National Theatre has just announced the next collection of plays to be streamed on their Youtube channel for free over the next few weeks.

Following the coronavirus lockdown that has seen theatres around the world lower their curtains indefinitely, National Theatre has launched a Youtube channel dedicated to streaming productions that had been previously screened in cinemas globally as a part of National Theatre Live.

They kicked off their exciting programme on 2 April with Richard Bean’s ‘One Man Two Guvnors’ featuring a Tony Award-winning performance from James Corden, followed by Sally Cookson’s stage adaptation of Charlotte Brontë’s ‘Jane Eyre’, Bryony Lavery’s adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s ‘Treasure Island’, and ‘Twelfth Night’ featuring Tamsin Greig as Malvolia in Shakespeare’s classic comedy.

TOM HIDDLESTON IN CORIOLANUS. © JOHAN PERSSON

Following stellar performances by Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller who exchanged the roles of the Creature and Victor Frankenstein on two consecutive nights (30 April and 1 May, respectively) in Danny Boyle-directed ‘Frankenstein’, Gillian Anderson and Tom Hiddleston are now headlining the next carefully-curated selection of plays.

The streaming schedule for the following weeks is as follows:

7 May – ‘Antony & Cleopatra’, starring Ralph Fiennes and Sophie Okonedo, and directed by Simon Godwin.

14 May – Inua Ellams’ ’Barber Shop Chronicles’, with Fisayo Akinade, Hammed Animashaun, Cyril Nri and Sule Rimi.

21 May – Tennessee Williams’ ’A Streetcar Named Desire’, directed by Benedict Andrews and starring Gillian Anderson as Blanche, Ben Foster as Stanley and Vanessa Kirby as Stella. Fun fact: this is the fastest-selling show in Young Vic history.

28 May – James Graham’s ‘This House’, directed by Jeremy Herrin, and featuring Phil Daniels, Reece Dinsdale, Charles Edwards and Vincent Franklin.

4 June – the Donmar Warehouse’s production of Coriolanus, staged by former Artistic Director Josie Rourke and starring Tom Hiddleston, Alfred Enoch, Deborah Findlay and Mark Gatiss.

Each production will be screened live every Thursday at 7.00pm GMT, and will then be available on demand for seven days.

GILLIAN ANDERSON IN A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE. © JOHAN PERSSON

Even though all productions will be streamed for free, National Theatre encourages viewers to donate what they can via Youtube. The money donated will be shared with the co-producing theatre organisations of each stream, including the Donmar Warehouse, Fuel, Leeds Playhouse and the Young Vic, which will help support them during this difficult period of closure.

Lisa Burger, Executive Director and Joint Chief Executive said, ‘I’m delighted that in this next collection of titles to be streamed as part of National Theatre at Home we are including productions from our NT Live partner theatres. When we launched National Theatre at Home last month, we wanted to offer audiences the opportunity to engage with theatre during this time of isolation while we were unable to welcome them to the South Bank or into cinemas.

‘This initiative wouldn’t have been possible without the support of a great number of artists for which we are incredibly grateful. We have been absolutely thrilled by the response from viewers enjoying the productions from right across the globe, and we have also been surprised and delighted at the generous donations we’ve received since closure. Whilst the National Theatre continues to face a precarious financial future, we now feel able to make a payment to all artists involved, as we recognise a great many are also experiencing a particularly challenging time at this moment. While theatres across the world remain closed, we’re pleased that we can continue to bring the best of British theatre directly into people’s homes every Thursday evening.’

Actors Steve Zahn and Assol Abdullina, along with Alice Wu’s ‘The Half of It’ (2020), were some of the winners of the 2020 Tribeca Film Festival.

‘The Half of It’ will be released on Netflix on 1^st May of this year, and it follows Ellie Chu, a shy, top-of-her-class student who makes extra cash by writing papers for her high school mates. She reluctantly agrees to write a love letter for an enamoured jock to his crush, a girl that Ellie is also fawning over. All three students embark on a journey of complicated friendship and self-discovery in the drama-comedy film that was included in the slate of juried awards.

