In episode 5 of the Filmed Live Musicals podcast, Luisa chats with Brenda Braxton about the filmed live musicals When Hell Freezes Over I’ll Skate and Smokey Joe’s Cafe, the Tony Awards, working on The Good Fight, who Brenda would cast in a filmed live version of Chicago, and Act 2… Now What?. 
Brenda Braxton is an award-winning actor, dancer, and singer who has performed around the world, and on multiple Broadway productions including the African American version of Guys and Dolls, But Never Jam Today, Dreamgirls, Cats, Smokey Joe's Cafe, and Chicago. Brenda founded Leading Ladies Just for Teens, the BBRAXTON Exceptional Grooming for Exceptional Men, and Act 2... Now What?. She is also the author of The Little Black Book of Backstage Etiquette. Learn more at www.bbraxtonact2.com. 

Available now on your favorite podcast app! If you like what you hear, please subscribe, and rate and review!

Looking for some more historical musicals? Here are 20 filmed live musicals, most of which are available to view online or on DVD, that are based on true events and real people. Listed in approximate historical time period order.

Jesus Christ Superstar
Perhaps a bit contentious to some to call this “history” (my husband Aaron calls this one “interpretive dance history”), but it’s certainly historically driven and a story about one of the most famous people in history. There are currently two filmed live productions of JCS in the database — the 2012 arena tour starring Tim Minchin (Judas), Melanie C (Mary), and Ben Forster (Jesus), and NBC’s 2018 live for TV version (one of the best TV Live! musical events of recent times) that featured a starry, and multiracial, cast including John Legend (Jesus), Sara Bareilles (Mary), Alice Cooper (King Herod), Norm Lewis (Caiaphas), and Brandon Victor Dixon (Judas). The arena tour is widely available online, and the NBC production is available on DVD.

Your Arms Too Short to Box with God
Written by Vinnette Carroll (the first female African American director on Broadway), with music by Alex Bradford and Micki Grant, this musical tells the story of Jesus as told through the Book of Matthew. The musical was performed on Broadway three times between 1976 and 1982. It was most recently performed by Florida’s Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, where it was filmed live during a run that was cut short by the COVID-19 shutdown. The recording was released online for a limited time, but is not currently available to view.

Wasted
Produced in 2018 by Southwark Playhouse, this original “documentary rock musical” tells the stories of Brontë siblings, Anne, Emily, Charlotte, and Bramwell. An excellent archival recording of Wasted was released online for free as a result of the pandemic, and is available to view via Southwark Playhouse.

Les Miserables
Based on Victor Hugo’s historical novel of the same name, Les Miserables is not set during the French Revolution, but is based on the uprisings that took place a few decades later (as brilliantly described by Forbidden Broadway). Although the stories and characters in Les Mis are fiction, they are drawn from Hugo’s close observations of Paris life. The musical has been filmed live three times, the 10th anniversary concert, 25th anniversary concert, and, most recently, last year’s West End staged concert. All three versions are available on DVD, and the 25th anniversary and staged concert are available online. 

Pacific Overtures
Sondheim’s 1976 concept musical is set around Commodore Perry’s first visit to Japan in 1853. The musical was filmed live for Japanese television during its original Broadway run. The film has not been officially released since its initial television airing.

The King and I
Rodgers and Hammerstein’s sumptuous musical is based on the true story of Anna Leonowens, a Western woman who was invited by the King of Siam to Bangkok to tutor the King’s children. The 2015 Lincoln Center revival directed by Bartlett Sher, and starring Kelli O’Hara, Ken Watanabe, and Ruthie Ann Miles, was filmed during its West End transfer at the London Palladium, and is available to watch on BroadwayHD.

