TDF Stages

With in-person theatre a rarity for the foreseeable future, many companies and performers from Broadway and beyond are showcasing their work online. Below are performances you can watch this Easter weekend, Friday, April 2 to Sunday, April 4, for free or at low cost.

Friday, April 2

Broadway Backwards
Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS presents a virtual edition of its annual fundraiser Broadway Backwards, featuring stage stars performing songs originally written for someone of a different gender. Brand-new numbers and archival recordings are integrated into a fantastical story about an isolated New Yorker (Broadway vet Jay Armstrong Johnson) who goes on an imaginary journey guided by a late-night TV host, played by Tony nominee Jenn Colella. Catch new performances by Stephanie J. Block, Deborah Cox, Lea Salonga, James Monroe Iglehart, Cheyenne Jackson, L Morgan Lee, Raymond J. Lee, Ruthie Ann Miles, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Jessie Mueller, Kelli O'Hara, Karen Olivo and Bernadette Peters, as well as vintage numbers from Broadway Backwards past with Tituss Burgess, Len Cariou, Carolee Carmello, Darren Criss, Ariana DeBose, Cynthia Erivo, Andrew Keenan-Bolger, Michael McElroy, Bonnie Milligan, Debra Monk, Andrew Rannells, Chita Rivera, Lillias White and Tony Yazbeck. Watch for free until Saturday on Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS' YouTube channel though donations are encouraged.

The Shows Must Go On!: Jesus Christ Superstar: Live Arena Tour
On Friday at 2 p.m. ET, The Shows Must Go On! celebrates Easter and its one-year anniversary with a restream of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's iconic musical Jesus Christ Superstar. This over-the-top rock spectacle was filmed in 2012 and stars comedian/Matilda songwriter Tim Minchin as Judas Iscariot, former Spice Girl Melanie C as Mary Magdalene and Ben Forster as Jesus. That's the buzz! Watch for free until Sunday at 2 p.m. ET on YouTube.

Virtual Halston: Harriet Harris and Edward Hibbert
On Friday at 5 p.m. ET, Broadway funny lady Julie Halston welcomes two of her hilarious peers to her chatfest: Tony winner Harriet Harris and superb second banana Edward Hibbert. The two costarred in the musical comedy It Shoulda Been You, and Harris worked with Halston in a revival of The Man Who Came to Dinner. We're laughing just thinking about these three talking. Watch for free on YouTube.

Mike Daisey: What the Fuck Just Happened?
On Friday at 7 p.m. ET, starting today, NYC theatres are allowed to open at 33% capacity and it's no surprise that master monologist Mike Daisey (The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs, If You See Something Say Something) is eager to be one of the first performers back on stage in front of a live audience. Thankfully, his brilliantly and bluntly titled What the Fuck Just Happened? is also being streamed to at-home viewers. Well-known for his insightful, no-holds-barred takes on our dysfunctional societal relationships to Amazon, Apple and the American defense industry, Daisey turns his attention to what we've all been through the past 12 months—as individuals and as a community. If you're looking to start purging this collective trauma, digesting what Daisey has to say is a great first step! Tickets are $15.

The Metropolitan Opera: Werther
On Friday at 7:30 p.m. ET, the Metropolitan Opera presents Werther, Massenet's adaptation of Goethe's epistolary novel starring Jonas Kaufmann as the tortured title character, whose passion for Sophie Koch's Charlotte leads to tragedy. Lisette Oropesa, David Bižic and Jonathan Summers costar in Richard Eyre's 2014 mounting. 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.

Stars in the House: Disaster! Broadway Victims Game Night
On Friday at 8 p.m. ET, Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley host one of their popular Game Nights on Stars in the House. Tonight, cast and creative team members from Rudetsky's campy Broadway musical Disaster! compete for glory, including book cowriter and director Jack Plotnick, actors Paul Castree, Casey Garvin, Travis Kent and Maggie McDowell, and choreographer JoAnn M. Hunter. Watch for free on YouTube though donations to The Actors Fund are encouraged.

