• Home
  • Musicals
  • Podcast
  • Calendar
  • Blog
  • Subscribe
  • About
  • Store
  • Contact
FILMED LIVE MUSICALS
  • Home
  • Musicals
  • Podcast
  • Calendar
  • Blog
  • Subscribe
  • About
  • Store
  • Contact

News Round-Up (Aug 18)

8/18/2023

0 Comments

 
Picture
This Week on the Filmed Live Musicals Calendar

​Discover new musicals:
  • We’ve Battled Monsters Before - a new American-Filipino indie-folk musical)
  • Rathskeller: A Musical Elixir - a rock and roll musical set in a mythical dive bar
  • The Boy Who Kissed the Sky - inspired by the early life of Jimi Hendrix​​ ​

Cabarets
Catch performances by Broadway veterans and a cabaret featuring the talents of Broadway standbys, understudies, and alternates!

Last Chance!
It’s your last weekend to livestream Opera Wyoming’s macabre musical Ride the Cyclone.
Find out where you can watch these musicals and more
​in the Filmed Live Musicals streaming calendar!
Calendar

This page contains affiliate links and as an associate, Filmed Live Musicals may earn a small commission from qualifying purchases made through these links at no extra cost to you.
Immersive Audio Sondheim
Masterworks Broadway have released “immersive audio” editions of the original cast albums of Sweeney Todd, Assassins, Into the Woods, and Company. Sondheim himself consulted on the remastering of each album prior to his death in 2021. Each album is available via Apple Music, Amazon Music, and Tidal. 

Where to Stream:
Sweeney Todd: Amazon, Apple
Assassins: Amazon, Apple
Into the Woods: Amazon, Apple
Company: Amazon, Apple

​
For more info visit Masterworks Broadway.
New books
  • Fixing the Musical: How Technologies Shaped the Broadway Repertory 
Doug Reside, curator of the Billy Rose Theatre Division at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts makes the case for the fact that the musicals we most remember are those which most effectively used their era's best recording and distribution technologies to document and share the work with those who would never see the original production on Broadway. The book will be available from August 25, 2023. Available for pre-order via Amazon and Bookshop.org.
  • THE TONY AWARDS: A CELEBRATION OF EXCELLENCE IN THEATRE
A new coffee table book by Eila Mell and the American Theatre Wing featuring over 130 interviews, and 400 photographs celebrating the history of over 75 years of Broadway greatness. The book also features a forward by six-time Tony winner Audra McDonald. Currently available for pre-order, the book will be released in April, 2024. Pre-order via Amazon or Bookshop.org.

More Musical Theatre Games: Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical
Last week I shared info on the new Hamilton Simulator, and this week saw the launch of another musical-themed game Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical. Gods. Romance. Murder. Musical Numbers?! Play as Grace in a world where Greek Gods live in hiding among us. Change your fate as you draw friends, foes & lovers into song using your powers of musical persuasion to unravel the mystery of the Last Muse's death. The game features music by Grammy-nominee Austin Wintory, and Australian musicians Tripod (Scott Edgar, Steven Gates, and Simon Hall), and Montaigne. The character voices are provided by The Last of Us actors Laura Bailey and Ashley Johnson, along with Felicia Day, Troy Baker, Mary Elizabeth McGlynn, and Merle Dandridge as the Gods. Stray Gods is available now on STEAM, Nintendo Switch, Xbox and X/S, PC and PS4/5.

SIX: Teen Edition

The Teen Edition of the international hit musical SIX is now available for licensing in the US via Concord Theatricals. It is also available in the UK. A release date on the West End capture of the musical has yet to be announced.

Children of Eden

A special one-night-only concert performance of John Caird and Stephen Schwartz’s Children of Eden was filmed at the Cadillac Palace Theatre in Chicago in October, 2022. The production featured over 150 performers, including Michelle Williams, Randal Keith, Koryn Hawthorne, David Phelps, and Sam Tsui. The film is expected to be released later this year.
0 Comments

What I've Been Looking For

1/20/2023

0 Comments

 
Picture

New Search Functions! 

There are new search features available to help you find the musicals you're looking for in the database! 

You can now search for musicals by:
  • where to watch,
  • title,
  • composer, 
  • where it was filmed - Broadway, West End, regionally, and by country,  
  • by representation in the creative team, such as BIPOC, women creatives, languages other than English; and 
  • by theme, such as family friendly, LGBTQ, high school, operetta, literature and more! 

