25 Musicals Worth Rediscovering: An American Theatre List
Editor’s note: Tom Williams originally published this Chicago Critic list in 2002. Musical-theatre reputations and revival histories have changed considerably since then, so several titles once described as overlooked are now firmly established classics. We’ve cleaned up the original archive, corrected creator credits and added brief context while preserving Tom’s 25 selections.
Some of these shows are genuinely underproduced today; others are famous works that can still be overshadowed by even bigger titles from their composers or eras. Taken together, they make a rewarding list for theatre fans looking beyond the newest Broadway season.
1. Guys and Dolls
Music and lyrics by Frank Loesser; book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. Damon Runyon’s gamblers, missionaries and nightclub performers fuel one of Broadway’s great musical comedies. Its score remains a model of character-driven songwriting.
2. La Cage aux Folles
Music and lyrics by Jerry Herman; book by Harvey Fierstein. Both a show-business comedy and a moving story about family and commitment, the musical pairs Herman’s melodic score with Fierstein’s warm, pointed book.
3. Annie
Music by Charles Strouse; lyrics by Martin Charnin; book by Thomas Meehan. Its best-known songs can obscure how efficiently the show combines Depression-era politics, comedy and an irresistible central character.
4. Grand Hotel
Music and lyrics by Robert Wright and George Forrest, with additional music and lyrics by Maury Yeston; book by Luther Davis. This ensemble musical turns a Berlin hotel into a crossroads for ambition, romance and desperation.
5. Ragtime
Music by Stephen Flaherty; lyrics by Lynn Ahrens; book by Terrence McNally. Based on E. L. Doctorow’s novel, Ragtime intertwines three families in a sweeping portrait of early-20th-century America.
6. Kiss of the Spider Woman
Music by John Kander; lyrics by Fred Ebb; book by Terrence McNally. A dark prison story becomes a vehicle for fantasy, survival and theatrical escape, with a score that moves between harsh reality and glamorous movie-musical imagery.
7. Me and My Girl
Music by Noel Gay; book and lyrics by L. Arthur Rose and Douglas Furber. This British musical comedy follows a Cockney heir thrust into aristocratic society and remains best known for the infectious “Lambeth Walk.”
8. The Will Rogers Follies
Music by Cy Coleman; lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green; book by Peter Stone. Structured in the style of a Ziegfeld revue, the show uses spectacle and humor to tell the story of American entertainer Will Rogers.
9. My One and Only
Music by George Gershwin; lyrics by Ira Gershwin; book by Peter Stone and Timothy S. Mayer. Built around classic Gershwin songs, this 1983 musical offered a fresh theatrical home for a celebrated American songbook.
10. The Most Happy Fella
Music, lyrics and book by Frank Loesser. More operatic than Guys and Dolls, Loesser’s ambitious romance combines expansive musical storytelling with an unusually rich score.
11. Cabaret
Music by John Kander; lyrics by Fred Ebb; book by Joe Masteroff. Hardly overlooked today, Cabaret nevertheless belongs on any rediscovery list because each major revival has shown how differently its collision of entertainment and politics can be interpreted.
12. George M!
Music and lyrics by George M. Cohan; book by Michael Stewart, John Pascal and Francine Pascal. This 1968 musical celebrates the life and songs of one of the foundational figures of American musical theatre.
13. The Pajama Game
Music and lyrics by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross; book by George Abbott and Richard Bissell. Workplace conflict, romance and labor negotiations drive a score packed with enduring mid-century Broadway numbers.
14. Damn Yankees
Music and lyrics by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross; book by George Abbott and Douglass Wallop. Baseball meets the Faust legend in a witty musical whose songs and dance opportunities have outlived its 1950s setting.
15. Irma la Douce
Music by Marguerite Monnot; original book and lyrics by Alexandre Breffort; English book and lyrics by Julian More, David Heneker and Monty Norman. Originating in Paris before successful London and Broadway runs, this romantic comedy brings a distinctly European entry to Tom’s list.
16. Man of La Mancha
Music by Mitch Leigh; lyrics by Joe Darion; book by Dale Wasserman. The musical’s play-within-a-play structure turns the Don Quixote story into a meditation on imagination, dignity and idealism.
17. Mame
Music and lyrics by Jerry Herman; book by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee. A star vehicle with a generous comic spirit, Mame contains one of Herman’s most exuberant scores.
18. Kiss Me, Kate
Music and lyrics by Cole Porter; book by Sam and Bella Spewack. Shakespeare, backstage rivalry and Porter’s sophisticated songwriting combine in this durable show-within-a-show.
19. Chicago
Music by John Kander; lyrics by Fred Ebb; book by Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse. Once overshadowed by its original Broadway contemporaries, Chicago became one of the world’s best-known musicals through its long-running revival and film adaptation.
20. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Music by Arthur Schwartz; lyrics by Dorothy Fields; book by George Abbott and Betty Smith. Adapted from Smith’s beloved novel, this 1951 musical is one of the genuinely less-frequently encountered titles on the list.
21. The Mystery of Edwin Drood
Music, lyrics and book by Rupert Holmes. Dickens’ unfinished mystery becomes an interactive musical in which the audience helps determine how the story ends.
22. I Do! I Do!
Music by Harvey Schmidt; book and lyrics by Tom Jones. Written for two performers, this intimate musical follows a marriage across decades rather than building its story around a large ensemble.
23. 1776
Music and lyrics by Sherman Edwards; book by Peter Stone. The debate over American independence becomes unexpectedly suspenseful musical theatre, proving that political argument can carry dramatic momentum.
24. Into the Woods
Music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim; book by James Lapine. Now a modern classic rather than an overlooked work, the musical uses familiar fairy tales to examine wishes, consequences, family and community.
25. Miss Saigon
Music by Claude-Michel Schönberg; lyrics by Alain Boublil and Richard Maltby Jr., with additional material by Maltby. First staged in London, this large-scale Vietnam War tragedy became an international success and is another selection that no longer fits neatly under the label “overlooked.”
A List That Changed With Time
More than two decades after this list first appeared, its most interesting feature may be how dramatically reputations change. Chicago, Cabaret, Into the Woods and several others are now canonical works, while titles such as A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, George M! and The Most Happy Fella remain especially rewarding candidates for rediscovery.
By Tom Williams