Fabulous Fanny: The Songs and Stories of Fanny Brice
On Friday at 9 p.m. ET, if you only know Fanny Brice as Barbra Streisand's character in Funny Girl, time to get schooled. Kimberly Faye Greenberg portrays the legendary Jewish singer, comedian and Ziegfeld Follies star in this solo show, which delves into her incredible career and dramatic life. Expect torch songs, old-school shtick and Baby Snooks! (No relation to yours truly.) Tickets are $10.

Saturday, April 3

NY PopsUp: Broadway Performance
On Saturday at 1 p.m. ET, NY PopsUp is hosting its inaugural performance in a Broadway theatre! Although the in-person event is invite-only with details like where and who under wraps, audiences can watch from home on Instagram. We expect some big stars to turn out for this milestone event, which marks the first time actors are performing for an in-person audience in a Broadway house since March 11, 2020! Watch for free on NY PopsUp's Instagram Live.

The Metropolitan Opera: L'Elisir d'Amore
On Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET, the Metropolitan Opera presents L'Elisir d'Amore, Donizetti's charming rom-com about a spirited landowner, a lovesick peasant and a purported love potion that may lead to romance. Tony-winning director Bartlett Sher staged this 2012 mounting featuring Anna Netrebko, Matthew Polenzani, Mariusz Kwiecien and Ambrogio Maestri. Watch for free for 23 hours after the start time on the Metropolitan Opera's website. You can still stream yesterday's opera, Werther, until 6:30 p.m. ET today.

Metropolitan Playhouse: The Girl
On Saturday at 8 p.m. ET, Metropolitan Playhouse, an Obie-winning company that revives forgotten works, presents a reading of The Girl, Edward Peple's 1924 dramedy about a man who has everything except the woman he wants—but wooing her isn't as easy as he thinks. Michael Hardart directs Timothy C. Goodwin, Luke Hofmaier and Perri Yaniv. Watch for free on the company's YouTube channel though donations are encouraged.

Bringing You Broadway Benefit Concert
On Saturday at 8 p.m. ET, Bringing You Broadway, an organization that develops interactive performances for children on the autism spectrum, presents a benefit concert featuring Tony winner Lena Hall, Tony nominee Constantine Maroulis, Frozen's Ryann Redmond, Wicked's Jackie Burns, Derek Klena from Jagged Little Pill and other Broadway regulars. Tickets start at $20 and the recording is viewable until Tuesday, April 6 at 8 p.m. ET.

Stars in the House: DIVOS! Game Night
On Saturday at 8 p.m. ET, Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley host one of their popular Game Nights on Stars in the House. Tonight, cast members from the cult movie DIVOS!, about high school theatre rivals, compete for glory! Watch for free on YouTube though donations to The Actors Fund are encouraged.

Sunday, April 4

The Shows Must Go On!: The Railway Children
On Sunday at 10 a.m. ET, in honor of its first anniversary, The Shows Must Go On! presents a second weekend stream: the family show The Railway Children. Based on E. Nesbit's classic children's book, the Olivier Award-winning production centers on the adventures of three siblings, who move to a house near the railway after their father is wrongfully convicted of espionage. This eye-popping spectacle features an incredible steam locomotive on stage. Watch for free until Tuesday at 10 a.m. ET on YouTube.

The Seth Concert Series: Matt Doyle
On Sunday at 3 p.m. ET, apparently, hosting a daily online talk show and a Sirius XM Satellite Radio series isn't enough for the multitalented Seth Rudetsky. Well-known for his skills as a pianist, musical director and interviewer, he's hosted a series of intimate live concerts with Broadway stars for the past decade. This year he brings the show online and today's headliner is Matt Doyle. When theatres shut down last March, the Broadway favorite was starring in the gender-reversed revival of Company, stopping the show nightly with his superb rendition of "Getting Married Today." We're hoping he'll give a taste of his genius performance in that musical, as well as songs from other shows he's done, including The Book of Mormon, Spring Awakening, Bye Bye Birdie and the Huey Lewis tuner The Heart of Rock & Roll. Tickets are $25. The 3 p.m. performance is live; 8 p.m. is the replay.

