Broadway From Home: More Reader-Selected Theater Documentaries!
What are the best documentaries for theatre-lovers? You picked!
By: Kaitlin Milligan Jul. 25, 2020
In response to our list of documentaries for theater lovers, we asked you on social media which ones we missed and we compiled the list of documentaries that should've been included! With our two lists, we have covered documentaries that every theater fan, young and old, will love.
Make sure to check out this one below and refer to our first list here and check out even more reader selections below!
Documentary Now! - Original Cast Album: Co-op
Documentary Now! presents "Original Cast Album: Co-op," the meticulously crafted and 2019 Emmy-nominated episode about the cast album recording of the 1970 'Broadway musical' Co-op. The episode featured Renée Elise Goldsberry, Alex Brightman, Richard Kind, John Mulaney, Paula Pell, Taran Killam and James Urbaniak. The episode was a parody of the documentary Original Cast Album: Company, which showed the behind-the-scenes drama that went into the making of the classic Broadway recording of Company.
Available to watch on Netflix, YouTube and Amazon Prime
In The Heights: Chasing Broadway Dreams
The documentary In the Heights: Chasing Broadway Dreams showcases the 2008 musical that launched Lin-Manuel Miranda's rise to stardom and chronicles the personal stories of composer/lyricist Miranda and the cast of In the Heights in the months leading up to its 2008 opening night.
The documentary is currently unavailable on PBS, but keep checking back!
Great Performances' 2016 Hamilton's America
Hamilton's America is a documentary film that shows how Lin-Manuel Miranda brought Hamilton to life. The documentary features interviews with Miranda and the show's original cast, delving into how this Tony-award winning musical phenomenon came to be.
The documentary is currently unavailable on PBS, but keep checking back!
No Day But Today: The Story of 'Rent'
No Day But Today is a documentary about Jonathan Larson's musical Rent, from the original idea to its creator tragic passing to its adaptation to the silver screen. The documentary features interviews with the show's original cast, which includes Adam Pascal, Anthony Rapp, Idina Menzel, Taye Diggs, and more!
Available to Watch with Purchase of the Deluxe Rent DVD on Amazon.
ANNIE: It's the Hard-Knock Life, from Script to Stage
ANNIE: It's the Hard-Knock Life, from Script to Stage is a documentary that follows Annie's return to Broadway and offers a memorable behind-the-scenes look at every step of a single ANNIE production number, from the earliest phases of discussion among the creative team, rehearsals with actors, to opening night on Broadway.
Available to Watch on PBS
Behind the Mask: The Story of 'The Phantom of the Opera'
Behind the Mask: The Story of 'The Phantom of the Opera' is a documentary about the original "Phantom of the Opera" stage show and its creation. The documentary features interviews with the show's creator Andrew Lloyd Webber and the original cast of the production.
Available to watch on YouTube.
Navigate This Maze
Navigate This Maze is a 2007 documentary that chronicles the Off-Broadway sensation, "bare: A Pop Opera" from its inception all the way to the cast recording. Bare is a coming-of-age rock musical with music by Damon Intrabartolo, lyrics by Jon Hartmere, and a book by Hartmere and Intrabartolo. The story focuses on a group of high school students and their struggles at their private Catholic boarding school.
Available to watch on YouTube.
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