Live from the comfort of your local cinema

Berlin’s Philharmonic Hall, Moscow’s Bolshoi Theatre, the New York Met — these have always been places for the theatre lover to imagine, but rarely experience.

Now, though, some of the world’s greatest performances can be enjoyed live in the comfort of major cinemas across the country, without any of the stress (and cost) of booking, flying, staying, queuing. Not only that, but you get to go backstage as well, see the scene shifters setting up the next act, spot the stars crossing to their dressing rooms, even listen in on an interview.

Yes, from an artistic point of view, Live in HD was one of the great developments of recent years, and thank the deus ex machina that Irish cinemas were ready with wiring in place and plug in hand.