Why haven’t more companies explored live streaming?

Launched in 2009, National Theatre Live was a bold experiment that beamed the company’s production of Phèdre, starring Helen Mirren, to 70 cinemas across the UK and a further five cinemas in Europe. While concerns were raised that a filmed production could never capture the magic of live theatre, the experiment was an immediate success, according to economist David Throsby, who helped evaluate the results.  

Many of the audiences were new to the National Theatre. ‘Around 60% of the audience hadn’t been to the National Theatre before, or at least hadn’t been in the last 12 months,’ said Throsby, adding that a high percentage of viewers had never attended the National at all.