Recordings of Live Theatre Performances That Will Hold You Over Until Hamilton Hits Disney+
There are fewer and fewer things that keep me going during this year, aka: the worst year in every respect. Thankfully, we now have something huge to look forward to, from Disney+ of all places! This week, the streaming platform released the trailer for the long-awaited filmed production of the original cast of Hamilton, which will begin streaming on July 3rd. The release is a pretty huge deal, as video recordings of live Broadway productions are few and far between, let alone recordings of the most celebrated musical in decades. While I was lucky enough to attend a Broadway performance of the show, it's all the more exciting knowing that Hamilton has become accessible to a much wider audience. There are too many Broadway shows that have come and gone with no preservation (stay tuned for that list in the future), but I thought today I would share some Broadway productions that, like Hamilton, have been recorded for at-home enjoyment. I have indicated some of the streaming options, but many of these are just a YouTube search away... Rejoice, all ye musical buffs, and commence exploring the plethora of offerings ye hath to check out.
Cinderella (1957, dir. Ralph Nelson)
Peter Pan (1960, dir. Vincent J. Donehue)
The Mikado (1967, dir. Stuart Burge) [Streaming free on Kanopy]
1776* (1972, dir. Peter H. Hunt) [Streaming free on Pluto TV]
Pacific Overtures (1976, dir. Marty Pasetta)
Pippin: His Life and Times (1981, dir. David Sheehan) [Streaming on BroadwayHD]
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (1982, dir. Harold Prince, Terry Hughes) [For rent on Prime Video]
The Pirates of Penzance* (1983, dir. Wilford Leach) [For rent on Prime Video]
Sunday in the Park with George (1986, dir. Terry Hughes) [Streaming on BroadwayHD]
Les Miserables: The Dream Cast in Concert (1995, dir. Gavin Taylor)
Passion (1996, dir. James Lapine)
Cats (1998, dir. David Mallet) [Streaming on BroadwayHD and for rent on Prime Video]
Oklahoma! (1999, dir. Trevor Nunn) [Streaming on BroadwayHD]
Jesus Christ Superstar (2000, dir. Gale Edwards, Nick Morris)
The Light in the Piazza (2006, dir. Kirk Browning)
Legally Blonde: The Musical (2007, dir. Beth McCarthy-Miller, Jerry Mitchell)
Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway (2008, dir. Michael John Warren)
Company (2011, dir. Lonny Price)
Memphis (2011, dir. Don Roy King) [Streaming on BroadwayHD]
The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall (2011, dir. Nick Morris, Laurence Connor) [For rent on Redbox] (Also, R.I.P. to Joel Schumacher, director of the contentious 2004 film adaptation)
Shrek the Musical (2013, dir. Michael John Warren) [Streaming on Netflix and for rent on Prime Video]
Billy Elliott the Musical Live (2014, dir. Stephen Daldry, Brett Sullivan) [Streaming on BroadwayHD and for rent on Redbox]
Gypsy: Live from the Savoy Theatre (2015, dir. Lonny Price)
Miss Saigon 25th Anniversary (2016, dir. Brett Sullivan) [Streaming on Broadway HD]
Disney's Newsies the Broadway Musical (2017, dir. Brett Sullivan) [Streaming on Disney+ and for rent on Prime Video]
Falsettos (2017, dir. Matthew Diamond, James Lapine) [Streaming on BroadwayHD]
Irving Berlin's Holiday Inn the Broadway Musical (2017, dir. David Horn) [Streaming on BroadwayHD]
An American in Paris - The Musical (2018, dir. Christopher Wheeldon, Ross MacGibbon)
The King and I (2018, dir. Gary Halvorson) [Streaming on BroadwayHD]
42nd Street: The Musical (2019, dir. Mark Bramble, Ross MacGibbon) [Streaming on BroadwayHD]
Kinky Boots: The Musical (2019, dir. Jerry Mitchell, Brett Sullivan) [Streaming on BroadwayHD]
* indicates film adaptations, not stage productions, but they feature their respective original Broadway cast.
How excited are you for Hamilton? What are your favorite filmed musicals? What do you wish could be (or could have been) preserved? Let me know in the comments below, and “Let’s raise a couple more to the revolution!”
Copyright © 2020 Bailey Lizotte
