Michael Sheen Play Free ‘Nye’ Streaming on National Theater at Home

If you missed Tom Holland’s lead role in ‘Romeo & Juliet’ on the West End earlier this autumn, this is your chance to get a taste of British theater – this time for free and without leaving your home.

Enter London’s iconic Olivier stage with a viewing of Michael Sheen-led Welsh fantasy plays “Nye” via National Theatre at Home (NT at Home), a streaming service designed to bring theatrical performances to viewers around the world. “Nye” will stream for free on the National Theater YouTube channel from 7pm GMT on Thursday, November 7 until Monday, November 11.

According to the show’s description, ‘Nye’ stars Michael Sheen as Nye Bevan on a surreal and spectacular journey through the life and legacy of the man who transformed Britain’s welfare state and created the NHS. Faced with death, Aneurin ‘Nye’ Bevan’s deepest memories lead him on a mind-boggling journey back through his life; from childhood to underground mining, parliament and battles with Churchill.”

The play, written by Tim Price and directed by Rufus Norris, will be the second annual title offered as a free stream from the National Theater.

“I can’t wait for audiences around the world to watch this incredibly important show,” Sheen said Variety. “It feels particularly appropriate that this piece is available for free as it follows the founder of the National Health Service, Aneurin ‘Nye’ Bevan, through his life and battle to make healthcare free at the point of access. The free stream is a wonderful opportunity for theater lovers and skeptics alike to listen in, be inspired and learn something too.”

After the free streaming period, “Nye” will join more than 80 titles in the National Theater at home library. In a promo tied to ‘Nye’, NT at Home is offering new subscribers access to their streaming selection for half of the first two months with the code ‘NYE50’. The service currently costs £9.99 per month (about $13) or £99.99 per year (about $130).

“I’m thrilled that audiences around the world will have the opportunity to watch ‘Nye’ not only for free, but from the comfort of their homes,” said Norris, director of “Nye” and co-director of the National Theatre, said. “NT at Home was born out of the restrictions Covid created, when the National Theater hosted weekly free broadcasts of productions, attracting 15 million viewers. The platform now has subscribers in 184 out of 195 countries. We are pleased to continue to make theater accessible worldwide with the annual ‘Take Your Seats’ free streaming initiative, breathing new life and building new audiences for productions we are incredibly proud of.”

Callum Stewart, head of National Theater at Home, explains that NT at Home was born out of a desire to make theater available to lockdown viewers during the pandemic. “It comes down to accessibility and affordability,” says Stewart. “Theatre is for everyone.”

Stewart credits Sheen’s performance in the titular role and Norris’ directing abilities with making “Nye” resonate with audiences so much that NT at Home decided to give it a free pass at launch.

“It’s almost like being in the hospital with (Nye) and looking into his soul,” Stewart says. “The real human emotion when people don’t have much time left…It touched a lot of personal points.”

For the 60e anniversary of the National Theater in 2023, the streamer released its first ‘Take Your Seats’ initiative, which the organization said was viewed by more than 180,000 people. ‘Nye’ marks the latest edition of ‘Take Your Seats’.

The show will be available with both audio description and British Sign Language on NT at Home. Stewart says that 85% of current titles offered on NT at Home include audio descriptions and that the streamer is on track to strengthen its British Sign Language offering, in addition to starting trial runs for Spanish subtitles.

According to Stewart, telling these stories to a global audience is particularly important and filming this production on the National Theater’s Olivier stage adds extra magic.

“When people go to the theater, it is a snapshot. You have to be in the play, almost together with the actors. You have to be present in that story at that moment,” says Stewart. “It’s so powerful that you have nothing else. It really surpasses everything.”