From Theater to Broadcast: ‘Wolves’ and More Archival Treasures

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After most Broadway productions close, they get lost in that hazy region known as collective memory. That’s the ephemeral beauty of the theatre, of course – wouldn’t it be great to still be able to revisit or share some of your favorite stage moments with friends?

Off Broadway shows are even harder, which is what makes the Lincoln Center Theater venture. Special Reels so valuable. Over the past few months, newly edited archive recordings of productions have been released, and the latest Sarah DeLappe’s “Wolves” watching the high school girls on the soccer team warming up before the games. The game became a success story: it was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2017; Lila Neugebauer’s production had three Off Broadway runs (including one that will go online at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theatre); and is made all over the United States and abroad. Thursday, August 15; lct.org

On a very different scale is the National Theater in England, which pioneered live broadcasts of its shows in movie theaters before seamlessly transitioning to home streaming last year. When you consider that every well is dry, the company pulls out more goodies from their vaults. If you’re a fan of Michaela Coel’s hit drama “I May Destroy You,” you might want to check out her previous and often hilarious solo show, “Chewing Gum Dreams.” “Gum”). Also, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Ivo van Hove’s adaptation of Carol Ann Duffy’s medieval morality play “Everyman” Arthur Miller drama “A View from the Bridge” which came to Broadway in 2015. ntathome.com

Billy Porter wears many hats, all of which are wonderful. He may be famous for his performances in “Kinky Boots” on Broadway and “Pose” on television – not to mention elsewhere – but he’s also a director and writer. He has a memoir coming out this fall and was also the author of the autobiographical “Ghetto Superstar” and “While I Yet Live.” His latest project is the book of this new gospel musical with music by Kurt Carr. As part of the New York Stage and Film season, the show takes a virtual tour with a cast of Deborah Cox, Bryan Terrell Clark, Ledisi, Virginia Woodruff, and the Broadway Inspiring Voices choir. 29 July-August 2; newyorkstageandfilm.org

In normal times, PTP/NYC is a regular on New York City’s summer stages and features some of the city’s beloved hot-weather entertainment: spiky, often experimental plays by the likes of Caryl Churchill and Howard Barker. While the company remains virtual this summer, so-called Season 34 ½ continues with “Standing on the Edge”, a collage of texts from authors like Churchill, David Auburn, Tony Kushner, and Mac Wellman (Saturday to July 27). followed by “A Small Handful,” an exploration of Anne Sexton’s poetry, with music by Gilda Lyons. (August 13-17). ptpnyc.org

In the Berkshires this summer, the Barrington Stage Company welcomes audiences both indoors and out. But it also continues to offer online programming, with a comeback from last year’s popular read of this Rob Ulin comedy backed by a cast that includes Jason Alexander as a lawyer, dead or undead, and Patti LuPone as an angel. With Santino Fontana and Michael McKean. July 26-August 1; barringtonstageco.org

Heather McDonald’s explores play, faith, and parenting through the character of Samuel Gentle. A former pastor has become a churchman, he contemplates his life, especially a terrible tragedy and his relationship with his daughter. It’s an ambitious solo show – Kevin Bacon performed it on Broadway in 2002 – and Baltimore’s Everyman Theater presents it with company member Bruce Randolph Nelson. until August 22; hermantheatre.org

Once upon a time, Yiddish theater flourished in the East Village and on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. The National Yiddish Theater Folksbiene keeps this history alive – often with surprising results, such as the company getting a hit with a Yiddish production. “Fiddler on the Roof” This started the waterworks among many audience members. This show will be featured in this virtual concert from the company. “Di Golden Castle” (“The Golden Bride”), “On Second Avenue” and “Di Yam Gazlonim!” (which would of course be Yiddish “Pirates of Penzance”). If you’ve hit the ground at any of these shows, it’s thanks in large part to Zalmen Mlotek, longtime arranger, conductor and artistic director, whom the event honors. 26-30 July; nytf.org

Journalist Studs Terkel’s collections of interviews were filled with “provocative insights and colorful, detailed personal histories from a wide range of people,” as The New York Times put it. obituary, in 2008. No wonder his live books are such rich sources for documentary theatre. “Working: People Talk About What They Do All Day and How They Feel What They Do” became the musical “Work” from 1974. And now, the Actors’ Gang Theater in Los Angeles is premiering a three-part show based on Terkel’s “Hard Times: An Oral History of the Great Depression.” Like “Working,” which is constantly updated, this project adds cast accounts (some with familiar names like Dorothy Day and Cesar Chavez) to those compiled by Terkel, under the direction of Tim Robbins. Thursday, September 4; theaktörlergang.com

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