One thing theater lovers learned in the past 18 months is something they probably already suspected: There's no virtual/filmed/archival substitute for live shows in a room full of mesmerized strangers.
A couple of theatrical productions have buoyed the spirits of fans this summer, but September will be a tipping point. We'll get at least 10 local productions, while Broadway gets back to full strength and we welcome the return of splashy tours, with "Frozen" starting at the Orpheum Theatre on Sept. 30. It's all right around the corner, so why not gear up by checking out documentaries that show how theater is made and appreciated?
I'm not talking about filmed stage productions like the "Hamilton" that debuted on Disney Plus or the "Come From Away" that starts this week on Apple TV. Those are decent records of worthy shows but they straddle media uncomfortably — the cameras get right up in the grills of actors who gauged their performances for people hundreds of feet away, while effects that might be mesmerizing in a darkened theater can fall flat here. (I believed actors sitting in two rows of wooden chairs were on an airplane when I saw "Come From Away" in New York. On my TV? Not so much.)
"I think what happens in the theater is a miracle," Diana Rigg says in "Broadway: The Golden Age," and who wants to fight an icon who died not long after appearing in "My Fair Lady" in New York at the age of 81? The lightning-in-a-bottle of theater is impossible to capture on screen, which may be why there are so few good films about the process.
I'd love to recommend a polished documentary about the workings of a regional theater such as the Guthrie, for instance, but I don't think it exists. Making a play involves thousands of decisions, which sounds like the recipe for a dandy nonfiction film, but I can't think of many productions that have allowed a filmmaker to eavesdrop on the process, either. (A dishy substitute is James Lapine's new book, "Putting It Together: How Stephen Sondheim and I Wrote 'Sunday in the Park With George,' " a frank look at the rigors of creating stage art.)
Sadly, the making-of films that exist — "Moon Over Broadway" is a revealing look at the 1995 staging of a comedy with Carol Burnett (I saw the show and can tell you the doc is better), and "Follies in Concert" shows nervous stars attempting to learn songs for a staged concert of a Sondheim landmark musical — are not available to stream.
These movies are, though. They're great reminders of the miracles that theater fans have in store.
I could not love "A Chorus Line" more, but you needn't be familiar with Michael Bennett's backstage musical — in which dancers audition for a Broadway show that seems to be the one we're watching — to appreciate this 2008 documentary about tryouts for a revival. Mostly, it spotlights the heart of performers who keep at it, knowing how hard it will be to get a job that hundreds of other talented people also want.