Newsies
Newsies is loosely based on the real-life events of the newsboy strikes of 1899 in New York City. The 1992 movie musical directed by Kenny Ortega and starring Christian Bale was a cult classic, and in 2011 Disney adapted the title into a stage musical. Although originally not intended to be a Broadway musical, the show also became an audience favorite, playing just over 1000 shows on Broadway before embarking on a national tour. The tour was filmed live in Los Angeles, and is now available to view on Disney+.

Ragtime
Based on E.L. Doctorow’s historical fiction novel, Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty’s epic musical is about the United States coming into its own, told through the stories of three different families in New York at the beginning of the twentieth century. The International Festival of Musical Theatre production was filmed by the BBC in 2002, but is unfortunately not available to view.

Ernest Shackleton Loves Me
This multimedia musical that tells the story of Brooklyn-based avante-garde composer/artist/mom who finds inspiration in the early 20th century explorer, leader, and hero Ernest Shackleton. Filmed live during its off-Broadway run at Second Stage and is available on BroadwayHD.

Funny Girl
Another biographical musical, Funny Girl is a slightly-fictionalized account of real-life vaudeville star Fanny Brice. With music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Bob Merrill, and book by Isobel Lennart. Barbara Streisand created the lead role on Broadway, and starred in the 1968 film adaptation. The acclaimed Menier Chocolate Factory production starring Sheridan Smith was filmed live during its run at the Manchester Palace Theatre in 2017 and is available on Digital Theatre and BroadwayHD.

Golden Bricks and Ruby Shoes
Still in development, this original song cycle by British writers Gillian Pencavel and Patrick Moore, was inspired by a news report about the FBI assisting in the recovery a pair of stolen ruby slippers made famous for their appearance in The Wizard of Oz. The song cycle was performed at a scratch night at Belfast’s Accidental Theatre and streamed live.

Allegiance
Actor George Takei was reportedly moved to tell his own story after watching Lin-Manuel Miranda’s first Tony Award winning musical (and Broadway debut), In the Heights. As a child, Takei and his family were among the 120,000 Japanese-American citizens incarcerated in camps on American soil during World War II. Although Allegiance is told through fictionalized characters, the events and stories are inspired by true events. Allegiance was briefly available to stream on Broadway on Demand in June this year, and is also available on a collector’s edition DVD.

V for Victory 
Still in development, V for Victory explores the lives of a group of friends in the resistance against the German occupation of Jersey during World War II. The plot and characters are an amalgam of true stories and events which writer Dries Janssens wanted to share after learning of Jersey’s little-known part in the war. V for Victory was performed at the Stockwell Playhouse in 2018, and is currently available to view on YouTube. 

The Rat Pack: Live from Las Vegas
This British musical recreates a performance featuring Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis Jr, at the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas in the early 1960s. The Rat Pack was filmed live during its West End run and is available on DVD (region 1 & 2).

Fun Home
Based on cartoonist Alison Bechdel’s best-selling graphic novel/autobiography of the same, Fun Home is a re-telling of Alison’s grappling of her own self-realization as a lesbian in relation to her father’s not-so-secret, though unspoken, homosexuality. With a book by Lisa Kron and music by Jeanine Tesori, the Broadway production was the first to win a Tony Award for Best Original Score with an all-female writing team. Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago released an archival recording of their 2017 production during the COVID-19 shutdown for a limited time.

Taboo
Set during the New Romantic period in 1980s England, Taboo interweaves autobiographical elements from the lives of Australian artist Leigh Bowery, and music sensation Boy George. The original London production was filmed live in 2003 and is available on region 2 DVD.

Fela!
Fela! was based on the biography Fela: This Bitch of a Life! by Carlos Moore. Fela Kuti was an influential Nigerian musician who created Afrobeat, politically and socially driven music that blended African harmonies and rhythms with jazz and funk. Sahr Ngaujah originated the title role on Broadway, and reprised his role for the London transfer at the National Theatre. Fela! was filmed live and broadcast in cinemas as part of NT: Live in 2011. It is not currently available to view.

