WFPL will continue to update this story.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many arts and cultural institutions have moved much, if not all, of their programming online. Some offerings are free, others require virtual tickets.
Here’s a list of what you can watch from your living room.
Theater
Actors Theatre of Louisville:
Actors Theatre opened an all-virtual season in June.
“COVID-Classics: One-Act Plays for the Age of Quarantine” start streaming on the organization’s on-demand platform, Actors Theatre Direct, Sept. 18.
The virtual season will also feature theater works such as “Where Did We Sit on the Bus?,” from playwright Brian Quijada, two radio plays, “Dracula” in the fall and “A Christmas Carol” in the winter, an interpretation of a Shakespeare classic, “Romeo & Juliet: Louisville 2020,” and the premiere of “Ali Summit,” as part of the 45th Humana Festival of New American Plays.
The Chicken Coop Theatre Company:
Louisville’s Chicken Coop Theatre Company presents “The Cooped Up Series,” featuring two virtual shows.
“The Mystery of Irma Vep,” running Oct. 28 - 31, is a Halloween-timely comedy, described as a “definitive spoof of Gothic melodramas” on the company’s website.
Dec. 2 - 5, Chicken Coop Theatre Company will stream “Clue: The Stay-At-Home Version,” based on the 1985 film and the board game. The whodunnit show follows six dinner guests who become suspects in the murder of their host.
Commonwealth Theatre Center:
On Oct. 9, Commonwealth Theatre Center will present “Variety Show,” hosted by Charlie Sexton and Keith McGill and featuring comedy and theater acts. It will be streamed via Zoom starting at 7 p.m.
Eve Theatre Company:
Louisville’s Eve Theatre Company presents a virtual presentation of “Mrs. Cage, “ Nov. 12 - 22. Partnering with New York-based Fledging Theatre, Eve opens its ninth season with this one-act, two-person play, an interrogation of a woman coming to terms with a crime she committed.
Looking for Lilith Theatre Company:
In late August,Looking for Lilith Theatre Company launched its “Kentucky Suffrage Project,” streaming on Facebook and YouTube. It dives into the women’s suffrage movement in Kentucky, focused on sharing the stories of Black suffragettes and suffragettes of color.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8POZtJASNaA&feature=emb_logo
Kentucky Shakespeare:
After canceling its 2020 summer run and postponing those planned productions to the following year, Kentucky Shakespeare staff, artists and crew shifted gears to focus on creating a video project in celebration of the festival’s 60th anniversary.
“Celebrate 60: the Kentucky Shakespeare Festival Anniversary Production” is filmed in Louisville’s Central Park and will premiere on Sept. 25 at 8 p.m. on Kentucky Shakespeare’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. It will feature the 2020 summer company, plus “newly unearthed archival photos, as well as voices from many of the figures integral to Kentucky Shakespeare’s past,” according to a press release.
Pandora Productions:
Pandora Productions, a Metro Louisville theater company dedicated to LGBTQ stories, announced its virtual season in early September. It starts with “OPEN” by Crystal Skillman, “a magic act that reveals itself to be a resurrection.” The new season features five one-person productions.
Virtual Theatre:
Virtual readings of “Statements After An Arrest Under the Immorality Act,” by Athol Fugard, will be streamed Sept. 18 and 19 at 8 p.m. It’s directed by professor of theatre arts and founding director of the University of Louisville’s Peace, Justice & Conflict Transformation program Russell Vandenbroucke, and will feature a Louisville roster of artists and crew members.
A press release describes the premise of the theater work as a dramatization of “a love affair considered illegal by the state because it transgresses racial boundaries. A white librarian and Black school principal share their hopes, dreams, and fears of being betrayed, which occurs, as the title suggests, when a nosey neighbor reports them to the police.” It’s set in apartheid South Africa.
More information on how to register for the readings here.
Dance
Louisville Ballet:
Earlier this summer, Louisville Ballet announced its entire 2020-2021 season would be streamed online, releasing cinematic dance films on a rolling basis. The dancers are having to adjust to COVID-19 protocols, as they are back in the studio rehearsing and creating these new digital works in person.
Music & Opera
Locust Grove:
The historic home in Louisville Locust Grove will present the 37th season of its “Emilie Strong Smith Chamber Music Series” virtually, and feature music by composers such as Bach, Mozart and Schubert. Tickets can be purchased here.
The digital concerts include “Music by Composers Born in the Bonds of Slavery” on Dec. 13, “The Grand Tour in a Kentucky Drawing Room” on Feb. 21, and “Biedermeier in the Ballroom” on March 22.
Louisville Orchestra:
Louisville Orchestra created LO Online in response to the pandemic making it unsafe to gather, as well as “Louisville Orchestra Virtual Edition (LOVE),” launching Oct. 3. The first show will be streamed live from Old Forester’s Paristown Hall and feature Beethoven’s “Eroica” with Jessie Montgomery’s “Starburst.” There will be two other streamed concerts before the end of 2020.
Kentucky Opera
Kentucky Opera re-imagined its 2020-2021 season, which will include a range of virtual experiences. Titled “Amplify Your Voice,” the new season is meant to uplift the voices of Kentuckians through the lens of three topics: faith, justice and family.
Kentucky Performing Arts:
Presents Taj Mahal via livestream
Starting Nov. 17 at 9 p.m., KPA will stream a concert with the Grammy Award winner accessible for 48 hours. The composer, vocalist, multi-instrumentalist and Blues musician will stream from the UC Theatre stage in Berkeley, California.
Presents Darlene Love: Love for the Holidays
From Sony Hall in New York City, the American pop singer and Grammy Award winner will stream a concert on Dec. 5. She’ll perform holiday music. Tickets available through KPA.
Film
Speed Cinema:
The Speed Art Museum has reopened, so you can go in-person — social distancing of course — to see the blockbuster Andy Warhol exhibition. But the Speed Cinema has stayed closed for in-person viewing. Instead, you can stream Speed Cinema films from home.
“John Lewis: Good Trouble”:
Kentucky Performing Arts hosts a virtual viewing party of the documentary film “John Lewis: Good Trouble” Sept. 21. It’s offering the film for rent till Sept. 30.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_oEkOdIXdo
Magic & Comedy
Cody Clark:
Louisville magician Cody Clark is presenting magic shows on Zoom. More informationhere.
Kentucky Performing Arts:
A mix of magic and comedy, KPA presents the virtual “MAGIC for Humans (AT HOME) with Justin Willman.”
If you have a virtual event, show or experience, please contact WFPL arts reporter Stephanie Wolf,who will be updating this story on an ongoing basis.