2018 Broadway Review
2017 Broadway Review
2016 Broadway Review
In 2019, I saw six shows (Dan saw four). All of them were new-to-us and several are no longer playing.
Now for the ranking!
# 1 Overall Favorite show: Kinky Boots (no longer on Broadway)
This show had been on Broadway for six years and was closing in 2019 so we made a point to get tickets to see it in January. Mandy, Dan, and I all went and we all loved it. It was a really heartwarming and uplifting show about acceptance and being yourself. After the show I promptly got obsessed with the soundtrack.
Favorite songs: Not My Father's Son and Charlie's Soliloquy
#2 Tootsie (no longer on Broadway)
This show was unexpectedly hilarious. Dan and I went this past fall for a date night and were pleasantly surprised. It closed this month after a short run which is disappointing because it was fantastic and the soundtrack is outstanding. It reminded me of some of the older more classic show-tune type productions with quick dialogue and fast-paced lyrics. Wish it was staying longer because I know my dad would have laughed the entire show.
Favorite songs: There Was John and Jeff Sums It Up [explicit warning]
#3 Ain't Too Proud
This show is based on the story and music of the Temptations. Similar to Jersey Boys, this musical weaves the story of the group with their actual music. It opened in March and won the Tony Award for best choreography. The show is wildly popular because of its familiar music and it was thoroughly entertaining. The only downside to a show like this is that people in the audience sing along basically the entire time. But, I appreciated how into the music everyone was getting even if I didn't rock out in my seat.
The soundtrack is absolutely packed with all the Temptation favorites and worth a listen.
#4 Be More Chill (no longer on Broadway)
Mandy and I saw this on our birthday weekend on a bit of a whim. When Dan and I were at Ain't Too Proud in July I noticed the show was closing a few weeks later and I had just finished reading a book written by the author who also wrote the book, Be More Chill. The Broadway show was adapted from the book. Tickets were cheap so we saw it the day before it closed. I actually really liked this show even though it was totally geared towards high school students and the theater reeked of adolescent body odor. It's about a kid who is a loser and he takes a pill that makes him cool. It's a lot about being authentic. The soundtrack is surprisingly catchy. This is the type of show you'll see high school productions in years to come, I'm sure.
Favorite songs: Sync Up, Upgrade, and The Pitiful Children
#5 Moulin Rouge
Mandy and I were SO excited for this show. Dan got us tickets for our birthday and we had a sister day in the city. Unfortunately, while the show was amazing and the costumes and production were total knockouts, we were disappointed. I talked more about this when I recapped our birthday weekend here but we had set ourselves up for something that resembled the movie that we loved so dearly and it missed the mark in our book. The show was pretty graphic and we felt like there was zero chemistry between the actors playing the love interests. However, everyone sitting around us was balling so clearly there is an audience. If you aren't tied to the movie and love a good spectacular, spectacular than definitely see this show.
#6 A Band's Visit (no longer on Broadway)
Okay, so I admit, I don't understand the Tony Awards. This show won 10 Tony's in 2018 and so Dan and I felt compelled to see it before it closed in April. It was good, no doubt, but if it won best musical - why didn't it stay on Broadway??? I guess I have a sort of Broadway style and it is directed more at lighthearted shows with catchy tunes and subtle universal truths. I'm not sure how to describe what I love but this show didn't fit that category. We enjoyed it and I'm glad we saw it but it was a fast bottom of our list for the year.
Special award: Dogfight (ran on Broadway for only two months in 2012)
As an added bonus for this year's review I'm adding a show that I did not see on Broadway and will likely never see. I discovered the soundtrack this year and literally obsessed over the entire thing for close to a month, and I feel like it's worth sharing. Dogfight was not popular at the time and closed after a very brief run (I don't know why) but the soundtrack is unbelievable and I think one of my top ten favorite Broadway soundtracks ever (next to Wicked and Dear Evan Hansen). I discovered the music because I follow a couple of Broadway fan accounts on Instagram and one of them played a clip of studio recording of one of the songs. I liked it so I looked it up and there is literally only one song on the entire track that I only sort of like. The rest I could listen to (and have) on repeat. The show stared Derek Klena and Lindsey Mendez who are two of my favorite Broadway actors (I've only seen Derek in Anastasia but Lindsey won a Tony for Carousel a couple of years ago). Their voices are amazing together and if you care to listen to show tunes at all, check this one out. It also stared Annaleigh Ashford who is my real life friend!
Favorite songs: First Date/Last Night, Pretty Funny, Before It's Over, Give Way, Some Kinda Time
Don't forget: See my Broadway, on the Cheap post for tips on how to afford Broadway (recently updated)
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