r/musicals Nov 13 '24

"What musical should I listen to next?" unified thread

209 Upvotes

One of the most common questions we get on this subreddit is "what should I see/listen to, here's the stuff I like". It's a valid question, but it's tiring to see a dozen of those threads every week, so this will serve as both a stickied thread of suggestions and as a home for new visitors to r/musicals who would ask that question. (As a result, new "what should I listen to threads" will be redirected here and deleted.)

Below, you'll find a list of popular musicals in alphabetical order along with suggestions for what might interest you based on that. This list is mostly vibes-based, with some inclusion of the same or similar composers or subject matter. The shows I name are taken from my own personal list of shows I've listened to (350+), the vast majority of which will be available on Spotify.

The shows I chose to make suggestions for are heavily skewed toward recent shows because that's what felt like good fits. If you're interested in a show not named below and want to know what to listen to next, comment below and I'll add a line for it (assuming I know it well enough to make educated suggestions).

If you enjoyed... Consider checking out...
Be More Chill Altar Boyz, American Psycho, bare: a pop opera, Beetlejuice, Bubble Boy, Cry-Baby, Dear Evan Hansen, Dogfight, Everybody's Talking About Jamie, Fly By Night, Freaky Friday, Here Lies Love, How to Dance in Ohio, Jagged Little Pill, Passing Strange, Spring Awakening
Beetlejuice Back to the Future, Be More Chill, Bubble Boy, Catch Me If You Can, Cry-Baby, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Groundhog Day, Heathers, Jekyll and Hyde, Jim Steinman's Bat Out of Hell, The Producers, School of Rock, Sweeney Todd, Urinetown
The Book of Mormon The Addams Family, Carrie, Catch Me If You Can, Cry-Baby, Curtains, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Drowsy Chaperone, The Full Monty, A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, Kimberly Akimbo, God Bless You Mr. Rosewater, [title of show]
Come From Away Allegiance, The Band's Visit, Bright Star, Elegies for Angels Punks and Raging Queens, Fly By Night, Hadestown, If/Then, Kimberly Akimbo, The Last Ship, A New Brain, Once, Parade, Soft Power, Spongebob Squarepants, Waitress, The Wrong Man
Dear Evan Hansen 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Altar Boyz, bare: a pop opera, Be More Chill, Bubble Boy, Carrie, Closer to Heaven, Cry-Baby, Daddy Long Legs, Dogfight, Everybody's Talking About Jamie, Footloose, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, How to Dance in Ohio, Kimberly Akimbo, A New Brain, Newsies, The Outsiders, The Prom, Ride the Cyclone, tick...tick...BOOM, Wonderland
Falsettos Amour, Burt Bacharach's Some Lovers, Cabaret, Chess, Closer than Ever, Elegies for Angels Punks and Raging Queens, Far From Heaven, From Here to Eternity, Fun Home, Kiss of the Spider Woman, La Cage aux Folles, A New Brain, Parade, Rent, Ride, Side Show, Some Like It Hot, A Strange Loop, Yank!
Groundhog Day The Addams Family, Catch Me If You Can, City of Angels, Cry-Baby, Curtains, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Flying Over Sunset, The Full Monty, A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, The Great American Trailer Park Musical, High Fidelity, Jagged Little Pill, & Juliet, Kinky Boots, Mrs. Doubtfire, A New Brain, Next Thing You Know, The Producers, School of Rock, Urinetown, Wonderland
Hadestown Aida, American Utopia, The Band's Visit, Bright Star, The Capeman, Come From Away, Floyd Collins, Ghost Quartet, The Gospel at Colonus, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Here Lies Love, Knoxville, The Last Ship, The Lord of the Rings, Marie Christine, Memphis, Natasha Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812, Once, Passing Strange, Preludes, Rent, The Scottsboro Boys, Soft Power, Tarzan, Venice, Whistle Down the Wind, The Wrong Man