The Metropolitan Opera: Tristan und Isolde
On Sunday at 7:30 p.m. ET, the Metropolitan Opera presents Tristan und Isolde, featuring Nina Stemme and Stuart Skelton as the doomed title couple whose all-consuming love defies the law. Mariusz Trelinski's 2016 mounting costars Ekaterina Gubanova, Evgeny Nikitin and René Pape. Watch for free for 23 hours after the start time on the Metropolitan Opera's website. You can still stream yesterday's opera, L'Elisir d'Amore, until 6:30 p.m. today.

All Weekend

National Theatre Live: War Horse
On Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 1, 4, 7 and 10 p.m. ET, National Theatre Live presents War Horse, the profoundly moving tale of a boy searching for his beloved steed against the bloody backdrop of World War I. Based on Michael Morpurgo's novel of the same name and adapted for the stage by Nick Stafford in association with the brilliant Handspring Puppet Company, the production was a smash, first at London's National Theatre and then on Broadway where it won five 2011 Tony Awards, including Best Play. This mounting was filmed in London and is streaming to benefit independent cinemas around the US. Tickets are $15.

Amour
On Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., and Sunday at 5 p.m. ET, get ready to fall in love with Amour, a romantic musical comedy featuring Broadway vets Drew Gehling (Waitress) and Christiani Pitts (A Bronx Tale: The Musical). In the picturesque Paris neighborhood of Montmartre, a lowly civil servant discovers that he can walk through walls. He uses his new power to change lives for the better as he builds the confidence to win over his beautiful crush. Michel Legrand wrote the songs for this magical fantasy about love, self-worth and dreams coming true. Rachel York and Tony nominees Derrick Baskin and Adam Pascal costar. Tickets are $20 but if you're a TDF member, log in to your account to purchase them at a discount.

American Conservatory Theatre: Trouble in Mind
San Francisco's lauded American Conservatory Theater kicks off its A.C.T. Out Loud reading series spotlighting prescient plays with Alice Childress' Trouble in Mind. A groundbreaking examination of racism in the theatre industry, the 1955 satire centers on a Black actress starring in an anti-lynching drama on Broadway who challenges the show's all-white creative team. NYC's Roundabout Theatre Company is scheduled to mount the Broadway premiere of Trouble in Mind later this year, but you can get a taste of this play's brilliance with this virtual presentation, headlined by NYC stage stalwart Patrice Johnson Chevannes and Tony nominee David Harbour. The busy Awoye Timpo directs. Tickets start at $5 and the recording is viewable until Sunday.

The Joyce Theater: Step Afrika!: Stono
Chelsea dance haven The Joyce continues its digital season with Step Afrika!'s powerful Stono, which uses the troupe's signature blend of percussive, traditional African and contemporary dance to evoke the little-known Stono slave rebellion of 1739 in South Carolina. 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 Wednesday, April 14.

San Francisco Ballet: Jewels
California's acclaimed San Francisco Ballet presents George Balanchine's glittering gem Jewels, a full-length abstract ballet featuring three separate sections: Emeralds, Rubies and Diamonds, set to music by Fauré, Stravinsky and Tchaikovsky. Tickets are $29 but if you're a TDF member, log in to your account to purchase them at a discount. The recording is viewable until Wednesday, April 21.

Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company: Rich Kids: A History of Shopping Malls in Tehran
Washington, DC's Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company presents Rich Kids: A History of Shopping Malls in Tehran, Javaad Alipoor's multimedia exploration of the global class divide. The second installment of a trilogy examining identity in our high-tech age, this dark comedy fuses online performance and a live Instagram feed to examine entitlement, consumption and social media through the eyes of Iran's elite. Tickets are $18 and the recording is viewable until Sunday, April 18.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater: Blues Suite
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater shares a 1985 recording of Blues Suite, the ballet that launched the invaluable dance troupe in 1958. Ailey was just 27 when he choreographed this half-hour piece, which is set in a rural Texas Depression-era sporting house, as revelers dance, drink and flirt to blues music. Watch for free until Tuesday, April 13 at 5 p.m. ET on the troupe's YouTube channel.