Keating! the Musical
This satirical Australian musical follows the political rise and fall of “the Placido Domingo of Australian politics,” of Paul Keating, who was Prime Minister of Australia from 1991 to 1996. Filmed live at the Seymour Centre in Sydney, the musical is available on DVD.

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie
Inspired by the BBC documentary Jamie: Drag Queen at 16, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie tells the story of a gay teenager who lives in a Yorkshire council estate and dreams of becoming a drag queen. The musical was filmed live on the West End and broadcast in cinemas. It is not currently available to watch.

Passion Project in Concert
Composed by performer and songwriter Angela Sclafani, Passion Project is a song cycle about twelve unsung women from history who sing to their great loves, the object of their careers. The women represented include an aviator singing to her airplane, an acrobat to her tightrope, and an astronomer to her comet. Filmed live at NYC’s Green Room 42, Passion Project is available to view on Facebook.

In episode of 4 of the Filmed Live Musicals podcast, host Luisa Lyons chats with dancer and performer, and former optical engineer, Lena Wolfe about virtual and augmented reality and how it can be used in theatre today. 

Lena Adele Wolfe is originally from Tucson, AZ and currently lives in NYC. She stayed in the sunny southwest city to graduate from The University of Arizona with a B.F.A in Dance and a B.S. in Optical Sciences and Engineering. Her performance credits include The Great American Dance Tour through eastern China with Art.If.Act Dance project, a yearly bout in Verlaine & McCann’s Through The Looking Glass: The Burlesque Alice and Wonderland, one performance wonder kicking off the holiday season with Saks Fifth Avenue: Theatre of Dreams and eye-high kicking Christmas in the Air at the Beau Rivage in Biloxi, MS. Before taking the plunge as a full time performing artist, Lena was an Optical Engineer on the display team for the original Microsoft HoloLens, the first consumer grade augmented reality device. She is currently investigating interactive media and digital performance spaces. Follow Lena on Instagram.

For info on Lena's favorite VR experience, check out Dear Angelica on Oculus Rift. 

The podcast is available wherever you listen to podcasts. If you like what you hear, please rate and subscribe! 

In case you somehow missed it, one of the most vaunted musicals in history, Hamilton was released on Disney+ on July 3rd. While Hamilton is not the first Broadway musical to be streamed online, its prominence and undeniable success may finally be shifting some very deep seated views that filmed live theatre can’t adequately capture the live experience, and that filmed live theatre should exist at all. In an unprecedented move, it was announced earlier in the month the yet-to-officially-open Broadway musical Diana, would be filmed (without an audience) and broadcast on Netflix. 

Many people know by now that Disney acquired the distribution rights for the filmed live production of Hamilton for approximately $75million (the final figure was adjusted due to the pandemic and the decision to release it online rather in cinemas). Much like Hamilton and Burr, you gotta be in the room where it happens to get the figures on how much Hamilton is bringing Disney financially, but it seems to bode well. As reported in Variety, early data suggests the musical had a significantly larger audience than any other single program across Netflix, Prime Video, Hulu, Apple TV+, and Disney+ in July. 
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Much like Hamilton and Burr, you gotta be in the room where it happens to get the actual figures on how much Hamilton is bringing Disney financially. At the end of June, just prior to the release of Hamilton, Disney+ reported it had 54.5 million subscribers (for comparison, Netflix currently has about 190 million subscribers worldwide). According to Variety, in comparison to the four weeks prior, the weekend of Hamilton’s digital release saw a 74% increase in Disney+ app downloads within the United States, and 46% worldwide. At the beginning the August, Disney+ reported it had 60.5 million subscribers. These numbers do not include subscribers who purchased subscriptions through packages or where Disney+ is included in existing apps.

Going forward, there are still many questions for producers for consider: when to release filmed live productions, who gets access (due to copyright or union agreements, films may not be able to be released worldwide), if viewers should pay to access streams and for how much, how to fairly compensate cast/crew/creatives, and what platforms to use.

