So, I’m a bit of musicals nerd. Anyone who’s spent time with me has worked this out pretty fast, partly because they are 70% of my spotify and partly because I can and will ramble on about them for hours.
Sometimes, this means discussing the classics, because I’ve definitely been obsessed with Les Mis, Chicago, the Book of Mormon and Hamilton, but there’s a ton others besides that I wish more people had listened to!
The hardest part about this list was narrowing it down. I’d like to give honourable mention to Falsettos, Beetlejuice and Company, but you guys just didn’t make the final cut.
1. Natasha, pierre and the Great Comet of 1812
Dave Malloy
The Great Comet is a quirky musical (if you couldn’t tell from the title!) filled with cheeky lyrics and fantastic characters. Based on a 70 page extract of the Russian novel ‘War and Peace’, the Great Comet is self-defined as an ‘electropop opera’ which really tells you everything you need to know about it.
Like I said. Quirky.
Natasha, one of the main characters, is a young, naive woman, waiting for the return of her fiance from where he’s fighting in the war whilst Pierre is a family friend, middle-aged and stuck in an unhappy marriage. His cynical attitude to life and love contrast with Natasha’s youthful optimism as she falls in love with Anatole, a ‘roguish’ man and brother to Pierre’s unfaithful wife.
The cast too is composed of some fantastic singers- notably Josh Groban, Amber Gray and Philippa Soo, the latter of which you may recognise as Eliza from Hamilton. The more unknown singers are fantastic nonetheless and a pleasure to listen to!
If you’re looking for something with complex undertones, fantastic songs and even better singers, give this one a try. From the first song this musical is filled with self-aware humour and witty insights- truly one of my favourite musicals.
2. amelie
Daniel Messe
If you’ve ever wanted to hear an accordion played in a musical, this is the one for you.
Amelie is based off the French film of the same name, and it was made into a musical in 2015. The original cast for Amelie had Philippa Soo (she really does a lot of things!) as Amelie, but I have to say that the London cast recording is my favourite. I listened to this one in 2020, and when it came to West end in 2021, I definitely saw it 3 times (well, heard it from my cheap seats at the back but still).
It’s very much a feel-good musical, set entirely in Paris, and Amelie herself is a glowing character, full of life and stuck as a waitress in a little cafe. She enjoys her life, but longs for adventure, and so decides to make it for herself by helping out those around her, in as overly-dramatic a fashion as she can.
She also catches the eye of Nico, who rides on the same train as her every day, who is a photographer and equally obsessed with the joy of living life. He spends much of the musical just trying to get her to stop long enough to talk to him, and whilst I don’t want to spoil the ending…it is a feel-good musical. I think you can guess how this one goes.
An amazing thing about this musical is that all of the actors are also the pit orchestra- they all bring their instruments on stage with them, and play as they sing. I loved a section where Amelie’s mother and father are talking (read: singing) to each other, and stand facing each other whilst playing their cellos, trailed by the rest of the string section. I really don’t know how they managed the casting but damn.
3. The Last five years
Jason Robert Brown
This one is a little more well-known, having been made into a film in 2015 with a cast of Jeremy Jordan (of Newsies fame) and Anna Kendrick.
The musical has a unique structure, focusing on the marriage between the two characters Jamie and Cathy, and their relationship from their meeting to their divorce at the end of five years together. The truly unique aspect of it is that Cathy’s story is told in reverse, beginning with her contemplation of their divorce and moving backwards in time to their first date, whilst Jamie begins at their first meeting and moves through to the day he decides to leave. All of their songs are solos, sung to or about the other character, apart from where the two meet in the middle for their wedding.
Yes, I’m drawn to the musicals about complex characters. What about it?
It’s a really good film if you fancy a watch, or the album is incredible in itself. It’s easy to get into, with a lot of fun, upbeat songs and just as many heartfelt ballads. Oh, and fun trivia, the line in Hamilton ‘Nobody Needs to Know’ is taken from the song of the same name in this musical. See, you like some of it already!
4. Catch me if you can
Marc Shaiman
Okay, next up is definitely a niche one. I’d like to answer all questions now: yes, it is based off the Leonardo di Caprio action film about the con artist, which itself is based off the true story of Frank Abagnale Jr.
And it’s one of my favourite musicals.
I probably wouldn’t have given this one the time of day if it weren’t for the fact that the main character is sung by Aaron Tveit, one of my favourite actors in musical theatre. He is an incredible singer, and I’ve liked everything he’s done, so I thought perhaps I should give Catch Me If You Can a chance.
Surprisingly jazzy, this musical does a great job of translating the action and characters of the original film, nodding to its origins with songs like ‘Live in Living Color’ (it’s American I’m afraid) and developing its characters
My favourite song changes, but I love ‘Little Boy, Be a Man’ for its humour and also its commentary on toxic masculinity in the 60s, which is when the whole musical is set. ‘The Man Inside the Clues’ has a brilliant saxophone part as well, which I have tried and failed to learn several times. But we don’t talk about that.
Regardless, this musical might take a few listens to get into, but it is more than worth the time. I really enjoy it, and I hope that it’ll be put on in the West end at some point so I can see the staging that goes along with it!
5. THe guy who didn’t like musicals
Starkid Productions
This one is a Starkid musical, which some people might recognise as the company behind A Very Potter Musical. They are a theatre group from America, and have written 11 full length musicals, all of which I adore. You might know also know one of the members from Glee- Darren Criss, who played Blaine Anderson.
Starkid never fails to put on a show, and they film them and put them up on Youtube themselves. All of their musicals are hysterical, with musicals like Twisted deserving a mention- a take on Aladdin but from the perspective of Jafar as the good guy. If you recognise the ‘I don’t really wanna do the work today’ vine- that’s from another starkid musical.
Anyway, TGWDLM (the title is long to type okay) focuses on Paul, who is literally just trying to live his life, and the zombie apocalypse. The musical zombie apocalypse. One of the starting songs is ‘La Dee Dah Day’, where Paul is walking to work and everyone on the street is breaking into coordinated song and dance around him.
I was going to tell you about my favourite character, but then I realised I love all of them. I guess if I had to pick one…Professor Hidgens, the mad scientist who lives in a veritable fortress preparing for the zombie apocalypse, and dreaming of writing a musical about his high school days. The meta here is insane.
Regardless, watching this musical is a great way to spend an evening, and listening to the soundtrack on repeat is also great fun. I never thought I’d find a musical where the most horrifying thing you can think of is hearing the main character sing, but here it is!
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In summary, my five musicals are:
- Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812
- Amelie
- The Last Five Years
- Catch Me If You Can
- The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musicals
I still wish I had space for a few more, but these ones really are gems. I hope you get the chance to listen to a couple!