Hamilton 1776, Allegiance, American Psycho, American Utopia, Assassins, Chess, Fame, Giant, Here Lies Love, In the Heights, The Last Ship, The Light in the Piazza, Martin Guerre, Parade, Ragtime, Rent, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Soft Power, A Strange Loop, Venice, Water for Elephants, The Wild Party (Lippa), The Wrong Man
Heathers Altar Boyz, American Psycho, bare: a pop opera, Be More Chill, Beetlejuice, Bubble Boy, Carrie, A Chorus Line, Cry-Baby, Daddy Long Legs, Dogfight, Freaky Friday, Ghost Quartet, High Fidelity, Jagged Little Pill, Kid Victory, Kimberly Akimbo, Marie Christine, A New Brain, Now. Here. This., Ordinary Days, The Outsiders, Rent, Spring Awakening, [title of show], Whistle Down the Wind, Wonderland
In the Heights American Utopia, Bright Star, The Capeman, Chicago, Closer to Heaven, Everybody's Talking About Jamie, Finding Neverland, Fun Home, Giant, The Gospel at Colonus, Hamilton, In the Green, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Passing Strange, The Prom, Raisin, Seesaw, Sweet Smell of Success, Venice, The Wrong Man
Les Miserables Brigadoon, Carousel, Chess, Cyrano, Death Takes a Holiday, Doctor Zhivago, Flower Drum Song, Giant, Hadestown, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Lord of the Rings, Martin Guerre, Miss Saigon, Natasha Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812, Parade, The Pirate Queen, Ragtime, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Titanic,
Ride the Cyclone The Addams Family, Anastasia, bare: a pop opera, Billy the Kid, A Chorus Line, Dogfight, Fame, Finding Neverland, Footloose, Freaky Friday, How to Dance in Ohio, If/Then, Kid Victory, Kimberly Akimbo, A Little Princess, Memphis, Newsies, The Outsiders, The Prom, School of Rock, The Time Traveler's Wife, Tuck Everlasting, Whistle Down the Wind
Six Aida, Altar Boyz, American Psycho, Be More Chill, Closer to Heaven, Everybody's Talking About Jamie, Fly By Night, Ghost, Groundhog Day, Hair, Hamilton, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, In the Heights, Jim Steinman's Bat Out of Hell, & Juliet, Kinky Boots, Million Dollar Quartet, Moulin Rouge, Now. Here. This., Once, Passing Strange, Priscilla: Queen of the Desert, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, Venice
Sweeney Todd American Utopia, Anyone Can Whistle, Assassins, Ballroom, Cabaret, Days of Wine and Roses, Death Takes a Holiday, Floyd Collins, From Here to Eternity, Ghost Quartet, Grand Hotel, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, In the Green, Kid Victory, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Lost in the Stars, Martin Guerre, Parade, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Shenandoah, Steel Pier, Sweet Smell of Success, Titanic, The Visit, Whistle Down the Wind
Wicked Aladdin, Amelie, Bright Star, Daddy Long Legs, Doctor Zhivago, Fun Home, If/Then, Jane Eyre, The Light in the Piazza, On a Clear Day You Can See Forever, Passion, The Rink, Side Show, The Story of My Life, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Vanities, Violet, The Wild Party (LaChiusa), Wonderland
-- --
Starkid musicals (all of them) The Addams Family, Aladdin, Back to the Future, Be More Chill, Billy the Kid, Bubble Boy, Carrie, Cry-Baby, Everybody's Talking About Jamie, Freaky Friday, & Juliet, Kimberly Akimbo, A Little Princess, Merrily We Roll Along, The Outsiders, The Prom, Ride the Cyclone, School of Rock, Shrek, SpongeBob SquarePants, [title of show], Tuck Everlasting, The Witches of Eastwick, Wonderland

Again, these are mostly based on vibes, but they're a start.


r/musicals Jul 11 '24

Discussion Folks, we’re gonna take a break on the “me too” games.

366 Upvotes

These “judge me on my top five”, “tell me your favorite and I’ll tell you if you’re cool”, “here’s five, which is your favorite” threads box everything else out cause everybody feels the need to add their own. I did the tier list thread to try and nip it in the bud, but folks just shifted to different me too games, and it’s rapidly spiraling.

