With the huge and ever-mounting popularity of "Hamilton," Broadway musicals are more popular than ever. And yet, to get into Broadway can feel daunting, almost impossible. Musicals have a long and spectacular history, and especially in modern times, show-stopping productions seem to appear non-stop on the marquees of New York theaters. So what is a musical noob to do?
Well I consider myself a well-seasoned Broadway fan, and so I have composed this list for anyone wishing to enter this wonderful world.
The Bare Essentials
"Les Misèrables," Boublil and Schönberg, 1980
Funnily enough, one of the most iconic musicals of all time, didn’t even premier on Broadway. "Les Mis" first premiered in Paris and was written in French. The French concept production was followed by an English version on West End in London in 1985, then on Broadway in 1987. The West End production still continues, making "Les Mis" the longest running musical of all time. The filmic adaption, released in 2012, grossed just under $149 million in North America.
"Les Mis" is set in France during the early 19th century. It follows the tale of Jean Valjean, a convict who breaks parole to start a new life, ultimately finding redemption by raising Cosette, the bastard daughter of Fantine. The climax of the musical takes place during the June Rebellion of 1832. It is based off the book by the same name written by Victor Hugo.
Trigger Warnings: death, parental abuse, sexual assault, rape
"Phantom of the Opera" Webber, 1986
"Phantom" premiered on Broadway in 1988 following its West End premier in 1986 and is still running, making it the longest running Broadway musical of all time. The production celebrated its 10,000th performance in 2012.
The musical is based off of the book "Le Fantôme de l’Opéra" by Gaston Leroux and follows Christine Daae, a young chorus girl in the Paris Opera. It is soon revealed that she has been taking private singing lessons from the elusive Opera Ghost whom she believes to be the angel of music her late father told her stories about. Soon, Christine is looped into a love triangle with the Phantom and the Vicomte de Chagny, Raoul, with dire consequences.
Trigger Warnings: abuse, death
"RENT," Larson, 1993
Loosely based on "La Bohème," "RENT" is the account of a group of young, impoverished artists living in the East Village and Alphabet City during the 80s. Out of the main cast of seven characters, four are POC, four are LGBT, and four are living with HIV/AIDS. A behemoth of theatre, "RENT" is one of eight musicals to win a Pulitzer Prize for drama.
Trigger Warnings: death, drugs, HIV/AIDS
"Chicago," Kander, Ebb, and Fosse, 1975
Premiering in 1975 and revived in 1977, "Chicago" holds the records for the longest running revival and longest running American musical on Broadway.
The musical takes place in prohibition-era Chicago and follows Roxie Hart in her quest to become famous. She first attempts to become a vaudeville star, but upon murdering the man with whom she had been having an affair, she discovers that crime could be her path to stardom. The musical is a satire of the criminal justice system and the concept of a celebrity criminal.
Trigger Warnings: descriptions of violence, death
"Into the Woods," Sondheim and Lapine, 1986
Premiering in San Diego in ’86, Into the Woods moved to Broadway in 1897 and managed to win three Tonies (best score, best book, best actress) in a year dominated by "Phantom." Stephen Sondheim wrote the music and lyrics, and this is one of my personal favorites of his. (For those who don’t know, Stephen Sondheim is considered one of, if not the greatest composer in Broadway history, winning eight Tonies, eight Grammies, a Pulitzer, and many other awards.)
This musical is a hodge-podge retelling of multiple fairy tales, woven together beautifully into a masterful fable of what is right and what is wrong.
Trigger Warnings: N/A
"Next to Normal," Yorkey and Kitt, 2008
Debuting off-Broadway in 2008, "N2N" garnered immediate critical acclaim and premiered on Broadway in 2009. It was nominated for eleven Tonies and won three. It was the eighth musical in history to win a Pulitzer for drama.
The story follows the Goodman family as the matriarch, Diana struggles with bipolar disorder. She was diagnosed after the death of her son years ago and she and her family have been dealing with the consequences ever since. Mental illness, embodied by Diana’s son Gabe (played by Broadway heartthrob Aaron Tveit), plagues not only Diana, but her daughter and husband as well. This musical masterpiece is painfully truthful, poignant, hopeful, and heartbreaking at the same time.
