Many Broadway shows have hit the stage in New York City’s theater district. All with many different stories to tell that are live every night for audiences of all ages to enjoy. There is a long list of great Broadway shows to see but these ten that I have listed really took the Broadway stage by storm.
1. The Phantom of the Opera
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s masterwork is a timeless story of seduction and despair. The Phantom of the Opera follows a deformed composer who haunts the grand Paris opera house. Sheltered from the outside world in an underground cavern, the man tutors and composes operas of Christine a gorgeous youn star-to-be. Christine becomes the obsession of this disfigured musical genius.
2. Wicked
Wicked is a timeless untold story of The Wizard of Oz’s Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good. Based on the Gregory Maguire novel, Wicked takes a fantasy journey through the unseen side of Oz before Dorothy dropped in. Wicked is a tale of unexpected friendship and love.
3. Newsies
“Newsies stopped the world! A little hyperbole never hurt anyone.”- Katherine Plumber Newsies tells the story of a band of underdogs who took on the most powerful names in New York. When Joseph Pulitzer raised the newspaper prices at the newsboys’ expense these band of brothers took action with the help of a femal reporter Katherine Plumber. This helped New York see the power that the “little man” can have. Newsies is inspired by a true story with incredible music and stunning choreography.
4. Hamilton
Lin-Manuel Miranda takes the stage as the unlikely father Alexander Hamilton to make his mark on the new nation. From orphan to Washington’s right hand man, rebel to war hero, a loving husband caught in the country’s first sex scandal, to the Treasury head who make an untrusting world belive in the American Economy. Hamilton is truly a political mastermind.
5. Cats
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s classical musical tell the story of the Jellicle cats and each cat’s quest to be selected as the one who will ascend to the “Heaviside Layer.” Cats was also based on T.S Eliot’s Old Possum’s Book of Pratical Cats. Cats is filled with cat like sounds, stunning costumes, and musical talent.
6. The Lion King
The Lion King based on the 1994 Disney film is the story of a young lion living in the flourishing African pride lands who meets many friends along the way. It is truly a story of love and redemption with stunning visual artistry, choreography, and music.
7. Jersey Boys
Jersey Boys tells the story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons who went from being unkown New Jersey kids to international pop stars. The show includes songs that were actually written by the band in real life.
8. The Book of Mormon
The Book of Mormon follows two young missionaries who are sent to Ugando to try and convert citizens to the Mormon religion. When the two missionaries Elder Price and Elder Cunningham arrive in Africa they soon learn that in a society plagued with AIDS, poverty and violence, a successful mission may not be as easy as they expected.
9. Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella
In this enexpected retelling of the beloved fairytale Cinderella the two world’s of Ella and Prince Topher’s collide. The smart and beautiful young Ella lives in the care of her stepmother and stepsisters where animals are her only friends. Ella also recieves a Fairy Godmother who transformed her into the beautiful princess she was meant to be so she could attend the Prince’s ball where she meets her husband to be. Cinderella is beautifully crafted with stunning sets, costume changes/transformations, and music.
10. Anything Goes
Anything Goes is set aboard the ocean liner S.S. American, where nightclub singer/evangelist Reno Sweeney is en route from New York to England. Billy Crocker, Reno’s pal has stowed away to he near his love, Hope Harcourt, but the problem is Hope is engaged to the wealthy Lord Evelyn Oakleigh. With the help of some elaborate disguises, tap-dancing sailors, and good old-fashioned blackmail Reno Sweeney and side kick Moonface Martin join forces to help Billy in his quest to win Hope’s heart.