I’m calling a temporary moratorium on those threads. They may resume in the future (at a date TBD), but for now, all new threads of that nature (beginning midnight EDT tonight) are going to be locked, deleted, and all of the existing replies wiped out.

If you want to discuss a show, great, but “rate my taste” isn’t it.


r/musicals 2h ago

Musical numbers where the bad guys hatch their plan or try to convince someone else of the plan

36 Upvotes

I've been thinking about and trying to compile a list of musical numbers where the bad guys hatch their evil plan, or one character tries to convince another character of a plan they are relunctant towards. I know many musicals feature a villian song, but I'm focusing specifically on the hatching or explaining their plan. This is what I've got so far. What songs would you add?

- Easy street (Annie)

- A little priest (Sweenie Todd)

- We can do it (The producers)

- Be prepared (The lion king)


r/musicals 4h ago

Discussion What is one (or multiple) musical that you haven't watched that you really want to?

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35 Upvotes

Just out of curiosity (and it might give me more ideas to add to my list). Mine are Come From Away, Hadestown, and Ride the Cyclone.

Edit: Side question, should I change my user flair to "Welcome to the rock!" or "I am an islander!" ?


r/musicals 13h ago

Which movies/books would you NEVER want to see get a musical adaptation?

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82 Upvotes

I love IT, but just...DON'T MAKE PENNYWiSE AND THE LOSERS CLUB SING


r/musicals 14h ago

Discussion What is the cleverest line you’ve heard in a musical?

65 Upvotes

I think most musicals have a lot of clever lines but I’m just going through the Epic recordings and “Ruthlessness is mercy upon ourselves” is brilliant!


r/musicals 3h ago

What if Jamie Lloyd directed Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark?

6 Upvotes

Just an amusing thought I had. Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark was such a legendary trainwreck that it has become iconic. But I caught myself thinking, what if a revival was miraculously taken on by a minimalist director such as Jamie Lloyd? My guess is Spider-Man would only have a mask instead of a full costume and would be lifted up by the ensemble for the swining scenes. The final Spidey vs Goblin fight would be in the dark and then Goblin would emerge bloody. Feel free to keep adding to the shitpost.


r/musicals 14h ago

Who is the best Sweeney Todd?

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32 Upvotes

It can be any actor who played them, I just provided these 3 images as examples. (My fav is George Hearn, 1982. I have seen the proshot countless times and I love his portrayal. So haunting and beautiful.)


r/musicals 8h ago

Photo I was bored, so i drew Anne Boleyn from SIX.

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9 Upvotes

r/musicals 2h ago

Help Children Of Eden Cast Recording

2 Upvotes

This is a very random post and I don’t know how well it fits here, but I’ve been looking for a copy of the 1991 Original London Cast recording of Children Of Eden on cassette and I am having absolutely no luck. The only evidence I can find of it even existing is one image on castalbums.org, and I have never seen a copy for sale. I’d love to have a copy as cassettes are my preferred format and I adore Children Of Eden (I even went so far as custom making my own before I discovered that there was an official one out there) but I’ve had no luck so far. Could anyone somehow point me in the right direction?

The cover image, taken from the castalbums.org page

r/musicals 13h ago

Who is the best Mrs Lovett?

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14 Upvotes

Angela Lansbury all the way. (I made a Sweeney one, but you cannot have one without the other so enter Mrs Lovett!)


r/musicals 1d ago

Help What song should I sing for a DND themed drag show?

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130 Upvotes

So far I have:

I can make you a man (Rocky Horror) as a necromancer

It's hard to be a bard (something rotten) as a bard

Forever (shrek) as a dragon

But I'm not in love with any of them.


r/musicals 5m ago

Discussion Any Musicals with Hardcore punk music?