Trigger Warnings: Mental illness, child death, suicide
"Newsies," Menken, Feldman, and Fierstein, 2011
Based off the 1992 musical film of the same name, Disney brought this production to Broadway. The production brings back all the numbers from the movie plus more. With some minor character changes, the musical stays very truthful to the film (personally I love the musical way more).
The musical is inspired by the Newsboys Strike of 1899 in which the Newsboys of Pulitzer’s "New York World" revolted against rising paper prices. The story focuses on Jack Kelly (played in the move by Christian Bale, in the musical by yet another Broadway heartthrob Jeremy Jordan) whose dream is to one day make a new life in Santa Fe.
Trigger Warnings: N/A
"Hair," Rado, Ragni, and MacDermot, 1967
One of the first ever rock musicals, "Hair" is a product of the hippie counterculture. Written by actors Rado and Ragni, the musical is ultimately autobiographical. It received only moderate success in its time but spawned numerous revivals and paved the way for other rock musicals like "RENT."
Set during the Vietnam War, "Hair" tells the story of a “tribe” of hippies living in New York. The tribe struggles against the war, meanwhile the protagonist Claude has to decide whether he should resist the draft like his friends or follow his parents’ wishes and compromise his pacifist ideals.
Trigger Warnings, Drugs (lots of ‘em), Sex (lots of it), violence (only a little)
"Book of Mormon," Parker, Lopez, and Stone, 2011
Written by the same minds behind "South Park," "BOM" exploded upon its premier in 2011. With popularity comparable to "Hamilton’s," it stole that year’s Tony Awards, winning nine. The production is still continuing on Broadway and has premiered on West End while staging two national tours.
A religious satire, "Book of Mormon" follows two young Mormon missionaries on their obligatory mission trip. Elder Price, Mormon wunderkind, believes that if he prays hard enough he will be sent to his dream city Orlando. However, he ends up stuck with the hopeless Elder Cunningham in an AIDS-ridden village in Uganda. Here Price learns that he is not as good as he always thought and that sometimes, Heavenly Father doesn’t give you everything. Meanwhile, Cunningham comes into his own, finds love, and creates and new brand of Mormonism.
Trigger Warnings: violence, rape, homophobia
"Wicked," Holzman and Schwartz, 2003
Based off of Gregory Maquire’s novel "Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West," this musical is a retelling of L. Frank Baum’s "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz." Written by Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman, it premiered in San Francisco in 2003 and moved to Broadway that same year. With an original cast featuring Idina Menzel, Kristin Chenoweth, and Norbert Leo Butz (all Broadway household names), the musical gained immense popularity, spawning multiple other productions and is still going strong on Broadway.
"Wicked" tells the story of Elphaba, the eventual Wicked Witch, who attends the university Shiz in Oz to take care of your younger, disabled sister Nessa. While there, she discovers that her magic, something she has always feared, could lead her to the Wizard. However, because of her green skin, she is ostracized and hated, just like she was at home. She soon befriends Galinda (who will change her name to Glinda the Good), but they have a falling out when Elphaba chooses to follow her conscience instead of the path to power. "Wicked" masterfully weaves together the story we know so well with the story we never heard nor expected.
Trigger Warnings: bullying
Extra Credit
"Spring Awakening," Shiek and Sater, 2006
Based off of the play by the same name by Frank Wedekind, "Spring Awakening" tells the story of a group of young German teens in the late 1800s as they come to terms with their burgeoning sexuality. Oppressed by the bourgeois Puritan ideals of their small town, they search for answers and meaning in their life. Using the modern language of rock music, these teens are able, through song, to finally express themselves and break free from the authorities that would seek to oppress them.
