Favorite Stage Musicals

After watching the trailer of the Annie remake I was reminded of how much I cared about certain musicals.  I will be doing lists, not of the greatest musicals, but the ones that mean the most to me.  This is probably the most unpretentious list of stage musicals, but I do love all of these.  I think that part of the charm of a great musical is how accessible they can be and how the songs never get old.  I am only including musicals I have seen on stage on this list.  There are a lot of musicals I have seen the movies of or have heard the songs, but not seen live.

I am also not including musicals I have performed in (one exception).  I love Guys and Dolls and My Fair Lady a lot, but I have a different relationship with musicals I have been in than ones I have seen.  There is a certain fantasy about watching a great show and wanting to be a part of it.

10. King and I (1951, Rodgers and Hammerstein)
I grew up with the classic movie, the terrible animated movie, I have seen it on stage several times and have the soundtrack memorized.  Rodgers and Hammerstein filled this out with some of their best songs.  Getting to Know You, Shall We Dance and I Whistle a Happy Tune are such simple songs that are just joys to listen to.  Add in the sweet Hello, Young Lovers and the fun A Puzzlement, this is classic show that still holds up.

9. Footloose (1998, Tom Snow and Dean Pitchford)
This is how I was introduced to Footloose.  The original movie has an amazing soundtrack and a good performance from Kevin Bacon, but is not all that great.  The movie takes itself too seriously, but its ridiculous premise works great on the stage.  The songs from the movie are full of energy and make great dance numbers.  I don't know why the movie remake was not an adaptation of the Broadway musical.  The stage musical is just fun.

8. The Music Man (1957, Meredith Wilson)
I technically have not been in this musical, as the one my junior high did was Music Man Jr., so I will include this since I do love this show.  The humor in this show still holds up.  The characters are fun and the lyrics are very clever.  This is one musical that I actually think could lead to a sequel.  I can see a fun musical with Harold Hill's "girlfriend in every county" showing up in River City and a subplot with Marcellous running for mayor against Mayor Shook.

7. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (1973, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice)

I know it is over done and is not the most complex musical.  But I don't think I have ever seen a version of Joseph that I didn't enjoy.  These are fun songs and the theatres always do a great job with the costumes.  Close Every Door to Me, Any Dream Will Do and the rest of the songs are an eclectic mix that is just fun.

6. Crazy for You (1992, George and Ira Gershwin)
A new musical featuring classic Gershwin songs.  The new arrangements for the Gershwin songs are great.  The script from Ken Ludwig is very funny and cute. The story is a fun throwback to pre-Show Boat musicals.  It is a flimsy storyline with over the top caricatures that makes for a great time at the theatre.

5. You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown (1967, Clark Gesner)
I love Peanuts.  I grew up with the work of Charles Schulz and still love it.  I have seen this a few times on stage, but I fell in love with the show from the soundtrack of the great 1999 revival.  The characterization is all spot on and the lyrics are just as sharp as Charles Schulz's classic comic strips.  My favorite song has become Book Report which has some of my favorite characterization of Charlie Brown.  I have never seen the sequel, Snoopy, but that musical did create on of my all time favorite songs: Just One Person.

4. Peter Pan (1954, Mark Charlap and Carolyn Leigh with Julie Styne, Betty Comden and Adolph Green)
I grew up with a video of the telecast of the Mary Martin musical.  I forgot about this until I received the soundtrack a year ago and I fell in love with it all over again.  The songs are terrific, especially the beautiful Distant Melody.  I think that Peter Pan is one of those perfect stories that allows for several great adaptations.  This is just as good as the original play, the Disney cartoon or Finding Neverland.

3. The Will Rogers Follies (1991, Cy Coleman, Betty Comden and Adolph Green)
I saw a tour of this with my Dad and later discovered the original soundtrack on a cassette at a pawn shop.  I love this show and would love to be part of it or see a film adaptation (hopefully directed and starring Seth MacFarlane).  This show is structured like a Ziegfeld show and features the characters breaking the fourth wall.  It is a huge spectacle, surprisingly heartfelt and laugh out loud hilarious.  Definitely look up the original soundtrack, especially the songs sung by Dee Hoty.

2. Beauty and the Beast (1994, Alan Menken, Howard Ashman and Tim Rice)
Adapted from the perfect animated feature by the film's composer and screenwriter, this was the first Disney Broadway hit.  The story and music is strong enough to survive reinterpretation.  The stage allows the story to delve into different emotions and complexity than the movie.  The new songs are all great and it just can't be done wrong.  Having grown up with the movie this is always great to see on stage.

1. South Pacific (1949, Rodgers and Hammerstein)
This is my favorite stage musical of all time.  I think I may be the only one who will label this their favorite Rodgers and Hammerstein, but I don't get the hate.  I think that it is a beautiful love story with a realistic portrayal of clashing cultures.  It was very topical at the time, but its message against hate is still relevant.  A beautiful show with terrific songs that I always love listening to.

Best of Disney Animated Features (3-1)

3. Pinocchio (1940)
This is not just a story of a puppet who becomes a real boy, it is a movie where animators made animated characters feel just like they were alive.  This is a morality tale where an innocent, naive character makes mistakes and has to deal with the consequences.  His many adversaries all represent various obstacles that everybody faces while growing up.  He is fooled by many different types of evils who never receive their comeuppance.  The bad characters are balanced well by the loving Geppetto and of course Jiminy Cricket, one of the best narrators of al time.  Jiminy is such a pleasant character who keeps the movie lighthearted and uplifting.  The lessons in this movie are timeless and still relatable, this still holds up and is worth multiple viewings.

2. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
Disney really got it perfect right off the bat.  This movie was made by animators who had never worked on a feature before or any characters that looked this realistic.  This is very much the culmination of Disney's artistic efforts in the Silly Symphonies and this really pushed the animation industry into new heights.  This is one of the strongest example of Disney taking an unheard of risk on something that would become heavily imitated.  The animation in this movie absolutely holds up and the characters are still impressive.  The character animation on these seven dwarfs, all of whom are the same size, have extremely distinctive, memorable personalities.  This movie does not shy away from being dark (Scary Woods, Queen's transformation), but it doesn't shy away from being fun either.  Some may criticize how archetypal it is, but it remains entertaining and an incredible artistic achievement.

1. Beauty and the Beast (1991)
All of these rankings are subjective, but I would have to say that Beauty and the Beast is the perfect animated feature.  This works on every level, this feature has everything.  It is funny, touching, suspenseful, and beautiful.  All of the characters, songs and scenes fit together to create a consistent story that is absolutely worth telling.  This was nominated for Best Picture when only five movies were nominated and it really represents the strong response this movie inspires.  There is absolutely no critical or commercial dissonance, it is a perfect movie.

Best of Disney Animated Features (13-4)

13. Cinderella (1950)
Most of the stereotypes that people associate with Disney are present in this movie and that is not a bad thing.  This is as archetypal and standard as it gets with Disney, this is them in their element.  Cinderella is a popular, basic fairy tale but Disney adds some cinematic fantasy elements as well as making the lead feel more like a real person than a princess.  Fun, catchy songs and the most subtle villains in Disney's catalog.

12. Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977)
Recently rewatched this and I always love this movie.  The humor in Winnie the Pooh is so unique.  Most humor tends to be harsh, but this is just pleasant.  The characters are all classics and the Sherman Brothers gifted this with some of their best work.  The Hundred Acre Wood is a fun world with a distinctive fantasy logic.  Whimsical and charming, it is just like childhood but with a lot of intelligence in the dialogue.

11. Lady and the Tramp (1955)
One of the most iconic romances in all of cinema.  The story of a good girl and a bad guy has been told a lot, but never this well.  This puts the perspective on the good girl character and her development is very natural as she develops along with Tramp.  This is just such a sweet, idealistic romantic movie.  The perspective that the dogs have of the human world is also very clever.  Different than a fantasy movie, but it still represents how great Disney animators are at creating characters.

10. Peter Pan (1953)
One of the screen's best fantasies and best adaptations of Peter Pan.  The flying scenes are perfectly animated and Never Land is very well designed.  The character of Wendy is often overlooked, but her character arc is a great look at growing up.  Of course the real scene stealers are Captain Hook and Smee.

9. Lilo & Stitch (2002)
Every time I watch this movie I get something new out of it.  When I first watched it as a kid I was amused by Stitch's antics, then around middle school I related to Lilo, then I understood the Ugly Duckling metaphor and now I see how much is going on with Nani.  This is a movie unlike any other.  It finds pathos in a family, sci-fi comedy centered around surfing and Elvis.  This movie has its own style and heart, great characters and a really good story.  It manages to be both touching and unconventional.

8. Aladdin (1992)
A great fantasy and adventure movie.  All of the characters are great and leave an impact.  The supporting characters are fun and expand the four leads who all have a lot going on.  The Genie is one of the best comic relief characters of all time and the work of Robin Williams and Eric Goldberg on the character still stands out as the perfect combination of voice actor and animator.  The movie and music can be energetic and hilarious, but it is always able to be meaningful and deep.  You laugh at this movie, but you really care too.

7. The Lion King (1994)
One of the most popular movies of all time.  This was an enormous success that Disney has not been able to replicate since.  This movie has a huge scale to it, but it still very personal in its story and humor.  The songs are great and the characters have become iconic.  This has a lot of great replay value and holds a special place in the heart of many people.

6. Bambi (1942)
This was never my favorite growing up, but the last time I watched it I was completely blown away.  Disney has improved on the look of nature many times, but this is their best nature backgrounds.  This is a very tight movie, only 79 minutes, but it accomplishes a lot.  It really is a very in depth coming of age story.  People are quick to point to this movie as sad, but that sad scene is very deserved and perfectly executed.  This movie balances fun and cute with harsher realities about life, without going too far either way.

5. The Little Mermaid (1989)
One of the biggest game changers in animation history.  This was the first Broadway style Disney musical and created the format that dictates Disney films to this day.  This has an three-dimensional princess, memorable songs, a distinctive fantasy world, menacing villain, vital supporting characters and clever writing.  It does so many things that were repeated by lesser movies right.  This movie and the following three Disney musicals were so critically and commercially successful because they aspects that were marketable (the songs, comic relief characters, princess) all work along with the great story.

4. Fantasia (1940)
The amazing thing is that this was not even the most ambition thing Walt Disney had ever attempted.  Definitely the most successful non-narrative film of all time.  Not a success on its initial release, but quality won out on later releases and it is now considered to be a masterpiece.  The film is structured as a concert and each of the shorts feature some of Disney's most creative animation.  The highlight is easily Mickey Mouse's best appearance in Sorcerer's Apprentice followed by Dance of the Hours and Night on Mount Bald.  The shorts are all different, but feel like they belong in the same feature.  It is a shame that Disney has not played with the format and intention of the animated feature this much again.  This is pure experimentation that did something really magnificent.