Upvotes

Recently I had the revelation that I could combine two of my favourite genres, musicals and hardcore punk, and now I'm trying to find a hardcore punk musical. Any suggestions?


r/musicals 16h ago

Photo I built the house from Meet Me In St. Louis

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23 Upvotes

I’ve built 5135 Kensington Ave in Minecraft.
It’s not perfect I know, but I got it the best I can. I’ll do the interior next.


r/musicals 17h ago

Discussion Has anyone ever heard of this musical/seen it?

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10 Upvotes

Several years ago, I saw a performance of this on the Macy's Thanksgiving parade. I eventually rediscovered it in 2018 & fell in love with the music (& the few clips released online).

I'm aware the original performance of Paramour closed a while back. I've never seen anyone talk about this & I'm curious to know people's thoughts on it.

And if you haven't heard of Paramour, I can't recommend it enough. It feels like it belongs with Singin in the Rain & movies from the classic Hollywood


r/musicals 1d ago

Sunday in the Park with George

49 Upvotes

I've just watch this show for the very first time and wow! I'm speechless. Well, granted the show combined a few of my favourite things: Mandy, Bernadette and Sondheim. Just like it's very hard to combine sugar, butter and chocolate and come up with something bad, it's very hard to get a bad production if you have such great ingredients haha.

I wish I could be more eloquent in my appreciation, I just have no idea on where to even start. I was moved and stimulated, now I'm energised and depressed! I cannot think of anything I've ever watched that could compare to this, even though I hope to move on, and eventually find something that does so. Ugh, Sunday is still echoing through my mind - how can something so wholesome make you feel so hopeless?


r/musicals 9h ago

The writer behind musicals like 'Safety Not Guaranteed' and' Space Dogs' debuts his latest show at St. Luke's Theatre for six weeks only starting in September

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0 Upvotes

r/musicals 9h ago

Audition Is Killer Instinct a Good Audition Song for The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals?

1 Upvotes

If not... What are some good audition songs. I really want Alice! This is one of my dream musicals so please send your recommendations.


r/musicals 17h ago

Les Misérables: New Lyric Change In One Day More

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4 Upvotes

r/musicals 1d ago

Goodwill find!

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281 Upvotes

Audibly gasped and threw it in the cart lol


r/musicals 1d ago

Rediscovering Jekyll and Hyde and holy hell what a masterpiece

44 Upvotes

I really wish there was a pro-shot version of the original with either Robert Cuccioli or Anthony Warlow. I found a really low quality one with Cuccioli from the 90s and it’s about as good as it’s gonna get (yes I know about the Hasselhoff version, I will not comment on it).

I feel like it’s lowkey slept on. Broadway and musicals have changed and evolved so much but I miss these classic ones. The music and the drama is just superb. The performance they gave portraying both Jekyll and Hyde is award worthy (did either of them win a Tony for this role?)

It does have its flaws, but what doesn’t? To me, this musical is up there with Les Mis and Phantom.

If someone does have a better quality version of the show with Cuccioli or Warlow, I would love to see it. I would say I want this show to be revived, but I honestly don’t think anyone could live up to either of their portrayals.

Anyway, just venting. I didn’t fully appreciate it when I listened to it the first time years ago, and I’m just making up for lost time.

Edit: friendly reminder to people that when someone expresses their love for something, they’re not really dying to hear how much you hate it. You can have your opinions and criticisms of it but flat out saying that my opinion is wrong or stupid isn’t something you expect to see from an otherwise respectful community. We’re all here because we love musicals, right?


r/musicals 9h ago

Discussion Would you watch a Rent animated movie?

0 Upvotes

Rent is one of my favorite musicals and I’d love to see a new movie version of it. And I love animation! I’m debating in my head if it’d lend itself well to animation and I’m curious what other people think.


r/musicals 21h ago

Video POV: Jeremy Jordan taking a geography test

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0 Upvotes

r/musicals 1d ago

My Musical Theter Experiences This Summer!

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8 Upvotes

If your wondering i was Mr. Pulitzer in Newsies and Ned/student/teacher in School Of Rock


r/musicals 1d ago

Discussion Opinions on wearing stuff/doing makeup for the charecter you are auditioning for

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6 Upvotes