Trigger Warnings: rape, childhood sexual assault, death, suicide, sex
"Catch Me if You Can," McNally, Shaiman, and Wittman, 2011
Based off of the 2002 movie by the same name, which in turn was based off of Abagnale’s autobiography, the musical tells the story of Frank Abagnale, Jr. who has spent his life forging checks and creating false identities to get ahead. The musical is told as a flashback through Frank’s life as he tells FBI agent Carl Hanratty his story after he is apprehended.
I included this musical on this list, not because it was particularly revolutionary, but rather because it’s fun, won a few Tonies, and includes Aaron Tveit and Norbert Leo Butz in the original cast (who, as I’ve mentioned before, are well-known amongst Broadway fans).
Trigger Warnings: child abuse, sex
"Bonnie & Clyde," Black, Menchell, and Wildhorn, 2009
Based off the lives of notorious American Criminals Bonnie and Clyde, the musical failed to impress critics on Broadway, but still managed to garner nominations for ten different awards, including two Tonies and, since it’s closing, has spurred multiple international productions. Again, rather than being a particularly spectacular or important musical, It’s included because it’s fun and features household names in the original cast (Jeremy Jordan and Laura Osnes).
Trigger Warnings: violence, abuse, sexual assault
"In the Heights," Hudes and Miranda, 2005
"Hamilton’s" Lin Manuel Miranda wrote the music and lyrics to this, his first musical, which premiered on Broadway in 2008 after two years of productions in Connecticut and a year of off-Broadway productions. It was nominated for thirteen Tonies and won four, plus a Grammy Award and a nomination for a Pulitzer Prize. The story takes place over the course of three days in New York City’s Washington Heights. The musical blends together freestyle rap, salsa, and traditional Broadway ballads, making it truly one-of-a-kind.
Trigger Warnings: death, minor violence
"Fun Home," Kron and Tesori, 2013
Based off of artist Alison Bechdel’s 2006 memoir, "Fun Home" is the first Broadway musical with a lesbian protagonist. The musical showcases Bechdel’s life growing up in a funeral home through college and adulthood and her attempts to come to terms with her own sexuality, as well as trying to navigate her relationship with her closeted gay father. Premiering on Broadway in 2015, it was nominated for twelve Tonies and won five.
Trigger Warnings: homophobia, sex, statutory rape, death
Honorable Mentions
"Kinky Boots," Fierstein and Lauper, 2012
Based off the movie by the same name, "Kinky Boots" is about Charlie Price who inherits his father’s shoe factory. In order to save the business he forms a partnership with Lola, a drag queen, and begins making high-heeled boots.
Trigger Warnings: transphobia
"Sweeney Todd," Sondheim and Wheeler, 1979
This musical tells the story of Sweeney Todd, a man wrongly banished by a judge who sought to pursue his wife. In his search for revenge, he teams up with baker Mrs. Lovett and begins making pies out of the clients he murders in his barber shop.
Trigger Warnings: violence, death, sexual assault
"Anything Goes," Bolton, Wodehouse, and Porter (Heavily revised by Lindsay and Crouse), 1934
There are four versions of the libretto that exist: the original 1934, 1962 revival, 1987 revival, and 2011 revival. Throughout the revivals, however, the story focuses on the romantic antics of the passengers aboard the SS American on her journey from New York to London.
Trigger Warnings: N/A
"Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder," Freedman and Lutvak, 2013
Based off of the 1907 novel "Israel Rank: The Autobiography of a Criminal, Gentleman’s Guide" is told as the memoirs of Lord Montague “Monty” D’Ysquith Navarro in his attempt to take his rightful place in the rich D’Ysquith family. The plot follows Monty’s antics to kill off every remaining D’Ysquith to inherit the family fortune. (Don’t be fooled by the plot, though, this is a comedy, and it’s hilarious)
Trigger Warnings: death
"Pippin," Schwartz and Hirson, 1972
The play utilizes a performance troupe, led by the Leading Player, to act as narrator and Greek Chorus while telling the story of Pippin, a boy prince searching for fulfillment and meaning. The musical is anachronistic and chaotic with plentiful fourth wall breaks.
Trigger Warnings: death
