the Moon, a live, interactive, created-for-Zoom theatrical experience that uses a fairy tale about the moon as a way to conjure art and community. Conceived and directed by Zach Morris, the 75-minute piece is performed for a small audience who participate in the evening's outcome and even receive a post-performance gift in the mail. Log on ready to share. Tickets start at $15.

Saturday, September 12

Live from Feinstein's/54 Below: Zurin Villanueva: Little Love Note
On Sunday at 9:45 p.m. ET, even though Feinstein's/54 Below has reopened for in-person performances, the swanky cabaret club is continuing to stream select shows live from its stage. Tonight, catch Broadway vet Zurin Villanueva (Mean Girls, Shuffle Along, The Lion King) in Little Love Note, a concert featuring musical theatre staples alongside '90s pop hits and R&B favorites. Villanueva's fellow Broadway babies Dayna Dantzler and Trevon Davis guest star. Tickets are $15. If you prefer to attend in person, click here for info.

All Weekend

Barrington Stage Company: Aaron Tveit in Concert
Earlier this summer, Moulin Rouge! Tony nominee Aaron Tveit performed a sold-out concert at Barrington Stage Company in the Berkshires. Now you can watch a recording of that exciting event at home, as the Broadway dreamboat croons songs from his musical theatre career, including roles in Wicked, Hairspray and Catch Me If You Can, along with pop and rock favorites. Tickets are $35 and the recording is viewable until Sunday.

Irish Repertory Theatre: Angela's Ashes: The Musical
NYC's venerable Irish Rep presents Angela's Ashes: The Musical, a stage adaptation of Frank McCourt's beloved memoir about his colorful but challenging upbringing in Ireland dealing with his drunken father, depressive mother, pompous priests and bullying schoolmasters. With songs by Adam Howell and a book by Paul Hurt, this musical debuted in Ireland in 2017 starring Jacinta Whyte as the title character and Eoin Cannon as McCourt. That production was recorded live on stage and Irish Rep presents its North American debut. Tickets are $30 and the recording is viewable until Wednesday, September 22.

Apple TV+: Come From Away
The Tony-nominated musical Come From Away reopens on Broadway on September 21. But starting this weekend on Apple TV+, you can stream a live stage capture of this uplifting true story about a small Newfoundland community that welcomed 7,000 stranded airplane passengers on 9/11. Recorded on stage at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre during the shutdown with a handful of September 11 survivors and frontline workers in the audience, the production stars many members of the original Broadway cast, including Tony nominee Jenn Colella, Petrina Bromley, Joel Hatch, Caesar Samayoa, Q. Smith and Sharon Wheatley. Featuring lovely numbers by songwriting spouses Irene Sankoff and David Hein and directed by Christopher Ashley, who won a Tony for his inventive staging on Broadway, Come From Away is a hopeful way of marking the somber 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks. Free to stream for Apple TV+ subscribers. Not a subscriber? You can get a seven-day free trial.

PBS: Wicked in Concert
It's your last chance to watch Wicked in Concert, a celebration of Stephen Schwartz's beloved Broadway blockbuster. Wicked's original frenemies Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel host the evening, which features new arrangements of the musical's popular songs performed by Broadway powerhouses Cynthia Erivo, Ali Stroker, Rita Moreno, Gavin Creel, Isaac Powell and Stephanie Hsu, alongside TV stars Alex Newell (Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist), Ariana DeBose (Schmigadoon!), Amber Riley (Glee) and Gabrielle Ruiz (Crazy Ex Girlfriend), country crooner Jennifer Nettles and comedian Mario Cantone. None of these singers have been in Wicked, which is the point. They share fresh and exciting takes on these familiar tunes, which is, as the Wizard says, wonderful. Watch for free until Sunday on PBS' website.

PBS Great Performances: Broadway: Beyond the Golden Age
It's your last chance to watch Broadway: Beyond the Golden Age, the long-awaited sequel to the award-winning 2003 documentary Broadway: The Golden Age, By the Legends Who Were There, written, directed and produced by the late Rick McKay. Hosted by two-time Tony nominee Jonathan Groff, this new movie focuses on Broadway between 1959 and 1980, and features a starry lineup of artists sharing remembrances about the original productions of Once Upon a Mattress, Bye Bye Birdie, Pippin, A Chorus Line, Ain't Misbehavin' and other beloved shows. Enjoy interviews with Alec Baldwin, Carol Burnett, Glenn Close, André De Shields, Jane Fonda, Robert Goulet, Liza Minnelli, Chita Rivera, Dick Van Dyke and Ben Vereen alongside rare vintage clips. Watch for free until Saturday on PBS Thirteen's website.