For example, you can use the Themes filter to search for "literature" and find filmed live musicals based on books like Daddy Long Legs, The Wind in the Willows, or Candide. Or use the Representation filter to search for "women creatives" and locate musicals written or directed by women such as Shrek, Come From Away, or The SpongeBob Musical. If you're in the mood for some Sondheim, use the Composer search to find all the filmed live Sondheim musicals! Or use the Where to Watch filter to find musicals to watch online like all the musical above! 

The site is not yet a complete list of every filmed live musical ever made, but if you want to help us get closer to that goal, consider becoming a Patron!
 Just $3 a month gives you early access to site content and the podcast, and you'll be helping to preserve the history of filmed stage musicals, and contribute to the curation of a one easy place to find them all.

Take a look through the database now to find your new favorite musical! 
Take Me To the Database
0 Comments

Ep 41: Ben Rimalower & Sweeney Todd

5/9/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
On episode 41 of the Filmed Live Musicals podcast, host Luisa Lyons chats with author, director, actor, and producer Ben Rimalower. Topics include the importance of cast recordings, working with Patti LuPone, creating the one-person show Patti Issues, and how Ben came to work with Lonny Price. We also take a deep dive into the 2001 Sweeney Todd with San Francisco Symphony Orchestra starring Patti LuPone and George Hearn, for which Ben was the assistant director.

BEN RIMALOWER is the author and star of the long-running solo plays Bad with Money (The Advocate’s #1 of 2014) and Patti Issues (New York Time Critics Pick, M.A.C. and Bistro Awards), available as a double audiobook on iTunes, Audible and Amazon, as well as host of the Broadwayworld/Broadway Podcast Network co-productions, Ben Rimalower’s Broken Records and Next Year, Some Year. He writes the theatre column in Metrosource Magazine and is a frequent contributor to Vulture, Out, The Huffington Post and Time Out New York, with past regular columns at Playbill, Broadwayworld and Decider. Ben directed Snoopy! (Symphony Space, starring Tony winners Sutton Foster and Christiane Borle), the Off-Broadway plays Joy (Actors Playhouse) and The Fabulous Life of a Size Zero (Daryl Roth/DR2 Theatre, starring Gillian Jacobs and Anna Chlumsky), and a slew of solo shows, most notably conceiving and directing Leslie Kritzer is Patti LuPone at Les Mouches and subsequently producing Ghostlight Records’ “Patti LuPone at Les Mouches.” He is recognizable around the world for his four seasons on Bravo’s “The Real Housewives of New York City” as the writer-director of Luann de Lesseps’s record-breaking cross-country cabaret sensation, Countess And Friends. He also co-wrote de Lesseps’s hit single, “Feelin’ Jovani.” 

Follow @benrimalower on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube and visit benrimalower.com.

Patti Issues and Bad with Money are available via Audible (as an Amazon Associate I may earn from qualifying purchases from this link). 
Filmed Live Musicals is the most comprehensive online searchable database for musicals that have been filmed live on stage. Visit www.filmedlivemusicals.com to learn more. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. You can also support the site at Patreon. Patrons get early access to content, no matter how much you pledge. 

Filmed Live Musicals is created by Luisa Lyons. Luisa is an Australian actor, writer, and musician. She holds a Masters in Music Theatre from London's Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and now lives, works, and plays in New York. Learn more at www.luisalyons.com or follow on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. 
​
Enjoyed this podcast? Make sure to leave a review on Apple Podcasts! 
0 Comments

Ep 39: Bonus Sondheim!

4/13/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
On this bonus Sondheim episode, hear extra content from previous chats with historian Margaret Hall about Stephen Sondheim's early life and career. You'll also hear from playwright Caridad Svich, composer Matt Board, and actor John Patrick Sabatos, who shared their memories of watching filmed live Sondheim musicals and why pro-shots are important for musical theatre today.

Margaret Hall is one of the foremost emerging theatre historians of her generation. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drama (Musical Theatre) from New York University, Tisch School of the Arts, and is currently obtaining her Masters in Musical Theatre History from New York University, Gallatin School of Individualized Study, the first degree of its kind to be granted worldwide. Margaret is currently the Night and Weekend Editor for Playbill.com, in addition to her work as a teacher of musical theatre history. Her first book, Gemignani: Life and Lessons from Broadway and Beyond will be released Spring 2022. Follow @itsmargarethall and sign up for Margaret’s monthly newsletter at www.margaret-hall.com. 
​
Pre-order Gemignani: Life and Lessons from Broadway and Beyond (as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases from this link).

