For everyone Theatre in lockdown

Vanessa Kirby as Stella, Gillian Anderson as Blanche, Ben Foster as Stanley. (Photo: Alastair Muir/Supplied)

★★★★★

The need for social distancing has had a devastating impact on the arts. While major films have been able to simply delay their release a few months, theatrical performances have had to cancel shows and tours entirely.

Happily, fans of the stage have been able to enjoy a virtual night out thanks to free YouTube streams from a range of companies across the globe – many of them raising funds for theatres, companies or other worthy causes.

In Melbourne, the MSO has been streaming some of its most popular concerts, beginning with a Kate Miller-Heidke show from 2017. English teachers – and fans of Elizabethan playwrights – have been been able to access some of the Bard’s greatest works direct from Shakespeare’s Globe, while Broadway fans have been able to enjoy a free season of both classic and recent hits.

Most appealing are the National Theatre Live streams of their acclaimed runs including Frankenstein, Treasure Island and A Streetcar Named Desire – many of which would be a boon to any (virtual) classroom.

Myke Bartlett

Myke Bartlett is an AEU staff journalist, freelance writer and former teacher who writes on politics, movies and music. He is the author of YA novel Fire in the Sea (Text).

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