‘THE HALF OF IT’ (2020), ©NETFLIX

Jan Komasa’s ‘The Hater’ (2020) took the prize for best international narrative feature, while ‘Socks on Fire’ (2020), directed by Bo McGuire, was awarded for best documentary feature.

Given the worldwide halt due to the coronavirus pandemic, most in-person award shows have switched to streaming and digital, and Tribeca made no exception. This year, its winners were announced on Instagram.

Tribeca Film Festival co-founder and CEO Jane Rosenthal said: ‘We are fortunate that technology allowed for our jury to come together this year to honor our filmmakers. Despite not being able to be together physically, we were still able to support our artists, which has always been at the heart of the Festival.’

The full list of winners:

U.S. NARRATIVE COMPETITION CATEGORIES

Founders Award for Best Narrative Feature, ‘The Half of It’, directed by Alice Wu.

Best Actress in a U.S. Narrative Feature Film, Assol Abdullina in ‘Materna’.

Best Actor in a U.S. Narrative Feature Film, Steve Zahn in ‘Cowboys’.

Best Cinematography in a U.S. Narrative Feature Film, Greta Zozula, Chananun Chotrungroj, Kelly Jeffrey for ‘Materna’.

Best Screenplay in a U.S. Narrative Feature Film, Anna Kerrigan for ‘Cowboys’.

 

INTERNATIONAL NARRATIVE COMPETITION CATEGORIES

Best International Narrative Feature, ‘The Hater’ (Poland), directed by Jan Komasa.

Best Actor in an International Narrative Feature Film, Noe Hernandez for ‘Kokoloko’ (Mexico).

Best Actress in an International Narrative Feature Film, Shira Haas for ‘Asia’ (Israel).

Best Cinematography in an International Narrative Feature Film – Daniella Nowitz for ‘Asia’ (Israel).

Best Screenplay in an International Narrative Feature Film, Prashant Nair for ‘Tryst with Destiny’ (India, France).

 

DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION CATEGORIES

Best Documentary Feature, ‘Socks on Fire’, directed by Bo McGuire.

Best Cinematography in a Documentary Film, Alejandro Mejia for ‘499’.

Best Editing in a Documentary Film, Amy Foote for ‘Father Soldier Son’.

 

BEST NEW NARRATIVE DIRECTOR COMPETITION

Best New Narrative Director, Gaspar Antillo for ‘Nobody Knows I’m Here’.

 

BEST NEW DOCUMENTARY DIRECTOR COMPETITION

Albert Maysles New Documentary Director Award, Jessica Earnshaw for ‘Jacinta’.

 

THE NORA EPHRON AWARD

The Nora Ephron Award, ‘Asia’, directed by Ruthy Pribar.

 

SHORT FILM COMPETITION CATEGORIES:

Best Narrative Short, ‘No More Wings’, directed by Abraham Adeyemi.

Best Animated Short, ‘Friends’, directed by Florian Grolig.

Best Documentary Short, ‘My Father the Mover’, directed by Julia Jansch.

Student Visionary Award, ‘Cru-Raw’, directed by David Oesch.

 

TRIBECA X AWARDS

Best Short, ‘Pay Day’, directed by Morgan Cooper.

Best Series, ‘Girls Room’, directed by Tiffany Johnson.

Writer, Lena Waithe.

Best Feature, ‘U Shoot Videos?’, directed by Morgan Cooper.

Major film festivals worldwide have joined forces to keep moving despite the COVID-19 pandemic currently reshaping everything in our lives, including the economy and the movie and TV industries.

Tribeca Enterprises and YouTube will put together the ‘We Are One: A Global Film Festival’, which features new and classic movies from all over the world. This special event will run over the course of ten days, with programming from the Berlin International Film Festival, Sundance Film Festival, Sydney Film Festival, Tokyo International Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, Tribeca Film Festival, Venice Film Festival, New York Film Festival and even the Cannes Film Festival, to name but a few.

©TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL/PHIL YOON

Jane Rosenthal, Tribeca Enterprises and Tribeca Film Festival Co-Founder and CEO, said in a press release: ‘We often talk about film’s uniquely powerful role in inspiring and uniting people across borders and differences to help heal the world. All of the world needs healing right now. We Are One: A Global Film Festival unites curators, artists and storytellers to entertain and provide relief to audiences worldwide. In working with our extraordinary festival partners and YouTube we hope that everyone gets a taste of what makes each festival so unique and appreciates the art and power of film.’

