We’ve gathered some of the best performing arts podcasts and playlists to stream this week at home. Dive deeper into opera and theatre productions with podcasts, or listen to symphony and musical recordings. Whether you need some new background music for working from home or you just need to escape for a few minutes, we’ve got you covered.
Repisodes: The Berkeley Rep Podcast
Berkeley Repertory Theatre’s Repisode series focuses on the mainstage plays in their season. The podcasts are conversations with artists and experts around the shows to give listeners a more in-depth look at the performance and background of the play.
The guests of the podcast vary widely from Jocelyn Bioh, playwright of School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play, to local Wiccan priestess Carolyn Hunt who was a consultant for Berkeley Rep for the production of Becky Nurse of Salem.
Repisodes cover performances from the end of the 2017-18 season to the current season. Listen on iTunes or SoundCloud.
Opera for the Soul
In addition to posting daily videos of resident artists performing uplifting songs from home (Odes to Joy), San Francisco Opera has a variety of playlists available to stream. The curated playlists feature beloved San Francisco Opera performers and range from upbeat to personal staff favorites. Listen on Spotify.
Seattle Opera Podcasts and Playlists
With 47 episodes available, Seattle Opera’s podcast offers hours of listening material with a variety of focuses. The topics range from “Opera and Literature” to “Opera 101.” Each episode gives listeners insight into the music and drama of beloved operas. Listen on iTunes or SoundCloud.
Get ready for Seattle Opera’s 2020-21 season with their new playlists. You can listen to the highlights of the whole season, or choose one opera to delve into. Upset that La bohème was cancelled? Listen to playlist to help fill the void. Listen on Soundcloud.
Seattle Symphony Playlists
Seattle Symphony has many recorded performances available to stream. A few favorites include John Luther Adams’ Become Desert, conducted by Ludovic Morlot with the Seattle Symphony Chorale; The Rite of Spring by Stravinsky, conducted by Gerard Schwarz; or the complete symphonies of Tchaikovsky. Listen on Spotify.
Theatreworks Silicon Valley: The Prince of Egypt
Stream the original London cast recording of The Prince of Egypt musical, which had its world premiere at TheatreWorks in 2017. Inspired by the DreamWorks Animation film and featuring a score that includes the Academy Award-winning “When You Believe” by the composer and lyricist of Wicked, Stephen Schwartz. Listen to full musical recording on Spotify and watch TheatreWorks’ performance of “Through “Heaven’s Eyes” below.