Theatre and YouTube

An article in this Sunday's Washington Post is about bootlegs of theater performances popping up online. The article itself doesn't really say anything new: Performances are normally thought of as "ephemeral", but people sneak in cameras, tape the shows, and post them on YouTube. Or they post clips that pop up on tv shows--modern and older shows (e.g., clips from the original production of Chicago from The Mike Douglas Show)--or promo videos released by the shows themselves for marketing.

I'm totally guilty of watching these. I know there are places where you can go to watch taped performances, but some of them (like the New York Public Library's Theatre on Film and Tape Archive) are restricted to performers and researchers. The beauty of theatre is that it's never the same; the huge downside is that unless you're well off (or an usher or involved with the production), you can only see it once. There are so many productions I wish I could see again. Or, you know, at all.

I know there are issues about paying the people involved in the production, etc. I get why it's not right. But it's also understandable.

And when the article mentioned a clip of Hugh Jackman and Audra McDonald performing "If I Loved You" from a concert version of Carousel in 2002, I immediately went and found the clip. And you know what? I'm pissed that iTunes doesn't have the song for sale, because I totally want Hugh Jackman to sing this to me at will. So it's not all bad.