New Light Theater Project: The Jackson C. Frank Listening Party w/ Special Guests
Off-Off Broadway's inventive New Light Theater Project presents Michael Aguirre's genre-defying The Jackson C. Frank Listening Party w/ Special Guests. A man named Allen plays the sole album by folk singer Jackson C. Frank, whose career was cut short by schizophrenia and depression. In between tracks, Allen shares the story of his older brother, who disappeared for an entire year. Sarah Norris directs Aguirre in this one-man meditation on isolation, mental illness and the power of music. Register to receive the free viewing link; a $15 donation is suggested. The recording is viewable until Sunday, April 11.

Goodman Theater: Pedro Páramo
Chicago's lauded Goodman Theatre gives audiences a peek at its archives with a recording of Pedro Páramo. Based on Juan Rulfo's influential 1955 novel of the same name, the production was created by Cuba's Teatro Buendía and presented at the Goodman in 2013 featuring a cast of American and Cuban actors. A pioneering work of magical realism, the story centers on a young man who travels to his recently deceased mother's hometown to track down his long-lost father. The show is performed in Spanish with closed captioning in English and Spanish. Reservations are required to receive the free viewing link and the recording is viewable until Sunday, April 11.

New York City Center: Matthew Bourne's Romeo and Juliet
New York City Center wraps up its New Adventures Festival of Matthew Bourne ballets with Romeo and Juliet. The visionary choreographer presents a powerful take on the old tragedy, set in a not-too-distant dystopian future with the star-crossed couple stuck as inmates in the oppressive Verona Institute. Cordelia Braithwaite and Paris Fitzpatrick headline the production, which was filmed on stage at Sadler's Wells Theatre in London in 2019. Tickets are $15 and the recording is viewable until Sunday.

George Street Playhouse: Fully Committed
New Jersey's George Street Playhouse presents a new online production of Becky Mode's Fully Committed, a satire of NYC's haute cuisine scene. 30 Rock star Maulik Pancholy plays more than 40 characters in this one-man comedy, including an aspiring actor/harried restaurant reservationist who's having a really bad day, along with all of his demanding patrons. The 1999 play was initially a smash Off Broadway, and was revamped and revived on Broadway in 2016. With sitcom and stage vet Pancholy as the main ingredient, this digital reimagining is a delicious tour de farce. Tickets are $33 but if you're a TDF member, log in to your account to purchase them at a discount. The recording is viewable until Sunday, April 11. Closed captions and audio description are available.

New York City Center: American Theatre Ballet: A Ratmansky Celebration
New York City Center presents an evening of works by American Ballet Theatre's celebrated resident choreographer Alexei Ratmansky. The program was recorded live on stage at City Center sans audience and features excerpts from The Seasons, Seven Sonatas and The Sleeping Beauty, as well as the world premiere of Bernstein in a Bubble, set to music by Leonard Bernstein. Tickets are $25 and the recording is available until Sunday, April 18.

New Normal Rep: Jericho
It's your last chance to watch New Normal Rep's Jericho, a poignant drama by Jack Canfora about a Jewish family on Long Island navigating the emotional minefield of a post-9/11 Thanksgiving gathering. Four-time Academy Award nominee Marsha Mason directs a cast headlined by L.A. Law star Jill Eikenberry and Eleanor Handley, who are reprising their roles from the play's 2013 critically acclaimed Off-Broadway run. 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 Sunday.

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

Top image: Ben Forster in Jesus Christ Superstar: Live Arena Tour, which is streaming this Easter weekend. Photo by Tristram Kenton.