With all that in mind, here’s a look at existing models for distributing filmed live musicals online: 

Free 
Online video platforms like YouTube and Vimeo have made it easier than ever to just upload existing footage. During the pandemic big names like Andrew Lloyd Webber and the National Theatre have released content for free online. Companies such as Southwark Playhouse, Chichester Festival Theatre, Wise Children, and Wales Millennium Centre, and independent artists like Dave Malloy and Angela Sclafani, have also made filmed live musicals freely available. 

The quality of free recordings varies greatly. From productions staged in black box theatres filmed with a camera on a tripod located behind the audience like Beardo, to slick captures like the arena production of Jesus Christ Superstar. Sometimes recordings were made for archival purposes, like Only the Brave and Wasted. Archival recordings vary in quality, but thanks to digital cameras, recent captures make for decent viewing. 

The length of time free streams are available can vary. Some are placed online indefinitely, such as The Room and Passion Project. Others, like titles from the National Theatre at Home, The Shows Must Go On, or Wise Children, have a limited window ranging from 48 hours to several weeks. 

Unless the producers/creatives uploading material for free are covering the cost of paying artists for use of their work on screen, cast, crew, and creatives are less likely receive any income from free streams. The exception to this is new platform SceneSaver, which encourages viewers to donate the cost of an average ticket, and shares 95% of donations directly with artists (for more info, take a listen to episode 2 of the Filmed Live Musicals podcast for an interview with SceneSaver founder Caroline Friedman).

Especially during the pandemic, viewers are often encouraged to make a donation to the theatre company, or to a selected charity or organization.

Paid
There are several kinds of paid options: one-off payments, subscriptions, and passes. 

One-off payment 
Viewers make a one-time payment or purchase a “ticket” to gain access to the stream. The stream is often played at a scheduled time, and then is available on demand for a limited time. These films usually have a set period of availability, and are sometimes are also limited to a specific number of streams. Occasionally, as in the case of 21 Chump Street: The Musical, the payment provides indefinite access. Companies using this model include Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, Broadway on Demand, and Streaming Musicals. 
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Like free streams, the quality of content can vary. Particularly during the pandemic, when companies and artists are desperate for cashflow, archival footage not intended for mass consumption has been distributed. 

The pricing for one-off payments ranges, though is usually between $10 - $30 USD. Although it is not common, instead of a set price, viewers are sometimes given the option to make a donation, or pay-as-you-like. 

Subscriptions
Following the Netflix model, subscriptions provide access to a catalog of shows. In the subscription model, like Netflix, titles are usually available for longer periods of time, and can appear and disappear. Most subscriptions run for a year, though some also provide month-to-month payments at a slightly higher rate. BroadwayHD, Stage, PBS, and Disney+ all currently use the subscription model.

Passes
Passes work in a similar way to a subscription, but often for a limited time. Prima, a theater in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, have created passes as varying price points for viewers to gain access to online content. As have SheNYC Arts, a female led organization running online festivals based in New York, Los Angeles, and Atlanta over the summer. 

Combinations
Some companies use a combination of models. Broadway on Demand offers some content for free, some content for a one-off fee, and also plans to offer a subscription in the future. Streaming Musicals hosts free premiere nights, and titles are available to rent or buy through one-off payments. Digital Theatre offers an all-access yearly subscription, or the option to rent individual titles. While BroadwayHD offers monthly and yearly subscription models, throughout the pandemic they have been hosting free watch parties in partnership with Playbill, Roundabout, and the Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization.

As live theatre online becomes more and more mainstream, and as we learn more about the number of views and profits from ticket sales, it will be interesting to see which models are adopted.

In episode 3 of the podcast, Luisa chats with the founder and artistic director of Prima, Mitch Nugent. Based in Lancaster, PA, Prima is a non-profit organization focused on invigorating lives through fresh theatrical experiences. 