Caridad Svich - https://caridadsvich.com/
Matt Board - https://soundcloud.com/mattboardcomposer
Enjoyed this podcast? Leave a review and help spread the word!
0 Comments

Ep 38: Company

3/31/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
It’s part three of our three-part Sondheim special! Host Luisa Lyons chats with Margaret Hall all about the 2011 filmed live musical Stephen Sondheim’s COMPANY with the New York Philharmonic.

Margaret Hall is one of the foremost emerging theatre historians of her generation. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drama (Musical Theatre) from New York University, Tisch School of the Arts, and is currently obtaining her Masters in Musical Theatre History from New York University, Gallatin School of Individualized Study, the first degree of its kind to be granted worldwide. Margaret is currently the Night and Weekend Editor for Playbill.com, in addition to her work as a teacher of musical theatre history. Her first book, Gemignani: Life and Lessons from Broadway and Beyond will be released Spring 2022. Follow @itsmargarethall and sign up for Margaret’s monthly newsletter at www.margaret-hall.com.

​Pre-order Gemignani: Life and Lessons from Broadway and Beyond (as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases from this link).
Enjoyed this podcast? Leave a review and help spread the word!
0 Comments

Where to Watch: Sondheim

2/28/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
In the month of March, Filmed Live Musicals is celebrating Stephen Sondheim! On the podcast, we have a three-part series with musical theatre historian Margaret Hall. Part 1 (Feb 28) is an overview of filmed live Sondheim musicals, part 2 (March 14) will be a deep dive into Pacific Overtures, and part 3 is a deep dive into the 2011 New York Philharmonic production of Company, the musical that inspired this very website! 

To accompany this week's episode on filmed live Sondheim musicals, here’s a list of where you can watch those musicals! 

This post contains affiliate links, and I may earn income from qualifying purchases made through these links.

Candide
  • 1986 New York City Opera: not officially available
  • 1988 Scottish Opera: not officially available
  • 1989 Barbican Theatre (conducted by Bernstein): DVD
  • 2004 Lincoln Center concert: DVD

Company
  • 1996 Donmar Warehouse production: was released on DVD, but now appears to be out of print.
  • 2007 Broadway revival: DVD and Blu-Ray
  • 2011 New York Philharmonic concert: DVD

Follies
  • 1985 concert version documentary: DVD
  • 2013 Opera de Toulon production: DVD (Region 2 only)
  • 2017 National Theatre production: Not available beyond its initial cinema release, though Symphony Space in NYC is holding encore cinema screenings March 30 - 31, 2022. 

Gypsy
  • 2015 West End revival: Apple TV, Amazon, DVD

Into the Woods
  • Original Broadway production: Amazon, Blu-Ray, DVD
  • 2010 Regent's Park Open Air Theatre production: Digital Theatre, Apple TV

Merrily We Roll Along
  • 2013 Menier Chocolate Factory production: Digital Theatre (UK only)

Pacific Overtures
  • Original Broadway production: YouTube

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
  • Original Broadway production filmed live on tour in Los Angeles in 1982: Apple TV, Amazon, DVD, BroadwayHD
  • Concert version with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra (2001): DVD and Blu-Ray
  • Concert version with the New York Philharmonic (2014): Not officially available

Passion
  • Original Broadway production filmed for American Playhouse: DVD
  • Lincoln Center concert version: not officially available

Putting it Together
  • Original Broadway production: Apple TV, DVD, BroadwayHD

Sunday in the Park with George
  • Original Broadway production: Apple TV, DVD,
  • Theatre du Chatelet (2013): not officially available

In 2015 Image Entertainment released the Stephen Sondheim Collection, a 6-disc DVD collection of Sondheim’s work including Into the Woods (1990), Company (2011), Sunday in the Park with George (1986), Follies in Concert (1985), Sweeney Todd (2001), and Sondheim: The Birthday (2010), though it appears to currently be out of print.

You can learn more about all of the above musicals in the Filmed Live Musicals database. There are more to be added, including the 1994 National Theatre and 1995 Barcelona productions of Sweeney Todd. Know of other filmed live Sondheim recordings? Send us an email! Remember, to be included in the database, a musical must have been legally filmed in front of a live audience, and made available to the general public. 

