Intermediate

Show your Spotify on the TV

Theatrium puts whatever you’re playing on the dashboard — album art, track and artist, and the tempo-driven visualizer. With Spotify Premium, Theatrium appears as a speaker in the Spotify app: pick it once, and the music plays through your TV while Theatrium shows it. On Spotify Free, follow your listening through Last.fm instead, described further down. Both are one-time setups.

How it flows
Your phoneSpotify app, Premium
Speaker listTap the speaker icon
Theatrium – BedroomChoose it once
Your TVPlays it and shows it

Which route? If you have Spotify Premium, use Spotify as the source in Theatrium (the steps straight below). It plays the music on the TV, shows the track the moment it changes, and gives the Now Playing card its playback buttons. If you use Spotify Free, Spotify’s own route is not available to you; use Last.fm instead.

Spotify Premium

Spotify app → Theatrium as a speaker → plays on the TV

Play, pause and skip from the card. The steps just below.

Spotify Free

Spotify app → Last.fm → Theatrium follows along

Album Art and Visualizer only. Jump to the Last.fm steps.

1

Choose Spotify in Theatrium

On the Apple TV, open Settings › Now Playing in Theatrium and choose Spotify under Now Playing Source. Spotify is off until you choose it. The first time, a short explainer called Connect your Spotify account opens and shows the same steps. If your Apple TV is still named just “Apple TV”, the explainer asks you to give it a name, such as Bedroom, so your TVs can be told apart in Spotify. You can change the name later under Speaker name in Spotify.

The Now Playing Source card in Theatrium Settings with Spotify selected among Home Assistant, Apple Music, Last.fm, Plex and Sonos. The line beneath reads: Not connected to your Spotify account yet, choose Theatrium in Spotify once. Below it are an empty Speaker name in Spotify field and a How to connect button.
Settings › Now Playing with Spotify chosen. The line under the source says which speaker to pick in Spotify; the field beneath it is where you name your TV.
The Connect your Spotify account screen: a Name this TV field containing Bedroom, three numbered steps, the note that Spotify Premium is required, and a Done button. Step 2 reads: Tap the speaker icon and choose Theatrium – Bedroom, then play a song.
The first-time explainer. Name the TV here and the speaker in step 2 takes that name.
2

Pick the TV in the Spotify app

Open Spotify on your phone, tap the speaker icon and choose the speaker named “Theatrium –” followed by your TV’s name, for example “Theatrium – Bedroom”. Until the TV has a name of its own, it appears as just “Theatrium”. Then play a song. You do this once.

The speaker list on a phone, with Theatrium – Bedroom chosen, and the TV beside it An illustration of a phone listing three speakers: This phone, Kitchen speaker and Theatrium – Bedroom. Theatrium – Bedroom is outlined, and an arrow leads from it to a television that plays the music. SPEAKERS This phone Kitchen speaker Theatrium – Bedroom Theatrium
An illustration of the idea. Spotify’s own speaker list looks different, but the Theatrium entry is the one to choose.
3

Check that it is connected

Back in Settings › Now Playing, the line under the source reads “Connected to your Spotify account.” Until then it reads “Not connected to your Spotify account yet” and names the speaker to choose; the How to connect button brings the explainer back.

The Now Playing Source card with Spotify selected. The line beneath now reads Connected to your Spotify account, and the How to connect button is gone.
Once the TV has been chosen in Spotify, the line reads Connected to your Spotify account and How to connect goes away.
4

Play something

Start music from Spotify as you normally would. The Now Playing card, the music room and the visualizer show the track and its cover straight from Spotify, and the visualizer follows the song’s tempo. When the music plays on this TV, you can also play, pause and skip from the Now Playing card. To move the music back to your phone, choose your phone in the same speaker list.