An experienced actor, director, and producer, Mitch has led Prima from its start in 2010 as a nomadic organization, to its own home in 2018. On the west side of Lancaster City, Prima’s new venue offers an exciting location for boutique musicals, concerts and special events. 

We chat about how Prima has responded to the COVID-19 crisis, what it takes to put theatre online, developing drive-in theatre, and how bootlegs are akin to medical marijuana! 

Subscribe to the Filmed Live Musicals podcast on your favorite app, or take a listen below. 

Learn more about Prima at https://primatheatre.org/. ​

With the pandemic came a plethora of filmed live theatre content being released online. Many in the industry were genuinely surprised that audiences wanted to watch theatre on screen, and even pay for it! As discussed with Caroline Friedman - CEO of the new theatre streaming service Scenesaver - in this month’s podcast, we have been recording live theatre since the invention of the moving picture. 

Despite the fact that the first live broadcast of a musical took place in 1939, and even with the release of Hamilton last month, the theatre industry as a whole is still not savvy to the history, magic, and importance of filmed live theatre. In a recent interview for The TheaterMakers Studio, CEO and Editor-in-Chief of BroadwayWorld, claimed that “very little” has happened in the world of filmed live theatre despite decades of discussions. The nearly 200 musicals in the Filmed Live Musicals database heartily disagree! And that doesn’t even include the hundreds, possibly thousands, of operas, plays, ballets, and classical concerts that have been captured and enjoyed by literally millions of people around the world! 

After the release of Hamilton, Jon Kamen, CEO of RadicalMedia, reportedly claimed that with the filming of RENT: Live on Broadway in 2008, RadicalMedia had "developed the nomenclature and a whole style of filming it in a very cinematic fashion.” Again, the producers of Pacific Overtures (filmed live in 1976), Into the Woods (filmed in 1991), and the cinematographers for the Met Live in HD, founded in 2006, all might have something to say about that.
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We still have to answer questions of when to release films, and how to fairly pay the cast, crew, and creatives, but these should not be obstacles to documenting theatre. Filming live theatre provides access to theatre for people who may not be able to see a production due to geography, cost, or disability. It is an incredible educational tool, not just for students, but for historians, industry folks, and the wider public. Digital technology has made captures easier, more dynamic, and more watchable than ever. 

All of this is why I started Filmed Live Musicals. As a place to catalog the musicals that have been legally captured for the screen and publicly distributed, to provide a space for people to find that content, and to show the historic value of filmed live musicals. Ultimately, it is a way to capture ephemeral moments in time so that we may enjoy them, learn from them, and remember the musicals, even when the bodies inside the now-disintegrated costumes have turned to dust.

On episode 2 of the Filmed Live Musicals podcast, Luisa chats with Caroline Friedman, founder of new theatre streaming of Scenesaver. 

Scenesaver is the only website making performances from off Broadway, off- West End, small theatres, and emerging artists accessible to everyone online. It's free to register and watch with 150 shows of all genres from around the world available now. New work is being added all the time.  

Available on all podcast apps now! 

Filmed Live Musicals now has a podcast! We will talk about the world of filmed live musicals, interview creatives, actors, producers and industry folks, look at the research being carried out on filmed theatre, dive into some history, and, of course, talk about the musicals themselves!  

​In our first episode, host Luisa Lyons and guest host Al Monaco take a look at firsts in filmed live musicals. 

In episode two, out on August 3, Luisa chats with the founder of Scenesaver, Caroline Friedman. Scenesaver is a new platform making performances from the world's off-Broadway, off West End, small theatres, and emerging artists available to everyone online. It's free to register and watch with over 150 shows of all genres from around the world available now! ​

Subscribe on your preferred podcast app and join us for the Filmed Live Musicals podcast! 

The impact of COVID-19 has been horrendous. Half a million lives lost around the world, entire industries shut down, and many businesses having to close their doors for good. The theatre industry has, of course, also been hit hard. With a loss of revenue from ticket sales, and the uncertainty of when theatres will be able to safely re-open, many artists and theatre companies are facing bleak futures.