Happy watching! 
0 Comments

Ep 36: Sondheim & Margaret Hall (Part 1)

2/28/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
Join host Luisa Lyons for a 3-part chat with musical theatre historian Margaret Hall where we'll be discussing the work of Stephen Sondheim! 

In part 1, take a fun tour through the catalog of filmed live Sondheim musicals. You can also learn about Margaret’s journey from 
Bones to Wicked, how she started teaching and writing about musical theatre history, and how advice from Michael Cerveris compelled her to take on the project of writing Paul Gemignani’s memoir. 

Part 2 (out March 14) will be a deep dive into Pacific Overtures, and Part 3 (out March 28) will look at the 2011 New York Philharmonic concert production of Company, the musical that inspired this very website! 


Margaret Hall is one of the foremost emerging theatre historians of her generation. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drama (Musical Theatre) from New York University, Tisch School of the Arts, and is currently obtaining her Masters in Musical Theatre History from New York University, Gallatin School of Individualized Study, the first degree of its kind to be granted worldwide. Margaret is currently the Night and Weekend Editor for Playbill.com, in addition to her work as a teacher of musical theatre history. Her first book, Gemignani: Life and Lessons from Broadway and Beyond will be released Spring 2022. @itsmargarethall

Want to hear more? As a special bonus, patrons also receive extra content from this episode where Margaret shares details about Sondheim's early life until the 1970s​! To get access, become a patron today! 
Enjoyed this podcast? Leave a review and help spread the word!
0 Comments

Ep 16: Benita de Wit

3/11/2021

0 Comments

 
Picture
This week on the Filmed Live Musicals podcast, host Luisa Lyons chats with New York-based Australian director Benita de Wit.  

We chat about creating pertinent work with college students during a pandemic, the LIU Post Sondheim cabaret One More Thing Not to Think About, what makes a good theatre capture, what makes theatre “live” and human, why a student production of Kiss Me, Kate stuck in Benita’s memory, the upcoming stream Alter/Ego and how Bowie is relevant to Gen Z, and what it means to theatricalize pop music.

Benita de Wit is a New York-based Australian director of theatre and performance.  They are the Associate Director for the international tour of  “Bat Out of Hell” and have an MFA in Directing from Columbia University. Recent credits include “One More Thing Not To Think About” (Post Theatre Company), “The Laramie Project” (Pace University), “Slaughterhouse” by Anchuli Felicia King (Belvoir, 25A), “The Silence” (MIT, Associate Director), "The Moors" (Off Broadway, Assistant Director), "The Rape of The Sabine Women by Grace B Matthias". Benita is an Adjunct Professor at Pace University and an Associate Member of SDC. Learn more at www.benitadewit.com.

Show Links
One More Thing Not to Think About 
https://vimeo.com/jstudiosny/review/486420579/14dffcb021
Password: N3wSw!*LIU2020

The Laramie Project
https://performingarts.pace.edu/current-season

Alter/Ego
https://www.facebook.com/liuposttheatrecompany/
​Filmed Live Musicals is the most comprehensive online searchable database for musicals that have been filmed live on stage. Visit www.filmedlivemusicals.com to learn more. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. You can also support the site at Patreon. Patrons get early access to content, no matter how much you pledge.
0 Comments

Ep 13: Adam Lenson

1/12/2021

0 Comments

 
Picture
This week on the podcast, I interview British director and producer Adam Lenson! We had a great time chatting about Merrily We Roll Along, what should we call filmed theatre, Signal Online, Alt+Right+Shift, making new work without a theatre, filming theatre without an audience, and more! 

Based in London, Adam Lenson is a director, producer, dramaturg, and musical theatre specialist. He was recently included in The Stage 100, a list recognizing theatremakers for their extraordinary achievements in 2020. He is the founder Signal and Signal Online, programs for incubating new musical theatre, Make Your Own Musicals which provides activity packs for children, and Theatrical Solutions which offers affordable solutions for theatrical livestreaming.

