Which musical is your favorite? and why?

Question

I asked this question a couple months ago and I got a lot of answers. Now I'm more familiar with RENT, A Chorus Line, Wicked, Avenue Q, Fiddler on the Roof, Annie, The Producers, Dreamgirls, Chicago, Hairspray, Oliver, and more...

Which ones are your favorite and what others do you recommend that aren't already on the list above?

actormyk [and others]---Fiddler is the only older musical on the list, but that's because in my 1st question, I specifically asked for newer musicals and that's what I listed above. I know older shows like Guys and Dolls and Oklahoma!...I was even in a production of Hello, Dolly!, but I just prefer newer ones.

Answer 1

I would have to say The Wizard of Oz, Grease, Rent and My Fair Lady are my favorites with 42nd Street coming in there next.
Oz: Because it was my first musical and one of my all time favorite movies
Grease: Because it was awesome to an 8 year old girl back in '77!
Rent: A bit more current when I first saw it back in the middle 90s. Seems a bit dated now but I like the soundtrack!
My Fair Lady: Because I was in it in high school so it brings back lots of memories
42nd Street: Because it was my first ever Broadway musical in New York City

Others I can recall seeing: Les Miserables, Phantom of the Opera, Oliver, Fiddler on the Roof, Titanic (yuck!), The Sound of Music, You're a Good Man Charlie Brown, West Side Story, Chicago, Bye Bye Birdie, Annie, Brigadoon, Oklahoma, and Little Shop of Horrors.

Answer 2

Broadway has always had some GREAT musicals on it in the past 100 years. I have a lot of favorites but I'll leave it up to the others to tell you great Broadway musicals. But what about the shows that didn't make it to Broadway? The ones that were to raunchy for Broadway? The ones that didn't have the budget for Broadway? The ones that didn't have a chance on Broadway? They are left to be shown on Off-Broadway, where my passion lies. Where there are no rules or cares. Here are some Off-Broadway shows that are amazing and just as good as any other Broadway musical.

Tick...Tick...BOOM!-- Jonathan Larson's (the man who created Rent) first musical ever written. It's almost like an autobiography. It tells the story of a man, Jonathan, turning 30 in the 90's.

Bare: A Pop Opera--One word can decribe this show...Drama. The story of two closted gay boys who attend a Catholic boarding school, where their relationship is a secret. The budject got pulled out fro beneath them a sadly never made it to Broadway but it is an amazing show either way. http://www.myspace.com/barethemusical

I Love You Because--A love story about how opposites really do attract. Very cute and funny story.

The Wild Party--The musical based off of Joseph Mancure March's poem, "The Wild Party." Takes you through the adventure of one...wild party. There is also a Broadway recording of this but the creatiors are different and the cast, and everything is different.

The Fantastiks--The loongest-running Off-Broadway musicla of all times returns to the stage. It's a terrific show with delightful music. The Fantastiks is one of my favorite musicals.

Naked Boys Singing-- The title say sit all =P

There are some really great Off-Broadway shows that arn't afraid to say, "Well never make it to Broadway, but well sure look cool!" There are other great ones to so be sure to explore!

Jane Marie

Answer 3

My absolute favorite musical is Spring Awakening. It is a new musical about german teenagers in the 19th century. It is an abslotely amazing show. it won 8 tonys including best new musical.

I like musical such as Wicked and Rent, but i have found that to many people like them now, so its not exactly original to like them anymore. I knew about Wicked when it first came out and listend to it Non-stop. But then, about two years ago, other people outside of the teater community started becoming obssesed with it. No offense to those people by any means. I have been listening to show tunes ever since i figured out how to sing. I have been performing ever since I was five and LOOVE it.

There are some amazing musicals that the general population has no idea about...

-Spring Awakening
-A chorus line(in some respect)
-the 25h annual putnam county spelling bee
-Godspell
-Legally Blonde the musical
-and many, many, others.

Also, many new pop tunes involve snipits from show tunes. Especially Gwen Stefani. I was humming "if i were a rich man" from fiddler on the roof. My cousin heard me and said that she loved that song by gwen stefani. I said oh "if i were a rich girl" i was humming "if i were a rich man" and then said, oh well, they must have stole that tune from gwen.
I was outraged! Fiddler - 1960's Gwen - 2006

same thing w/ wind it up/sound of music.

There are so many great musicals out there. Take a trip to your local CD store and take a look at the show tunes section.

P.S. classic musicals are the best! nothing can beat them. West side story, guys and dolls. I think you get my drift

Answer 4

If you look in a book on the Broadway Musical, "The Golden Age" is from 1943 to 1964 or, as some people refer to it, from Oklahoma to Hello Dolly. I think it is funny that you have 1 musical from that period on your list -- Fiddler. Some answers this time have brought in one or two more -- Sound of Music (1960) and West Side Story (1957) -- but remember that Frank Loesser is credited as one of the few composers to have 8 rave reviews from the 8 New York theatre critics when his show Guys and Dolls opened. Even Rodgers and Hammerstein can't say that. He duplicated this feat in 1961 (I think) when he opened How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. Also during this time you have Kiss Me Kate, My Fair Lady, Camelot, Gypsy, Mame, and South Pacific to name just a few

Answer 5

My favorite musical is The Light in the Piazza. Not only is the music incredible, but the story is a tear-jerker. The costumes are so perfect for the show and there are even some funny parts in it. I just love it! You should definitely try to see it if the national tour comes to your area.

I will say though, I saw the national tour of High School Musical on Stage last night and I was pleasantly surprised. I actually liked it and it was a really fun show, very fun to watch. Try to see it if you can. It's like watching a cartoon come to life.

Answer 6

Favorite as an audience member : "Evita" (1979)... just an incredible visual and auditory experience. The POWER of those songs was incredible... Patti LuPone as Evita, Mandy Patinkin as Ché, were incredible.

Favorite as Movie: "Sound of Music".

Favorite as Engineer: "Godspell"... did this in 1984, we had a young (20ish) music director who had re-arranged the numbers to a more '80's feel, and we staged it as a rock-concert. I loved the production and the cast (Sunnyvale Community Players).

Favorite as Tech/Props Master: "Caberet"... worked this in 1985. Loved the songs, and loved building the set.

Favorite as Stage Manager: "Oklahoma"... I did 3 productions of this damned show !!

Answer 7

My favorite musical EVER is Les Miserables. It's THE BEST!! Some other good ones not on their are Phantom of the Opera and Jekyll & Hyde. My favorites FROM the list are Wicked and RENT.

Answer 8

Les Miserables. That's my all time favorite musical. Especially with the London cast with Judy Kuhn, Lea Salonga, Michael Ball..etc.

Answer 9

I like guitar and piano. Yes, the music :-) It will take atleast a year to learn the basics. But, actally it depends on the interest of the person over music and days doesn't matter..

Answer 10

My thre favorites are:
Sound of Music
Fiddler on the Roof
Little Shop of Horrors