I was wondering how people feel about bootleg recordings of musicals?

I know before each performance you get a nice reminder that recording equipment etc. is strictly forbidden, but in spite of that there are lots of boots doing the round on the internet. Whilst I realise this is a slightly iffy issue, I tend to fall down on the "yay" side of the fence. I would never recommend them over seeing a show live, or getting the proper recording of the music, and certainly not taking profit away from th original artistes, but it certainly gives a new side to a show, and if it's something you just aren't able to see because it isn't on in your country (Spelling Bee, in my case, and the original Broadway Avenue Q Cast) then I don't really see the damage.

Can it be stopped? I know clips from shows go up daily on places like YouTube, largely thanks the advances in mobile phones and the tiny size of recording equipment these days, but some people manage to video entire shows. Now, I don't know who'd want to do that, unless they'd already seen the show in question several times, as (personally) it would spoil the experience for me, not to mention the risk of getting thrown out if you're caught. The quality isn't always good, but there's some phenomenal stuff out there considering the equipment it was done on).

Personally, as long as it's not being done for profit (which it most definitely shouldn't be - all profits should be going back into the show), then I don't see a problem. The bootlegs I have come across have merely whetted my appetite for more, and the fact that I'm seeing three shows in three months (as opposed to the none I managed in 2008), surely is indictative that they have recaputered my enthusiasm for live performances.

i do agree with Helen, here.

I personally think it's a law that people are continually going to break because technology is available to them for them do to so.

And, largely thanks to sites like YouTube, it promotes the shows - and the people that complain about this should look at it in only a positive way.

A fan is still going to come and pay to see a show if it's made possible - so, they're not losing any money by posting the shows online.

I do think, like movies, theatre shows should be experienced IN a theatre - and not in a living room. I most DVDs of shows (even professional ones) really quite cheesy and cringeworthy - usually, due to the lack of an audience.