As a director, original works include WASTED (World Premiere, Southwark Playhouse), SUPERHERO (World Premiere, Southwark Playhouse), THE SORROWS OF SATAN (World Premiere, Tristan Bates Theatre), LOCK AND KEY (World Premiere, Vault Festival), THE LEFTOVERS (World Premiere, National Tour). Other works include THE RINK (Southwark Playhouse), THE STORM (Helios Collective/ENO),  35MM (The Other Palace), WHISPER HOUSE (The Other Palace), SONGS FOR A NEW WORLD (St James Theatre, 20th Anniversary Production), DISGRACED (English Theatre Frankfurt), DARK TOURISM (Park Theatre), GHOST (GSA), SEE WHAT I WANNA SEE  (Jermyn Street Theatre), REEL LIFE (Ustinov Theatre Bath and St James Studio), THE GOODBYE GIRL (Upstairs at the Gatehouse), WEST END RECAST (Duke of York’s Theatre, Phoenix Theatre), ORDINARY DAYS (Trafalgar Studios), LITTLE FISH and SATURN RETURNS (Finborough Theatre), COME FLY WITH ME (Salisbury Playhouse), THE DEAD GUY (English Theatre Frankfurt) and THE FAMILY (Old Vic US/UK Exchange, Public Theater, NY).

You can learn more about Adam at www.adamlenson.com and follow him on Instagram and Twitter.

Tickets to Public Domain, streaming live on Jan 15 and 16 2021, are available at Southwark Playhouse. ​
0 Comments

My Favorite Things

5/22/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
This morning I was watching the wonderful Lincoln Center concerts featuring Stephanie J. Block (who gave a killer performance in Falsettos) and Sutton Foster on BroadwayHD. The delightful Megan McGinnis made a guest appearance in Sutton’s concert, and it reminded me how much I love Daddy Long Legs, the first off-Broadway musical to be livestreamed. 

It got me thinking about the filmed live musicals that I've fallen in love with over the years, and so, in no particular order, here are a few of my favorites.

Company with the New York Philharmonic
Filmed live at Lincoln Center in 2011, the New York Philharmonic production features a starry cast including Neil Patrick Harris, Patti LuPone, Stephen Colbert, Martha Plimpton, and Anika Noni Rose.

I love this version for its slick production values, amazing performances, and because it was the first filmed live musical I saw in the cinema. It was also the inspiration for starting this database.

Into the Woods
The original Broadway production was taped in 1989, screened on PBS, and eventually made available on VHS and DVD. It was one of the first filmed live musicals I ever saw, and made the world of Broadway accessible to an aspiring theatre nerd who grew up 16,000 miles away.

The Digital Theatre capture of the 2010 Regent’s Park Open Air production of Into the Woods is also a highlight. Steam-punk inspired costumes, a clever use of the narrator, and a great capture that puts you right in the action.

Daddy Long Legs
When Daddy Long Legs was livestreamed in December 2015, I was recovering from treatment for leukemia. Low energy and a compromised immune system meant going to the theatre was not an option for me. It was thrilling to be able to watch an off-Broadway show from the comfort of my couch. The @BroadwayHD capture of this intimate show is top notch, as are the performances by the aforementioned Megan McGinnis and her real-life husband Adam Halpin.

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
The 2014 New York Philharmonic production directed by Lonny Price hands down has one of the best opening sequences ever filmed. This was another production I watched during my leukemia convalescence, and I literally squealed out loud in my lounge room. I’m so sad this capture is no longer available to view or purchase.

Les Miserables: The Dream Cast in Concert
Everything about this concert filmed live at Royal Albert Hall in 1995 is EPIC. The score. The cast of 250 artists and 100 musicians. Philip Quast as Javert. The finale with 17 Jean Valjeans singing “Do You Hear the People Sing?” in multiple languages. What is there not to love?!

When Hell Freezes Over I’ll Skate
The 1979 Theatre in America recording, now available on DVD, is a chance to see a unique “musical drama” and a tiny sample of the ground-breaking work by director and writer Vinnette Carroll. The capture feels a little dated, but it does a wonderful job of preserving some powerful performances. 

What are your favorite filmed live musicals? Share in the comments, or on twitter and facebook!
0 Comments
<<Previous

    Archives

    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    May 2020
    March 2020
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018

    Categories

    All
    AAPI Rep
    Accessibility
    BIPOC
    BIPOC Rep
    Broadway
    Cinema
    Coronavirus
    COVID 19
    COVID-19
    Database
    Disability
    History
    Interview
    Jason Robert Brown
    Languages Other Than English
    LGBTQI
    Libraries
    London
    New Musicals
    News
    New Technology
    NT Live
    NYC
    Off Broadway
    Off West End
    Podcast
    Regional Theatre
    Research
    Sondheim
    Streaming
    Television
    Ticket Sales
    West End
    Women

    RSS Feed

© 2023
  • Home
  • Musicals
  • Podcast
  • Calendar
  • Blog
  • Subscribe
  • About
  • Store
  • Contact