If there is an “upside” of the pandemic, it’s that there has never been a better time for filmed live theatre content. When theatres were ordered to shutdown, companies and artists around the world flocked to put content online (you can find  a detailed list here). Some companies have even reported that revenue from online streaming has allowed them to at least cover the cost of streamed productions.

The popularity of online theatre content, coupled with the digital release of one the most vaunted musicals of all time, Hamilton, means that many in the industry have been awakened to the exciting possibility of filmed live theatre.

Since the Broadway shutdown began on March 12, hundreds of theatrical productions have been made available online. I know of at least 60 musicals that meet criteria for the database — a stage musical legally filmed in front of a live audience and publicly distributed — and over half of those have already been added to the database. Many productions are released for a limited time, have a limited number of available streams available, or are not well-advertised, and I’m sure there are even more! It’s an exciting, and sometimes overwhelming time for someone trying to keep track of the content!

The wealth of content has meant a rise in streaming services created just for theatre content. Here's a quick look at services providing filmed live musical theatre content. 

BroadwayHD
A leader in filmed live theatre content, BroadwayHD has one of the most extensive musical theatre catalogues available. Current titles include 42nd Street, An American in Paris, Billy Elliot The Musical, Falsettos, Kinky Boots, Miss Saigon, Sunday in the Park with George, The Wind in the Willows and more. During the shutdown, BroadwayHD have been partnering with other organizations such as Playbill, Lincoln Center, and the Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization to release select titles for free for one-off watch parties.

Broadway On Demand
Despite the title, Broadway on Demand has very little Broadway content. A new initiative I’m excited about though is the Global Spotlight Series showcasing musicals from around the world. The first offering is a South Korean production of Xcalibur, a re-telling of the King Arthur legend by Frank Wildhorn starring K-Pop star DK, Kim Jun Su and Kai.  

Digital Theatre
A pioneer in the industry, the British company Digital Theatre have been streaming live theatre content since 2009. The company also provides a wealth of content for educational institutions. Current musical offerings include Funny Girl starring Sheridan Smith, new British musical Pieces of String, and the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre production of Into the Woods. Other theatre content includes productions from the RSC, Stage Russia, and content from the West End and across the United Kingdom.

Scenesaver
The brainchild of British producer (and Royal Central School of Speech and Drama alum), the new service aims to make content from off-WestEnd and fringe theatres more accessible. All content is available for free, and 100% of any donations are passed onto the artists.

The Shows Must Go On
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s initiative to provide content during the shutdown. New content is released for free each week, and each title is usually available for around 48 hours. Previous musicals include the arena production of Jesus Christ Superstar, The Phantom of the Opera Live from Royal Albert Hall, and the Australian production of Love Never Dies.

Streaming Musicals
Created by the writer of Daddy Long Legs, this new site is dedicated to musical theatre content. Musicals are available to rent per-show, and profits are shared with the artists. Currently only has a one filmed live musical, an adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, and several “Soundstage Musicals,” an attempt at a new form that is a hybrid between a film and a stage music

New Musicals
It isn’t only existing works that are getting air time. New musicals are being workshopped and showcased through the pandemic.

The brain-child of director Adam Lenson (who directed Wasted, the new British musical about the Brontë’s), SIGNAL Online is “A global, multi-location, live-stream of songs from new musicals.” Concerts are presented every Tuesday at 2pm GMT, and although they are available to watch for free, donations are strongly encouraged.

For almost 15 years, New York Theatre Barn has been providing a space for new works and emerging artists. Since the beginning of the shutdown, their New Works Series has been streaming online. New content every Wednesday at 7pm ET on YouTube. ​

What will you be watching? Do you know of other theatre-specific streaming services? Drop me an email or follow Filmed Live Musicals on Twitter!