What you will see

The Now Playing card on a Glass dashboard: the cover for Signal Drift by Vector Bloom, round buttons for previous, pause and next, and beneath them buttons for Album Art and Visualizer, above a progress bar at 1:12 of 4:30.
Playing on this TV: previous, pause and next, with Album Art and Visualizer beneath.
The same card while the music plays on another device: the cover and title with only the Album Art and Visualizer buttons and the progress bar, and no previous, pause or next.
Playing on your phone or another speaker: Album Art and Visualizer only.
  • Playing on the TV. The card shows the cover, title, artist and progress, with previous, play or pause and next, plus the Album Art and Visualizer buttons.
  • Playing somewhere else. Once the TV is connected, the cards and the visualizer follow your Spotify account wherever it plays: on your phone, a speaker or in the car. The card is labelled with where it is playing. Play, pause and skip stay on that device, so the card offers only Album Art and Visualizer. Choose the TV in Spotify’s speaker list to bring the music to it.
  • Only while Spotify is chosen. Theatrium appears as a Spotify speaker only while Spotify is the source. Choose another source and Spotify stops playing through the TV.
  • On your iPhone. You can also choose Spotify in the Theatrium app, under Settings › Music Source. It shows the same steps with an Open Spotify button, and while music plays the Remote tab shows the track and cover with play, pause, skip and volume.

Good to know

  • Spotify Premium is required. On a free account the line under the source reads “Spotify needs a Premium account.” Spotify Free listeners can use Last.fm below.
  • The phone and the Apple TV should be on the same Wi-Fi network, so that the Spotify app can find the TV.
  • Two TVs? Give each its own name under Speaker name in Spotify. A name that already starts with “Theatrium” is used as typed.
  • If the music stops after the Wi-Fi drops or the HDMI cable is unplugged, choose the TV again in the Spotify app.
  • Opening Theatrium while your account is already playing elsewhere? The card fills in at the next play, pause or track change.
  • If the line under the source says Spotify could not start, choose the TV again in the Spotify app. If the speaker is missing from Spotify’s list, check that Spotify is the chosen source in Theatrium and that the name matches the one shown in Settings.
  • See When Now Playing doesn’t show your music if the card stays empty.

Spotify Free, or no Premium: use Last.fm

Spotify’s own route needs Premium. Last.fm is the free way: it quietly records whatever you play, Spotify Free or Premium, and Theatrium reads that. Choose Last.fm as the source, not Spotify. Last.fm is also the route for Apple Music on a Mac, iPhone or iPad and for most other apps.

1

Create a free Last.fm account

Go to last.fm and sign up — it’s free. Already have a Last.fm account? Skip to the next step.

2

Connect Spotify to Last.fm

On the Last.fm website, open Settings › Applications and connect Spotify. From then on, Last.fm automatically records whatever you play. Apple Music is not listed there; for Apple Music on a Mac or iPhone, see When Now Playing doesn’t show your music.

3

Add Last.fm to Theatrium

On the Apple TV, open Settings › Now Playing in Theatrium, choose Last.fm as your music source, enter your Last.fm username and choose Save username. That’s usually all it needs — the connection key is already built in. Check username confirms the account exists and shows the last song it played.

4

Press play

Start a track the way you normally would — on your phone or computer, or in the Spotify app on the Apple TV itself, then switch back to Theatrium. A moment later it appears on the TV — album art, title and artist — and its tempo drives the visualizer. There’s nothing to keep open on the Apple TV; Theatrium just follows along.

Good to know: Last.fm

  • No Premium required. This works with Spotify Free or Premium — Last.fm mirrors both.
  • It mirrors, it doesn’t remote-control. Because the track comes through Last.fm, it can take a few seconds to appear, and there are no play, pause or scrub controls on the TV — you drive playback from your phone as usual. The Now Playing card shows just the Album Art and Visualizer buttons.
  • Used “Spotify” in an earlier version? That choice followed Spotify through Last.fm. When you updated, Theatrium moved you to Last.fm and nothing needs redoing.
  • Apple Music on this Apple TV needs no Last.fm. Choose Apple Music in Settings › Now Playing. Apple Music on a Mac, iPhone or iPad does go through Last.fm, with a scrobbler app on that device; see When Now Playing doesn’t show your music.
  • Album art and the tempo visualizer are built from the track details Last.fm reports.

This guide is general information, provided “as is” with no warranty of any kind. It describes independent third-party software that Theatrium does not control, and the steps involve installing software and changing settings on your own equipment — back up first and proceed at your own risk. Read the full disclaimer.