Bootlegs Are The Backbone Of Broadway 

There’s an underground market on YouTube, found under the code name of “slime tutorials.” They’re Broadway bootlegs: illegal and unprofessional recordings of theatre productions. 

Videos with titles such as “Hadestown Slime Tutorial” contain recordings of productions under the alternate name to fly under the radar of copyright laws. 

Many Broadway actors condemn the act of recording bootlegs. In 2023, “Six” released a statement condemning the illegal recordings, and “Heathers” did the same in 2025. The common argument against bootlegs is they’re actively stealing from actors, who make money off the tickets sold for live performances. 

However, these statements flatten bootlegging culture’s complexity into one dimension. Bootlegs can be seen as a net positive for the Broadway community — despite initial misgivings. 

For most contemporary musicals, their popularity can be attributed to internet fanbases. 

The traction they gain not only around the United States but around the globe, spreading far beyond Broadway’s home base of New York City, is largely due to fandoms formed on various social media websites like Twitter, Tumblr and TikTok. 

“Death Becomes Her” opened on Broadway in 2024 and quickly gained a cult fan following on various websites, most notably on TikTok. 

While much of its popularity can be credited to the talent and humor present throughout the show, this talent only could be seen by a wide audience because the show didn’t overtly condemn bootlegs. 

Seemingly unprofessional videos quickly went viral, and the show didn’t put much effort into getting them taken down. 

The show’s currently in the sixteenth month of its run on Broadway, and as of now is still a major success, ranking among the top-grossing shows and receiving 10 Tony nominations, one Tony Award, one Grammy nomination and six Audience Choice Awards. 

It’s doubtful they could’ve achieved this eminence without the support of internet fandoms, fueled by a seemingly constant influx of bootlegs to interact with. 

While they aren’t on the same level of prestige as Broadway, the theatre company Team Starkid has a prominent following online, with their most famous show being “A Very Potter Musical.” 

Unlike most theatre companies, Team Starkid posts recordings of their productions on YouTube, free for anyone to watch at any time. By doing this, they encourage their fanbase to engage with their shows online. 

Productions that are meticulous about taking bootlegs of their shows off the internet lose this aspect of theatre fandoms, unknowingly alienating a large portion of a potential fanbase. 

“Stranger Things: The First Shadow” on Broadway brings the question of accessibility into the conversation. 

The production details the backstory of the Netflix show’s main villain, Vecna, and the director’s decision to make the play canon in the TV show universe was quite controversial. 

Dedicated fans turned to watching bootlegs of the Broadway show, rightfully worried they’d be missing out on lore which can only be revealed by purchasing a plane ticket to New York City and a minimum $65 play ticket. 

While “The First Shadow” didn’t end up having much to do with the last season of “Stranger Things,” it’s still an example of how bootlegs are a vital resource for fans to traverse the inaccessible Broadway landscape. 

Fans of Broadway shows who live on a different continent cannot be expected to spend hundreds on travel expenses to get to New York City when it’s infinitely easier and cheaper to access a form of the show online. 

Claiming a fan who cannot, for whatever reason, travel to New York isn’t really a true fan ignores the inaccessibility of the art form confined to one space.

Seeing a production live in a theatre also requires a body able to sit still in a confined space, often for over two hours. Are people physically incapable of this, whether it’s due to disability or other factors, less worthy of consuming shows they love because of a factor completely out of their control? 

Some Broadway fanatics — mainly ones based in New York City, but certainly not limited to the city — argue bootlegs are morally wrong and not only steal income from hardworking actors and techies but also take away from the overall magic of theatre.  

Bootlegs exist because Broadway isn’t accessible to a good deal of its fans, constantly raising ticket prices and catering to capitalistic demands. 

It creates a rapidly expanding elitist culture, threatening to destroy the very community theatre is supposed to create amongst its audiences. 

Media is only as impactful as its fans let it be, and theatre is no exception. 

Bootlegs of Broadway shows increase fans’ desire to see the show live rather than diminishing it. They’re what keep the industry alive and thriving, and what will continue to do so.