26 More On Stage Plays and Musicals to Watch From Your Couch | Playbill

Lists 26 More On Stage Plays and Musicals to Watch From Your Couch From The SpongeBob Musical to Nick Kroll and John Mulaney’s Oh, Hello, from Lincoln Center Theater’s The King & I revival to Audra McDonald in Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill, here are 26 more captures of live performance to watch from home.

If you’re anything like us, you’ve already devoured the offerings on our list of 15 Broadway Plays and Musicals to Watch On Stage From Home. But wait! There's more!

From acclaimed West End revivals to Off-Broadway stages, from Broadway to houses in Texas and Louisiana, here are more titles to keep your appetite for theatre satisfied:

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Gavin Lee Joan Marcus

The SpongeBob Musical: Live On Stage!
Absorbent and yellow and porous, SpongeBob SquarePants officially opened on Broadway December 4, 2017 at the Palace Theatre in an explosion of color, innovation, craftiness, and joy. Inspired by the Nickelodeon cartoon from Stephen Hillenburg, SpongeBob SquarePants The Broadway Musical—as it was first called—offered a completely original storyline (from director Tina Landau’s concept and Kyle Jarrow’s book) with all of the memorable characters of Bikini Bottom, including SpongeBob, his snail Gary, his best friends Patrick Star and Sandy Cheeks, his curmudgeonly neighbor Squidward J. Tentacles, his boss Mr. Krabs (and his daughter Pearl), the evil Plankton, as well as bit characters like Mrs. Puff, the driver’s ed teacher.

The musical featured a patchwork score with multiple Grammy-nominated and Grammy-winning recording artists and songwriters contributing individual tunes. Among them: Plain White Ts, Yolanda Adams, Sara Bareilles, John Legend, and David Bowie. David Zinn’s jaw-dropping costume and scenic designs, Kevin Adam’s lighting design, and Peter Nigrini’s projection design created the world of Bikini Bottom, which was under threat of demise as Mount Humungous threatened to erupt unless SpongeBob and his friends could save the day. The musical featured choreography by Christopher Gattelli, with orchestrations and arrangements by Tom Kitt. Members of the original cast (including Ethan Slater as SpongeBob, Danny Skinner as Patrick, and Gavin Lee as Squidward) reunited for a 2019 live re-staging on Nickelodeon. But if you missed the live broadcast, you can still watch it!
Available on: Amazon, Google Play

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Mike Birbiglia Joan Marcus

The New One
Mike Birbiglia was one of the first comedians to cross the threshold to theatre with the creation of his first solo show Sleepwalk With Me. This time, Birbiglia takes his humor to Broadway with The New One. The solo show bowed at the Cort Theatre October 25, 2018, and hit Netflix in 2019. A comic meditation on all the reasons he did not want to become a father—and how most of those reasons came true when his daughter came into the world—Birbiglia’s show, directed on stage and film by Seth Barrish, reveals with startling honesty the challenges of new parenthood and what makes it all worth it anyway. (The scenic design by Tony winner Beowulf Boritt is a particular highlight.)
Available on: Netflix

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John Mulaney and Nick Kroll Joan Marcus

Oh, Hello on Broadway
John Mulaney and Nick Kroll took Broadway by storm when they brought their altacocker alter egos to the Broadway stage in 2016. Directed by Alex Timbers (who also directs this Netflix capture), Oh, Hello first hit Off-Broadway in 2015 as an expansion of a sketch on Comedy Central’s Kroll Show. Mulaney and Kroll play George St. Geegland and Gil Faizon, respectively, two Upper West Siders obsessed with turtlenecks, raccoons, improperly emphasizing words, and thinking they know more about everything than they do about anything. The Broadway show featured a segment “Too Much Tuna” popularized on YouTube, where George and Gil invited a different celebrity guest to join them onstage at each performance. It’s an hour and 42 minutes of absurdity at its finest.
Available on: Netflix

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Company Carol Rosegg

Indecent
Paula Vogel’s 2017 Tony Award-nominated play has earned a reverence in the theatre community for its story, for its vision by director Rebecca Taichman (who won the Tony for it), for the subtly stunning performances (notable Katrina Lenk), but most of all for its own honoring of artmaking. Both Taichman and Vogel had been taken by Sholom Asch’s 1923 play God of Vengeance, a love story between two women. Considered in violation of obscenity laws, productions of God of Vengeance were shut down. Indecent tracks the history of Asch’s controversial play and the risks a troupe of artists will take to perform it. In an unprecedented move, producer Daryl Roth announced the play’s closing only to rescind the notice and extend the play for more to see.
Available on: PBS Passport and BroadwayHD

