Theatre, Film and Television: Streaming Films about Theatre

Ian Holm stars in the title role of this award-winning Royal National Theatre Production of William Shakespeare's King Lear. The cast also includes Timothy West as The Earl of Gloucester, Finbar Lynch as his bastard son, Edmund, and Paul Rhys as his legitimate son, Edgar; Barbara Flynn, Amanda Redman and Victoria Hamilton as Lear's daughters Goneril, Regan and Cordelia; and Michael Bryant as the Fool. A BBC Production.

This classic play is aimed at the student, teacher, lecturer and theater lover alike, uses professional actors and directors at London's award-winning Greenwich Theatre in this production of “The Duchess of Malfi”. The play is considered to be a masterpiece from Jacobean playwright, John Webster around 1613. This macabre tragedy, set in Italy in the early fifteenth century, it starts out as a love story, with the Duchess marrying beneath her class. However, her two brothers have other ideas. (393 minutes)

Shakespeare's masterpiece of murder and intrigue in mist-shrouded Scotland is brought to life through dance in this superb production by the Bolshoi Ballet taped live at Moscow's historic Bolshoi Theatre. Choreographed by Vladimir Vasiliev in 1980 to powerful music by the celebrated composer, Maestro Molchanov, Macbeth stars Alexei Fadeyechev in the title role and Nina Timofeyeva as his unscrupulous consort. Brilliantly danced, and acted with bloodcurdling conviction, Macbeth is superb drama and stunning entertainment for all.

The aristocratic beauty of the Bolshoi Ballet brings this acclaimed production of Swan Lake alive with ennobling presence and artistry. Natalia Bessmertnova is soft and lyrical in the dual role of Odette and Odile; her eminently feminine quality makes her the ideal interpreter of this classic. The elegance and magnetism of Siegfried is masterfully portrayed by Alexander Bogatyrev. With exquisitely designed sets, and a dance corps whose skill rivals that of the principal ballerinas. This historic production was choreographed by the critically acclaimed master Yuri Grigorvich, with Tchaikovsky’s timeless score performed by the Moscow Symphonic Orchestra under the baton of Algis Zhuraitis.

Arts education is typically not a staple of some heartland communities, so for nearly 40 years the Missoula Children's Theatre has been giving disadvantaged children an opportunity to discover their inner thespian. Jeffrey Brown reports.

This program contains two workshops that provide fantastic examples and guidance designed to encourage students to get more physicality and movement into their own devised pieces. The first provides clear explanations and guidance on how to incorporate the Butoh concepts of the 3D Body, ways of moving, and metamorphosis into student works. The second features multi-award winning director and choreographer Lim Steel demonstrating how to develop movement using props and soundscapes.

This program shares the unique and artistic ways of Goldhahn using Authentic Movement practice (or the MoverWitness exchange Goldhahn 2007) in arts and educational settings. Showing the practice within workshop and studio formats it becomes apparent how this approach can be used to train dancers and actors. From sourcing movement material to building ways of collaborating the viewer can see how the practice can be used to develop new choreography or arrive at an artistic piece of dance video art. The practice takes place within a very simple score or frame. There is no music to inspire participants who close their eyes when they move. Their movement arises out of stillness and spontaneous impulses of body and mind. The ensuing choreography of gestures can be surprising and poignant.

This "Experts in Action" video follows professional lighting designer David Lee Cuthbert through his design process from initial ideas to the final production of the award winning Sledgehammer Theatre in San Diego. It shows how to bring light to the stage within the confines of limited space and budget.

This extraordinary six-part series traces the history of stage drama and the American imagination, from pre-Revolutionary days to the late 20th century, through expert interviews and a rich trove of archival images. Using theater as a mirror, each program reveals the ongoing evolution of American culture and a society’s artistic aspirations. 6-part series.

The American Repertory Theater is one of the most respected and innovative dramatic institutions in the United States. Through the prism of the A.R.T., this program explores the organizational and creative challenges facing today’s theater community and describes the flexibility and resilience arts groups must have to survive in today’s cultural climate. F. Murray Abraham, Debra Winger, and numerous other renowned performers—along with groundbreaking directors Andrei Serban, Peter Sellars, and Robert Woodruff—join A.R.T. technicians and artisans in illuminating the precarious condition of American theater. Tony Award–winning actress Cherry Jones narrates. (68 minutes)

In celebration of Shakespeare's birthday we invited the public to join leading actors in performing three of Shakespeare's iconic speeches: As You Like It, Hamlet and The Tempest. More than 500 people from around the world submitted and a selection of those performances have been edited together here.

Filmed at the Globe Theatre in London, this 16-part series spotlights teen and young-adult performers from British drama schools as they enact scenes from Shakespeare’s plays. 16-part series, 15 minutes each.

In celebration of the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, this program unlocks some of the mysteries surrounding Shakespeare’s life and the legacy of his work across the globe....

Six episodes combine history, biography, iconic performances, new analysis, and the personal passion of its celebrated hosts—Ethan Hawke, Jeremy Irons, Derek Jacobi, Trevor Nunn, Joely Richardson, and David Tennant—to tell the story behind the stories of Shakespeare's greatest plays....