Favorite Broadway Musicals

Parent Cafe
61

We lived in Europe for a few years so have seen many in London, New York and now Detroit. Problem is we love so many of them. But my favorite part is sharing it with the kids so some of our favorites are:

Les Mis
Starlight Express
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat

Can’t wait until the grand kids are old enough to take. We always took our kids the first time for their sixth birthday. We took our grandson to Sesame Street Live at 18 months and he loved it. My oldest asked if he could come along. Probably not in the top ten but the little one danced and clapped along so it was a good start.

But I love just about all the ones that have already been mentioned.

62

Watching West Side Story tonight. Might be my all time favorite.

Boy, boy, crazy boy
Stay loose, boy
Breeze it
Buzz it
Easy does it
Turn off the juice, boy
Just play it cool, boy
Real cool

63

I love musicals–though I haven’t seen many of the modern ones. Sibs and I were involved in school/community theater in high school and I have fond memories of some of those shows. A couple of my kids were recently in some school musicals–D was in Fiddler (as the Fiddler), and S was in Curtains (which I’d never heard of before–It was a lot better/funnier than I expected). Just watched Grease last night (fun songs, dumb story. . .)

Some of my favorite shows are The Music Man (all time fav), Oklahoma, Fiddler, West Side Story, Brigadoon, How to Succeed, Drowsy Chaperone

Least favorites: Carousel, Camelot

64

I also dislike Carousel because of the story, but I just learned that Time Magazine named it the best musical of the the 20th century. I can’t imagine how they would pick this this one when there are so many better shows to choose from. Our community theater group won’t even consider it, and we’ve done tons of R & H.

65

Favorites: Oklahoma, Secret Garden, Man of La Mancha, West Side Story, Book of Mormon.

Least Favorite - Cats

66

Ask me which of my children is my favorite, why dontcha? I guess any of Roger and Hammersteins and Wicked

67

I used to have trouble with Carousel because of the spousal abuse (Billy slapped Julie.).

But the show really touches me, and is one of my faves. I came to terms with it as a show having the message of how important genuine communication is in a relationship. I find it such a poignant tragedy and it brings me to tears. Billy could not express his feelings to his wife, so he lashed out physically in frustration at how he was not able to come through for her – either financially or emotionally. He cared deeply, but could not be emotionally open. “If I Loved You” is a wonderful song about feelings unsaid.
Billy needed to learn to “use his words”. Of course how he handled things was not right, but Julie did understand that he cared. Today, she would have gotten herself and him help, I hope.

Anybody else see it the way I do?

68

@slitheytove:
I absolutely love 1776! We are fortunate that the movie version of it featured most of the original broadway cast, so you are seeing pretty much what went on stage (the only big change was Blythe Danner replaced Betty Buckley as Martha Jefferson, which was not a loss;). William Daniels as Adams was just amazing, and the interplay between he and Howard Da Silva was just out there (and yes, John Adams was that prickly, I admire the man a great deal, and I think Daniels performance was one of the reasons, besides what I have read about him). I think with 1776, that it was a lot more the cast that made it than the strength of the music, it is more a musical play than a musical, but I still love it (and I recommend for those who have never see it, see the movie version)

In terms of the great musicals, West Side Story is up there, if for the music alone, in many ways it revolutionized musical theater (and the rest is not bad, either), it was very different than the musicals of its time. Hair, likewise, revolutionized Broadway, not for the hippie vibe, but the music, it brought off Broadway to Broadway and laid the groundwork for musicals like Rent. On the other hand, Andrew Lloyd Webber kind of set Broadway music back, the score for Jesus Christ Superstar at least was Rock tinged, but then he decided to cater to middle aged housewives and tourists with the rest (didn’t mean I didn’t enjoy Cats or Evita, just that musically they reflect their creator).

The Producers was a hoot, it is rare you have a show on Broadway that dares to make fun of Broadway like that plus it was over the top and crass (doesn’t hurt it is based on one of my favorite movies of all time)

Rogers and Hammerstein are a funny one, I can enjoy their musicals, and I can appreciate them for what they were. If I like them, I think in part it was because of who Oscar Hammerstein was as a person, everyone who ever met him said he was a kind, generous person, (while Richard Rogers, let’s just say that musically and as a person, I think he left a lot to be desired), I remember a program on Broadway that said Hammerstein wrote the lyrics for the song “Edelweiss”, a song of optimism, when he was dying of cancer, and it touched me.

