Given that our dramatic heritage here in the UK is the envy of the world
and
generates millions of pounds especially via foreign tourism, why is there
such a glaring absence of good classic and contem****ary theatrical drama
available to the general public in the form of recordings on Video/DVD?
There are a few recordings of performances either recorded directly within
the relevant Theatre/Opera House or in a Studio held in the archives of
the
British Film Institute and the Theatre Museum here in the UK, but these
are
available only to performing arts students or arts organisations to be
viewed only on the premises.
Over 95% of the general public are unable either by (in some cases)
distance, or time and finance to view quality drama and acting -
especially
if a production is mounted solely in the West End of London and does not
even tour to the major centres outside.
Even with the plethora of television channels now available, there are
rarely (if any) classic or contem****ary theatre productions available -
even
on Artsworld. The Performance channel appears to have no drama at all. The
major terrestrial channels (especially the BBC via BBC Research Central)
have massive archive material, the contents of which are not available
except to researchers or television/film companies. And then there are the
European/American/Australian television channels and archives as
well.........
Surely it should be possible to release first a list of what is held in
the
UK television archives (including those dramas which used to be aired on
the
Schools programme) - possibly initially on the television companies web
sites - so that at least we know what is held and how often it has been
repeated apart from the initial transmission. After that, if enough people
make a request, either it could be shown again, or become commercially
available initially via their shops and then later to the High Street
chains
and smaller retailers.
http://theatremuseum.org/natvidarc/listing.php
http://ftvdb.sigmer.net/search.php?category=Titles&needle=performance
And in America:
http://www.broadwayarchive.com/catalog.asp
--
Derry Barbour
www.arts-info.co.uk
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