Giving My Regards To Broadway

One of my favorite (and most underfunded) loves in life is seeing shows both on and off-Broadway.  Since I was too young to remember, my Christmas presents from my Grandparents were tickets to see shows with my parents, which falsely convinced me by the time I reached adolescence that I, too was talented enough to star in a Broadway show.  Since then, I have learned that my singing abilities are best kept to the confines of my own bedroom, but my passion for seeing shows has yet to disappear despite my college student budget. Without further adieu, here are my top 7  musicals, with a few bonus honorable mentions at the end.

Full Disclosure: This list only includes shows that I've seen performances of.  I am fully aware of how amazing Hamilton is, and if someone is willing to give me a ticket to see it, I'll gladly put it on this list.



1. Wicked: I was lucky enough to be able to see this show during its first year on Broadway when legendary performers like Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth were still performing in the show.  Despite having seen the show over 10 years ago, I still remember how amazed I was by intermission, and shortly after seeing this show, not only did I have the entire soundtrack memorized, but my Mother and I re-did my bedroom to make it Wicked-themed.  My walls and carpet are bright green, and I still have a giant mural of the show's poster painted next to my bed.  I have no bad things to say about this show except that the tickets are too hard to get for me to see it again.  No matter how many shows I see, Wicked has remained my favorite.



2. Spring Awakening: Even though this show is definitely not for children due to its adult themes and strong language, but it does have some beautiful songs and it's a really unique production.  If you're like me and felt like you really need to see the original Broadway cast of the show, (Lea Michele and Jonathan Groff, anybody?) there are some semi-decent recordings of it on YouTube.  If you see the show, you'll understand why my bedroom at home is Wicked-themed rather than Spring Awakening-themed.  Still, this show is amazing and if you're ready to have some feelings, go see it.

3. Finding Neverland: This was the most recent show I've seen, and it definitely deserved all of the Tony Awards that it won last year.  There's nothing that makes me feel less accomplished than seeing a small child having a successful career in show business before hitting puberty, and this show is FULL of those kinds of kids.  They're all brilliant. Seriously.  On top of that, this show (as well as the one below) provide a really interesting (and heartbreaking) backstory to Peter Pan, which was my absolute favorite movie as a child.  You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you'll leave the theater saying "OHMYGOD that was SO good!"

4. Peter and the Starcatcher: Surprise, this one is another Peter Pan prequel, but it's a play, not a musical.  I'm usually not a fan of plays, so the fact that I loved this show, means that it had to be really good.  It can be another tearjerker if you're a crier like I am, but it's also really clever and has some comedic moments too!  I'd recommend anyone see it if they had a chance (a.k.a. if it comes back to the stage).

6. Rent: So, everyone probably knows this show's most popular song "Seasons of Love," but not as many are aware of this musicals other amazing songs, such as "La Vie Boheme," "Out Tonight," and "Finale B."  The show tells stories that take place during the AIDS crisis at the end of the 1900s (wow, putting it that way makes it seem like ancient times) and will somehow make you feel every emotion possible, despite it's potentially depressing background topics.  It's definitely worth the watch/listen (if you only have access to the soundtrack)

7. The Last Five Years: I'll admit, I was only able to see this one in movie form, but it was really great.  It has some fantastic songs and has a plot that many people can relate to in some way (falling in and out of love with your "soulmate").  The ending also goes against the stereotypical musical ending, which is pretty interesting, and in my opinion, Anna Kendrick and Jeremy Jordan did the show justice in their 2015 movie version.