Now the heresy, it has been many years since I went to see a Broadway musical. These days it seems to be all Disney or Disney like musicals, or revivals, I haven’t seen anything on the boards in recent years I really wanted to invest the significant funds in to go see. I did go see the revival of Cabaret with Allen Cumming and that was worth it, but that is technically off Broadway. I wasn’t able to go see the revival of West Side Story they did, I heard it was a really amazing retake, wasn’t able to go. I would love to see a revival of Hair with Lady GaGa in the cast, but I don’t think that is going to happen:)

69

Like @musicprnt, it’s been awhile since I’ve been to a musical. I remember in the past 2 years wanting to get tickets for the family for some revival that was touring through New England (West Side Story, maybe? can’t remember now) but the decent tickets started at $400 each. :open_mouth: We go to a lot of concerts and music festivals as a family. A lot more bang for my buck vs. theater tickets these days.

70

My very first show on Broadway was The Magic Show with Doug Henning. Anyone remember that?

My faves:

West Side Story
Wicked
Rent
Hairspray
Drowsy chaperone
Les Mis

Kinda getting tired of Sound of Music

My theatre group did Shrek last year and it was delightful and a good message for our teens. (“Let your freak flag fly!”)

We are doing Mary Poppins this summer but I have not seen the show version just the movie.

I know I’m forgetting some . . .

71

My favorite musical that was a flop would be “Chess”. Neat music, and if done right, a fun show to watch, but it was ill fated, the London production was this high tech whiz bang thing (Tim Rice must have been influenced by Andrew Lloyd Webber), and it had one of the worst endings I have seen in a musical, it was like they consulted with Ingmar Bergen or something, depressingly Swedish. The Broadway production revamped it, and lost it as well. All they needed to do was get rid of the high tech crap, and rewrite the last 15 minutes and it would have been a hit IMO. They did a staged version of it in 2009 (that I loved, though I wish they hadn’t of gotten Idina Menzel, she irritates me), it showed how powerful it could have been using the original London production,though the ending still sucked.

72

I did see Chess way back when. One Night in Bangkok is a great song.

I saw lucky enough to see Billy Elliot in London during its opening. Another favorite of mine.

73

Just wanted to let any “King & I” fans know that the current revival starring Kelli O’Hara (who won the Tony for Best Actress in a Musical) is wonderful. It’s at the Lincoln Center theater, which I think is the best venue in New York City for a major musical. I have seen the movie many times and saw the 1996 revival on Broadway, but this version took my breath away. Kelli’s “Hello Young Lovers” brought tears to my eyes (guess you have to be old to be so affected by that song because it never hit me like that before–H glanced over at me and became convinced I was losing my marbles). And of course there were copious tears at the end–always are.

74

I do - loved it! It was written by Steven Schwartz, the same guy behind Wicked. I still quote from it to describe life in NY:
“West End Avenue,
Babies in carts and poodles barking.
West End Avenue,
Planning your day around the parking.”

75

Really want to see some of the new ones. Thanks to whoever suggested the TodayTix app. I downloaded and will hopefully use it.

76

No one mentioned Beauty and the Beast, Lion King. I took the kids to see them when they first came out. I really loved Lion King.
I recently saw Phantom, even though it was an oldie, I left there singing.
I liked Wicked, Westside Story, Miss Saigon.

I disliked Chicago, Show boat.

77

Like many here, I was lucky to grow up in the New York suburbs in a musical-loving family and have seen many shows. There is also an excellent professional theater in my hometown where I saw a couple of future B’way stars.

My favorites:
Hello Dolly!
Ragtime
Wicked
Rent
Anything Goes
The Fantasticks
Candide
South Pacific

Runners-Up: 42nd Street, Avenue Q, Irene, Little Shop of Horrors, Spring Awakening

There are several that I love the music for but have never seen performed, such as The Wild Party (the Andrew Lippa version!) and Fun Home, which I’m dying to see.

I generally dislike the shows that try to turn a musical group’s work into a coherent show long after the songs have been written. Hated Movin’ Out. Only saw the Mamma Mia movie, but hated that too. The Boy From Oz was a fairly bad musical that was only enjoyable because of Hugh Jackman.

I was really disappointed by the musical version of Big Fish–loved the movie, and it seemed perfect for the Broadway stage with its colorful sets and fantastical storylines, but they did an awful job, in my opinion.

Also, has anyone seen the new movie version of The Last Five Years?

78

I saw the musicals in London not in Broadway. I liked Cats, Phantom, Miss Saigon, Madame Butterfly, Edith Piaf. I also saw lots of musical shows in London but can’t remember them all except Mama Mia, Lion King because it’s already mentioned here. I saw Les Miserables in LA a long time ago, maybe when I was first dating my husband.