Although the programme will be free to watch on YouTube, viewers are encouraged to donate to the World Health Organization and other local relief partners currently working to combat the spread of the coronavirus.

The ‘We Are One: A Global Film Festival’ will run from 29 May until 7 June.

The Ivors Academy just launched ‘The Remote Recording Directory’, a free and open database to connect composers for film, TV and games with professional musicians who are able to record from home.

The initiative seeks to help alleviate the devastating impact that the coronavirus pandemic continues to have on the industry. Thousands of musicians lost work as tours, concerts, festivals and studio recordings have been either postponed or cancelled.

The database lists professional self-recording instrumentalists and vocalists along with technical roles including music editors, orchestrators, copyists, sound designers and record/mixing and mastering engineers. Those interested can be added to the Directory by providing their skills, experience and consent for their details to be shared publicly.

The Directory can be accessed by following this link.

The idea came from award-winning composer and Ivors Academy Media Committee member Nainita Desai, who had been commissioned to produce a live orchestral score for a Netflix feature two days into the UK’s coronavirus lockdown. Given that all non-essential work was suddenly suspended and recording studios were closed, Nainita had to come up with a quick solution.

NAINITA DESAI © PRS

In Nainita’s words, ‘With the UK in lockdown I realised that the only way I was going to be able to deliver the score was to bring musicians on board that could remote record themselves with their own studio facilities. At the same time, I started getting messages from musicians who had suddenly lost all their work overnight. It immediately dawned on me that I could bring these two needs together.’

Graham Davies, CEO of The Ivors Academy commented, ‘Composers and songwriters are innovating during Covid-19 to keep their careers and the industry alive. We encourage all music makers to join the Academy’s growing online community and make use of this new directory – this is vital support, at a critical time for creatives across the music industry.’

Nainita herself curated a list of remote musicians who are able to self-record to produce the score and put out a call on social media. Nainita said, ‘There has been an incredible response from the community. Within a week I had over 350 musicians from all over the world respond, who play regularly on stage shows such as Hamilton or major feature films including Phantom Thread, Lord of the Rings and engineers who have worked with Laura Mvula, Adele and Alicia Keys.’

On her process of producing scores with musicians working remotely Nainita said, ‘I send rough mixes of my music, along with sheet music, for musicians to play to. Using live video apps I can connect and communicate with them. Within hours recorded files start to be sent back to me, which I then edit and mix into the score.

‘To have access to some of the best musicians from around the world from the comfort of our homes utilising simple tech many musicians already possess, can bring us all together as a global community and we find new ways of working together, something vital in these days of social distancing.’

While Nainita has used the database to produce the score for the Netflix feature, the lockdown has made her reflect on what makes musicians playing together so special, saying ‘I do hope that once social distancing has come to pass, it makes us value live music and collaboration more. Nothing can beat a bunch of human beings creating live music in a room together.’

The Ivors Academy Disclaimer

As currently these entries are neither vetted nor verified, The Ivors Academy does not endorse any individual or service by inclusion in this Directory. Nor can we suggest rates, which remain the responsibility of the parties involved. You might find the Musicians Union website helpful for current rates here and here. We recommend both parties agree rates and costs before any work starts. The Ivors Academy is unable to intervene in any dispute arising between individual parties, but we will monitor closely any reports we get.

More and more distribution companies are moving content from theatres, which are currently shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, to streaming platforms—their own or the bigger ones such as Netflix and Prime. Others, like Lionsgate, have taken to organizing movie nights for fans, with the purpose of fundraising for disadvantaged film theatre workers, who are among the hardest hit by the current crisis.

Jamie Lee Curtis, best known for ‘Freaky Friday’ (2003), ‘A Fish Called Wanda’ (1988), and the more recent ‘Knives Out’ (2019), will host the streaming event. The move comes through a partnership with a host of companies and industry organizations, and will consist of four screenings, all titles from Lionsgate’s library.

