Theatre

Hattie Lloyd 30/03/20


Shakespeare's Globe Is Now Streaming Plays For Free

Watch Shakespeare At Home | Globe Player


UPDATE 30/03/20: Shakespeare’s Globe are now making six of their plays free to stream as of 6th April. They’ll rotate which play is on offer every fortnight.


Shakespeare’s Globe – the stunning, open-air theatre that’s an authentic replica of the one Shakespeare and his pals built on nearly the same spot over 400 years ago – is arguably the most atmospheric place to see Shakespeare performed in the city. But, like many other London theatres, it’s sadly had to shut its doors for the foreseeable future… so it might be some time before you’re able to watch Romeo & Juliet beneath the stars, or cosy up under a blanket for one of their midnight matinees.

You can, however, watch it on your sofa.

See, the theatre also has its own online streaming site that allows you to watch some of their most memorable, spine-tingling productions on demand. It’s called the Globe Player, and it has live recordings of every one of Shakespeare’s plays.

Highlights of which include…

watch Shakespeare at home

  • This radical, kaleidoscopic, giant balloon-strewn Midsummer Night’s Dream heralding Emma Rice’s feather-rustling debut as the Globe’s Artistic Director;
  • A gender-bending take on Hamlet with Michelle Terry (the current artistic director) in the title role;
  • A dark, gripping Renaissance staging of Shakespeare’s bloody tragedy, Macbeth;
  • The Duchess of Malfi by John Webster, staged in the Globe’s candlelit Jacobean playhouse and starring Gemma Arterton;
  • A visiting Maori production of Troilus & Cressida, with traditional music and haka warrior dancing; aand
  • A performance of Twelfth Night with an all-male cast (as it would have been originally performed), starring Stephen Fry, Mark Rylance and folk-musician/actor, Johnny Flynn.

Each play is available to rent or download, and at a fraction of the price of seated tickets. The Globe, like many other London theatres, receives absolutely no public funding, and relies on the ticket sales from its 300,000 audience members every year. It’s yet another great London institution that faces real financial difficulties over the coming months – but streaming these plays online will help to keep the place afloat, while also bringing a little bit of London’s amazing cultural scene into your living room. For as the Bard himself wrote…

“When I was at home, I was in a better place”. As You Like It

 

NOTE: Find out which plays are online, and start watching at home, right HERE. A different play will be free to stream every two weeks, as are the ‘Complete Walk’ short films (10 minute performances filmed on location) and ongoing, brand new content featuring interviews and performances from an all-star cast including Sandi Toksvig, Mark Rylance and Michelle Terry.


Main image: Ilirjan Rrumbullaku