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Bryce Pinkham and company Joan Marcus

Holiday Inn
Gordon Greenberg adapted Irving Berlin’s Hollywood film into a more palatable and joyful old-school musical that bowed at Roundabout Theatre Company in 2016. Tony nominee Bryce Pinkham plays Jim, a performer who leave the business behind for the quiet life on a Connecticut farm. But his old pal Ted, played by Corbin Bleu, won’t let him forget his roots. When Jim meets a delightful schoolteacher, played by Lora Lee Gayer, the team turns the farm into an inn that specifically celebrates the holidays.
Available on: PBS Passport and BroadwayHD

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An American in Paris Matthew Murphy

An American in Paris
The 1951 Oscar-winning Best Picture musical from Vincent Minnelli, starring Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron, came to life onstage in this 2015 Broadway musical from director-choreographer Christopher Wheeldon. With book writer Craig Lucas, Wheeldon was able to transpose all of the sweeping romance from the film to the stage and elevate the level of dance on Broadway. (Wheeldon won the Tony for his choreography.) This was the Broadway breakout moment for New York City Ballet dancer Robert Fairchild as well as Royal Ballet dancer Leanne Cope. Just as in the film, the production features the music of George and Ira Gershwin.

This capture features the London production of the musical, with original stars Fairchild and Cope. Co-directed by Wheeldon and Ross MacGibbon, this is the gold standard of execution of the capture of a stage production.
Available on: PBS Passport and BroadwayHD

42nd Street
The tap extravaganza first came to Broadway in 1981 from director-choreographer Gower Champion, who was assisted by Randy Skinner. Since then, Skinner has mounted the 2001 Broadway revival, as well as national tours, London productions, and regional presentations around the world. The backstage musical follows the making of Julian Marsh’s next musical, Pretty Lady. He hires past-her-prime Dorothy Brock since her beau promises to invest heavily—but Brock is taking risks with an old flame. Meanwhile, doe-eyed Peggy Sawyer is dying to prove herself in the chorus and when an accident befalls Brock, Sawyer gets called up to the big leagues. Watch this recording of one of the final performances of the 2018 West End revival starring Bonnie Langford (EastEnders) as Dorothy Brock, Tom Lister as Julian Marsh, and Clare Halse as Peggy Sawyer.
Available on: PBS Passport and BroadwayHD

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Carol Burnett and the company of Putting It Together. Photo by Photo by Joan Marcus

Putting It Together
A tribute to Stephen Sondheim, the Broadway revue played the Ethel Barrymore Theatre beginning October 30, 1999. The show starred Carol Burnett, George Hearn, John Barrowman, Ruthie Henshall, and Bronson Pinchot, and featured songs from the Sondheim catalog like “Rich and Happy” and the title song from Merrily We Roll Along, “Every Day a Little Death” from A Little Night Music, “Pretty Women” from Sweeney Todd, “Being Alive” from Company, and the titular “Putting It Together” from Sunday in the Park With George.
Available on: BroadwayHD

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Ramin Karimloo in The Phantom of the Opera at Royal Albert Hall Alastair Muir

25th Anniversary Concert The Phantom of the Opera
In 2011, The Phantom of the Opera commemorated 25 years in London. Starring Ramin Karimloo as The Phantom and Sierra Boggess as Christine, the concert was filmed across three performances as Royal Albert Hall in London.
Available on: BroadwayHD, iTunes, Google Play and Amazon.

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Kelli O'Hara and Ken Watanabe in The King and I Paul Kolnik

The King & I
Lincoln Center Theater’s opulent 2015 revival of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical earned nine Tony nominations, winning four, including Best Revival of a Musical, Best Leading Actress for Kelli O’Hara and Best Featured Actress for Ruthie Ann Miles.