JAMIE LEE CURTIS

‘Lionsgate Live! A Night at the Movies’ will be live-streamed on Lionsgate’s YouTube page and on Fandango’s Movieclips YouTube page, with Ms Curtis providing her delightful presence as hostess. The screenings will encourage donations aiming to benefit the Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation, an organization dedicated to supporting workers across the film industry. It will also link to the foundation’s charity page so that viewers who are able can help.

Partnering with Lionsgate for this special event are YouTube, Fandango, and the National Association of Theatre Owners.

The schedule for these marvellous Friday-night offerings has the following:

17^th April, ‘The Hunger Games’ (2012)

24^th April, ‘Dirty Dancing’ (1987)

1^st May, ‘La La Land’ (2016)

8^th May, ‘John Wick’ (2014), for which age registration will be required

When TV’s Emmy-winning ‘Fleabag’ ended in April 2019, the show’s loyal followers weren’t quite ready to accept that its eponymous heroine’s journey would end with season 2.

However, Phoebe Waller-Bridge surprised her fans last summer when she announced the play upon which the TV show is based would be back in theatres for a limited run in August. Unsurprisingly, the show was immediately sold out.

In light of the coronavirus crisis which has largely affected the industry, Waller-Bridge has decided to revive the play which will be available to view online for two weeks. All proceeds will go towards four charities dedicated to supporting those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, including National Emergency Trust, NHS Charities Together, Acting For Others and Fleabag Support Fund, an initiative which will provide grants of £2500 to freelancers working in the theatre industry.

In the UK you can watch the show via Soho Theatre On Demand right now and it costs £4 (or more, if you wish to further support the causes). ‘Fleabag’ will also be made available to US audiences via Amazon Prime, starting Friday, 10 April.

PHOEBE WALLER-BRIDGE © JASON HETHERINGTON

Directed by Vicky Jones, the play, which originally premiered in 2013, was staged at the Edinburgh Fringe, at the Soho Theatre, off-Broadway and at the Wyndham’s Theatre in the West End.

On the streaming initiative, Waller-Bridge commented: ‘I hope this filmed performance of “Fleabag” can help raise money while providing a little theatrical entertainment in these isolated times. Thank you to all our partners and to the creative team who have waived their royalties from this production to raise money for such vital causes in this unbelievably challenging situation.

‘All money raised will support the people throughout our society who are fighting for us on the frontlines and those financially devastated by the crisis, including those in the theatre community. Thank you in advance to those who donate. Now go get into bed with Fleabag! It’s for charity! Px’

As West End and Broadway theatres closed their doors to the public in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, musical theatre giant Andrew Lloyd Webber teamed up with Universal to stream some of the filmed versions of his shows on the newly-created and aptly named Youtube channel, ‘The Shows Must Go On!’.

According to the composer: ‘Universal have come up with the idea of a whole series called The Shows Must Go On, which is about musicals going from stage to screen.’

DONNY OSMOND IN JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT

The first musical in this series to air will be the 2000 version of ‘Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat’, starring Donny Osmond, Maria Friedman, Sir Richard Attenborough and Dame Joan Collins. The full-length show will be available to watch for 48 hours, starting on Friday, 3 April at 7pm GMT.

Next week’s musical will be ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’, recorded in 2012 and starring Ben Forster as Jesus, Tim Minchin as Judas, Spice Girl Melanie C as Mary Magdalene and Chris Moyles as King Herod.

TIM MINCHIN AS JUDAS

The series will continue every Friday for the next few weeks.

While it is unclear at this time for how long musical theatre enthusiasts will be treated to the famous performances, what we do know so far is that Andrew Lloyd Webber’s 1975 show ‘By Jeeves’ is on the cards sometime in the near future and that the channel will also feature behind-the-scene footage and other short clips.

Although the service is free, the composer does encourage anyone who is able to help the theatre industry to make a donation through one of the charities listed on the channel’s page, including Acting For Others, Broadway Cares and the Actors Benevolent Fund.

Earlier this week, Andrew Lloyd Webber has recorded a beautiful virtual performance of ‘All I Ask of You’ together with the West End’s ‘The Phantom of the Opera’ orchestra, proving that the composer has swiftly adapted to the global crisis we all suddenly found ourselves in and that he will be making sure we all stay connected through the wonder of music.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o04ECIpQFi0

More and more Americans are forced to spend time in quarantine and self-isolation as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to escalate. In that sense, ‘there’s no place like home’ seems to be taking on a whole new meaning, as it gives us the power to save millions of lives.