Lantern Theater Company: Me and the Devil
Renaissance man Steve H. Broadnax III, who's poised to make his Broadway debut as the director of Thoughts of a Colored Man, cowrote, costars and helms Me and the Devil, a new play with music about blues great Robert Johnson. According to legend, the guitarist, singer and songwriter made a deal with the Devil for his talents. Broadnax plays Lucifer and Lawrence Stallings is his mark in this show, which finds Johnson trying to extract himself from the contract to save his soul. Tickets are $20 and the recording is viewable until Sunday, October 17.

Alvin Ailey: Back-to-School Program Featuring Students from The Ailey School
The incomparable Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater celebrates the back-to-school season with performances by students from its lauded school. The program includes a special duet choregraphed by Freddie Moore set to "Hallelu" by Toshi Reagon, as well as a performance by company members Clifton Brown and student dancers in Bird Lives!, inspired by Alvin Ailey's tribute to jazz legend Charlie "Bird" Parker. Watch for free until Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET on Ailey's YouTube channel though donations are encouraged.

Jacob's Pillow: Ballet Coast to Coast
The Berkshires' lauded Jacob's Pillow dance festival resumed in-person performances this summer, but select events are also being streamed to at-home audiences. Catch leading artists from Boston Ballet, Houston Ballet and Pacific Northwest Ballet is this brand-new program of solos and group pieces recorded live on stage earlier this season. RSVP to receive the free viewing link though donations are encouraged. The recording is viewable until Thursday, September 23 at 6 p.m. ET.

Chebutykin
On Friday at 7 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 7 p.m. ET, emerging playwright Christiane Swenson presents Chebutykin, her cheeky prequel to Chekhov's Three Sisters centered on a drunk old doctor (is there any other kind in 19th-century Russia?!) who starts seeing the ghost of his dead pal. Delaney Circe directs an ensemble cast led by Joel Bernstein (Mozart in the Jungle, Born Yesterday on Broadway) as the pickled physician of the title. Register to receive the free viewing link.

New York Theatre Workshop: Semblance
Last month, Off Broadway's invaluable New York Theatre Workshop reopened with Semblance, a filmed theatrical experience by Obie-winning writer-director Whitney White examining how Black women are perceived. Now a streaming version of the show is available, challenging viewers to consider how they see and interact with Black women. Nikiya Mathis (Skeleton Crew) embodies all the characters. Tickets are $10 and the recording is viewable until Sunday, October 24.

Jacob's Pillow: STREB Extreme Action
The Berkshires' lauded Jacob's Pillow dance festival resumed in-person performances this summer, but select events are also being streamed to at-home audiences. Catch a retrospective of high-energy pieces choreographed by Elizabeth Streb, who fuses acrobatics, aerial arts and contemporary dance. This program chronicles STREB's evolution from experimental solos in the '70s and '80s to breathtaking 21st-century action epics featuring wild circus-style contraptions. RSVP to receive the free viewing link though donations are encouraged. The recording is viewable until Thursday at 6 p.m. ET.

Signature Theatre: Detroit '67
Virginia's lauded Signature Theatre presents Detroit '67, the first installment in Tony-nominated playwright Dominique Morisseau's Detroit Project exploring different periods in her beloved hometown's history. This powerful family drama about two Black siblings squabbling over how to move forward takes place against the backdrop of the Detroit Rebellion, as tensions rise indoors and outside. Directed by Candis C. Jones, this production was filmed live on stage. Tickets are $35 but if you're a TDF member, log in to your account to purchase them at a discount. The recording is viewable until Thursday.

Rattlestick Playwrights Theater: Ni Mi Madre
On Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday at 4 p.m. ET, NYC's acclaimed Rattlestick Playwrights Theater is presenting a hybrid season, with its productions performed in person but also streamed to at-home audiences. First up is Arturo Luís Soria's autobiographically inspired solo show Ni Mi Madre, about the complex relationship between an over-the-top Brazilian woman and her queer son as they grapple with identity and what it means to be an immigrant family in America. Tickets are usually $40 for both streamed and in-person performances at Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, although Sunday's performance is pay-what-you-wish.

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Raven Snook is the Editor of TDF Stages. Follow her at @RavenSnook. Follow TDF at @TDFNYC.

Top image: Broadway star Aaron Tveit, whose solo concert is available to stream all weekend.