The Bartlett Sher-helmed revival showcased new choreography from Christopher Gattelli and made use of all of the space in the massive Vivian Beaumont—from the life-size ship to the magnificent palace. See Catherine Zuber’s costumes and Michael Yeargan’s sets up close, as O’Hara and Ken Watanabe wow with their performances as Mrs. Anna and the King during the London production.
Available on: PBS Passport and BroadwayHD

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Alfred Molina and Alfred Enoch Johan Persson

Red
John Logan’s Tony-winning Best Play bowed on Broadway in 2010, starring Alfred Molina and Eddie Redmayne. More recently, Molina reprised his role opposite Alfred Enoch (How to Get Away With Murder) for a limited run in 2019 at London’s Wyndham Theatre, once again directed by Tony winner Michael Grandage. Molina plays renowned artist Mark Rothko, who takes on an assistant (in this fictionalization) to work on a commission for the Four Seasons restaurant. Red confronts the ever-present battle of art and commercialism and the gaps in philosophies between artistic generations.
Available on: PBS Passport and BroadwayHD

READ: Alfred Molina and Alfred Enoch Talk Bringing Red to the Big Screen


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Danielle Brooks and Grantham Coleman Joan Marcus

Much Ado About Nothing
The first-ever PBS broadcast of a Shakespeare in the Park Public Theater production aired in November 2019. Taped at the Delacorte Theatre, Much Ado, directed by Tony winner Kenny Leon, starred Tony nominee Danielle Brooks (The Color Purple) as Beatrice. Set in modern-day Georgia, the production re-framed Shakespeare’s language through a contemporary lens. Much Ado is, of course, one of the Bard’s comedies (see: happy ending); Benedick and Beatrice are tricked into confessing their love for each other and Claudio is tricked into rejecting Hero, but Benedick and Beatrice team up to set things right.
Available on: PBS

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Matt Henry and Killian Donnelly and company Matt Crockett

Kinky Boots
It’s a kinky revolution, courtesy of Tony Award-winning composer-lyricist Cyndi Lauper and Tony-nominated book writer Harvey Fierstein. Inspired by the non-musical movie, Kinky Boots came to Broadway in 2013. Lola and Charlie join forces to save the Price & Sons shoe factory and the feet of many a drag queen by entering the niche market of manufacturing kinky boots. But the story is merely a front for the important message of acceptance (self and otherwise).

This recording of the West End production, directed and choreographed by Tony winner Jerry Mitchell, stars Olivier Award winner Matt Henry as Lola and Oliver Award Killian Donnelly as Charlie.
Available on: PBS Passport and BroadwayHD

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Jeremy Shamos, Kate Walsh, and Maria Dizzia Joan Marcus

If I Forget
From the Tony-winning book writer of Dear Evan Hansen comes this stinging family drama, presented by Roundabout Theatre Company. Filmed Off-Broadway, this production of Steven Levenson’s play stars Jeremy Shamos as Michael Fischer, a Jewish studies professor who writes a controversial book about the case for “forgetting” the Holocaust. When he and his sisters, played by Kate Walsh and Maria Dizzia, gather at home for their father’s 75th birthday, emotions run high and Michael may not be able to come back from his hypothetical argument. Through sharp argument and empathetic dialogue, Levenson is able to raise a debate about the help and hindrances of clinging so desperately to our pasts.
Available on: BroadwayHD

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Morocco Omari and Namir Smallwood Jeremy Daniel

Pipeline
A Pulitzer Prize finalist, Dominique Morisseau’s play bowed Off-Broadway at Lincoln Center Theater. Omari, a black student at a predominantly white prep school, gets in trouble when he attacks his teacher; his mother Nya, a teacher at the local public school, fears her son will fall into the pipeline she desperately tried to help him circumvent. The play investigates our education structure, racism in the classroom, and what it means to feel righteous rage in a powerful can’t-miss performance.
Available on: BroadwayHD


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Kate Fleetwood and Patrick Stewart in Macbeth. Photo by Manuel Harlan

Macbeth
Broadcast as part of PBS’ Great Performances in 2010, Patrick Stewart and Kate Fleetwood reprise their 2008 Tony-nominated performances in the Shakespeare classic, directed by Rupert Goold. This time, the Scottish play takes place in a nameless 20th-century netherworld.
Available on: Masterpiece on Amazon, iTunes and Amazon

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Megan McGinnis in Daddy Long Legs Jeremy Daniel

