Now you can have the greatest actor of his generation and everyone’s favorite queer icon Sir Ian McKellen in your own home.  Well for a couple of hours anyway

In the newly released video Ian McKellen on Stage, he presents his greatest roles with stories and anecdotes from his illustrious career on stage and screen. Performing extracts from his most unforgettable performances, including Shakespeare’s King Lear and Tolkien’s Gandalf from Lord of the Rings.

He has done other one-man shows in his career, but in this one, you get to see him like you’ve never seen him before. Critic Mark Shenton calls it “an unadulterated love letter to the theatre” to the actor’s life and the prose and poetry that fuel both. This latest one-man show is a thing of sheer joy and utter wonder: an act of selfless generosity and warmth in every regard.

Directed by Sean Mathias (McKellan’s romantic partner in the 1970s) the show was conceived by McKellen in honor of his eightieth birthday and in tribute to his illustrious sixty-year career onstage. Yet it is also a fundraiser: After touring 80 theaters in the UK with all proceeds, over 3 Million GBP, going to UK regional theaters, the production was filmed live in London’s West End by the National Theatre at the Harold Pinter.  The 2 and 1/2 hour streaming production is now being released to benefit the community, amateur, educational and regional theaters affected by the Covid-19 crisis.

https://www.ntathome.com/videos/ian-mckellen-on-stage