The American Film Institute has recently announced the launch of their AFI Movie Club, which aims to encourage social distancing whilst providing a good dose of entertainment. AFI trustee and beloved director Steven Spielberg has partnered with the institute for this endeavour. He has chosen ‘The Wizard of Oz’ (1939) as the first film to stream as part of the programme. Every day, a new movie will be selected for film aficionados to watch from home, offering a collective viewing experience in an era of self-isolation.

STEVEN SPIELBERG

According to Variety, special guests from the film world will announce their own movie picks on certain days, through short videos to be posted on social media and AFI’s website. All you have to do is log on to the institute’s Movie Club and choose any of the streaming services listed under the selected movie. The viewing experience will be enriched with cool facts, discussion questions and archival material provided by AFI.

‘AFI’s goal is to live in a world of art above anxiety’, AFI president and CEO Bob Gazzale said in a press release. ‘We’re honoured to have Steven Spielberg, the greatest storyteller of our day, lead the way.’

In 1995, Spielberg was honoured by the American Film Institute with the AFI Life Achievement Award. Seven of his films have been included on their 100 Greatest Movies of All Time list—‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’ (1977), ‘Jaws’ (1975), ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ (1981), ‘E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial’ (1982), ‘The Color Purple’ (1985), ‘Schindler’s List’ (1993), and ‘Saving Private Ryan’ (1998).

With the COVID-19 pandemic still very much loose and wreaking havoc across the globe, celebrities that are currently stuck in lockdown keep finding creative ways to provide entertainment for people in self-isolation. John Krasinski, best known for ‘A Quiet Place’ (2018), ‘Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan’ (2018) and ‘The Office’ (2005-2013), is the latest to try his hand at some light-hearted humour. He has recently posted the first edition of his ‘Some Good News’ YouTube series, aiming to inject optimism into the current climate with a show entirely dedicated to positive news segments.

The actor and director records his show in front of a colourful ‘SGN’ sign made by his daughter, and his debut guest for this particular episode is former ‘Office’ co-star Steve Carell. Since the current news cycle is tortuous to journalists and readers alike, watching Krasinski’s web show feels like a breath of fresh air.

©JAKE CHESSUM/PLAYBOY

‘For years now I have been wondering, ‘Why is there not a news show dedicated entirely to good news?’ Desperately seeking my fix, I reached out to all of you this week begging for some good news, boy did you deliver’, said Krasinski.

The fifteen-minute episode focuses on the incredible work being done by healthcare workers, along with the heartfelt appreciation towards their efforts and bravery, plus numerous other stories of pure goodness from around the world. Krasinski also notes that this week marks fifteen years since the U.S. version of ‘The Office’, which made him famous, premiered. To celebrate this anniversary, he and Steve Carell have a fun virtual chat about it.

‘I was a waiter when I got that job, after the pilot I went back to waiting tables because I was sure nothing was going to happen with it’, Krasinki recalls during ‘Some Good News’.

‘It’s such a happy surprise that after all these years people are still tuning in’, Carell says. ‘Part of what was so much fun about it is that everybody in the cast was rooting for everybody else, people would step back when it was time for other people to shine, and celebrate it.’

The pair also glossed over their favourite moments of the critically acclaimed series, including the famous dinner party episode where Carell’s Michael Scott invests in a plasma TV, and the scene where Krasinski’s character walks into the Dunder Mifflin office dressed as Dwight Schrute, his co-worker and the man responsible for some of the most memorable quotes in television comedy.

This first ‘Some Good News’ episode features a video link with Coco, a young girl who recently came home after her last chemotherapy treatment. Coco thanks her nurses and doctors and kindly reminds the audience to stay home in order to protect vulnerable people, particularly those like her with weakened immune systems.

We’re not sure when the next episode will stream, but Krasinski did add ‘we might just do this again’ in his sign-off, and judging by the online replies and feedback, he’s definitely doing something right in these trying times.