Keep yourself entertained with online watch parties, virtual theatrical experiences and online book readings
Need your dose of culture while lounging about at home? Luckily for us, there are various online initiatives by local theatre companies to keep us entertained like online watch parties, virtual theatrical experiences, and even Instagram book readings. While most live streaming and online initiatives are available to anyone for free, do consider supporting your favourite theatre companies if you enjoyed them. You can do this by donating or buying merchandise.
Broadway and West End fans can also stream musicals from all around the world, thanks to initiatives such as Andrew Llyod Webber's The Shows Must Go On and BroadwayHD's online productions.
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In an effort to lighten up these stressful times that we're living in, Dream Academy Singapore presents 50 Days of Laughter via Instagram. Every day, the academy shares a hilarious snippet from their past shows – from shows from the Dim Sum Dollies to Kumar's stand up sessions. Follow the official Instagram (@dreamacademysg) to be notified whenever a new episode is uploaded.
Here's one for the kids. While there are no live streams on Buds Theatre as of now, the theatre company has introduced a storytelling series on Instagram, where artistic director Claire Devine reads a kids book – from Puss in Boots to Rapunzel. Grab your kids and hop on to the Instagram page (@budstheatre) to listen in on the daily storytelling sessions.
Catch musical legend Andrew Lloyd Webber's productions on YouTube every Friday, available for 48 hours at a time. Kick back and watch the musical legend's most popular works such as The Phantom of the Opera, Cats, and Jesus Christ Superstar. From June 5, NBC's Peter Pan will be streaming for the weekend.
Stream on YouTube
Basically a Netflix for Broadway and West End Musicals, BroadwayHD is an on-demand digital streaming media company offering access to its treasure trove of musicals online. With a subscription plan that costs $12.80 a month, you can watch the world's best musicals in HD. And now for a limited time only, BroadwayHD is offering a seven-day free trial – perfect to get you through the 'circuit breaker'. You can then decide if you want to continue getting your dose of culture.
While the availability of the titles varies by region, you can watch some classics such as five-time Tony Award-winning Pippin, Vincent Bataillon's Swan Lake featuring Tchaikovsky’s famous score, and Oklahoma starring Hugh Jackman. Shakespeare fans can also catch up on classics such as Hamlet, King Lear, Macbeth, and Romeo and Juliet.
London's National Theatre's groundbreaking initiative, National Theatre Live, aims to broadcast theatre from major theatres to cinemas and screens around the world. Now, you can watch them right from your home. National Theatre is streaming plays from its archive on YouTube for free, such as Jane Eyre, Treasure Island, Frankenstein, and Anthony and Cleopatra.
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