Daddy Long Legs
This musical marked the first Off-Broadway production to live stream in history. Based on the book by Jean Webster, John Caird adapts the Jane Austen-esque story for the stage with a score sweepingly romantic score by Paul Gordon. Jerush Abbott, played by Broadway alum Megan McGinnis, is an orphan at the John Grier Home. A mysterious bachelor becomes her anonymous patron and sends her to college. Jerusha never sees his face, only his long-legged shadow, granting him his nickname. Jerusha begins to write monthly notes of gratitude to her sponsor, not realizing he’s not some elderly bachelor.
Available on: BroadwayHD

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Eva Noblezada and Samuel Li Weintraub Matthew Murphy

Miss Saigon
Just as the original production catapulted Lea Salonga to well-deserved fame, so too did the revival of the Schönberg-Boublil musical for Eva Noblezada. The 25th anniversary production (a.k.a. the 2016 revival) began in London, starring Noblezada as Kim and Alistair Brammer as Chris. The tragic tale of star-crossed lovers who meet in Saigon during the Vietnam War, Chris is an American G.I. who falls for young Vietnamese woman Kim. When Saigon falls, Chris is airlifted out of the city, unable to find Kim, who is pregnant with his child.
Available on: Google Play and BroadwayHD

Before Women’s History Month comes to a close, check out the offerings of female-driven stories, works by female writers and directors, and more from the Trailblazers section of BroadwayHD:

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Audra McDonald in Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill Photo by Evgenia Eliseeva

Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill
Audra McDonald won her sixth Tony Award for her portrayal as Billie Holiday in Lanie Robertson’s play with music, re-imagining one of Holiday’s last performances in a run-down South Philadelphia nightclub circa 1959, just months before her death. Filmed at the Café Brasil in New Orleans, the taping echoes the aura created on Broadway at the Circle in the Square Theatre.
Available on: HBO on Amazon

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Holland Taylor in Ann Ave Bonar

Ann
Filmed at the Zach Theatre in Austin, Texas, March 12, 2016, Holland Taylor stars as the 45th Governor of Texas Ann Richards in the play Taylor wrote about the feminist icon and Texas Democrat. Richards rose to fame when she delivered the keynote address at the 1988 Democratic National Convention. She was only the second female governor of Texas and remains the last Democrat to serve as governor in the state. Set in the auditorium of a fictional college in Texas, the play bowed at the Vivian Beaumont in 2013. Taylor earned a Tony nomination for her performance, which she reprises here.
Available on: BroadwayHD

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Ann Ogbomo and Harriet Walter in the Donmar’s Henry IV Photo by Helen Maybanks

Shakespeare at the Donmar Warehouse
Tony-nominated director Phyllida Lloyd earned international acclaim for her all-female trilogy of productions of Shakespeare classics: Henry IV, Julius Caesar, and The Tempest. Donmar executive producer called the trilogy “a feminist mission, a social mission, an inclusivity mission, an education mission.” Lloyd’s daring conceptual direction of each play, combined with Harriet Walter’s lead performances as Henry IV, Brutus, and Prospero, respectively, render the series a must-watch.
Available on: BroadwayHD

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A Night With Janis Joplin
Written and directed by Randy Johnson, Janis Joplin is similar to Lady Day in that it unfolds as a single concert performance (this time set in 1970) to lay bare a greater truth about the artist, who passed away later that year. Mary Bridget Davies earned a Tony nomination for her performance in the title role. This recording was filmed at the Portland Center Stage in Oregon as a preservation of the show, Davies’ performance, and Joplin’s music,
Available on: BroadwayHD

Hetty Feather
The 2015 Olivier-nominated production played London’s West End and starred BAFTA nominee Phoebe Thomas as Hetty Feather. Written by Emma Reeves with a score by Benji Bower and directed by Olivier nominee Sally Cookson, Hetty Feather follows the story of a young girl abandoned by her mother as an infant, who, after living in foster homes, returns to the hospital where her mom first left her.
Available on: BroadwayHD

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Wade McCollum and Valerie Vigoda Jeff Carpenter

Ernest Shackleton Loves Me
The new musical from Joe DePietro (Memphis) and GrooveLily’s Valerie Vigoda and Brendan Milburn played Second Stage’s Tony Kiser Theatre—and this capture features an Off-Broadway performance from 2017. A sleep-deprived composer of video game music suddenly hears from Ernest Shackleton, the Antarctic explorer, when he travels across space and time. He shares his adventures with her in the best way she can understand: through video and song. Vigoda stars as the songwriter with Wade McCollum as Shackleton.
Available on: BroadwayHD

 
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