A Complete List of Contemporary Musicals: 2000-2015

13
Friday
Apr 2012

Posted by David Sisco in Vocal Repertoire

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Aaron Lazar, Aaron Tveit, Amy Spangler, Audra McDonald, Brian D'arcy James,
Brian Stokes Mitchell, Chad Kimball, Cheyenne Jackson, Christian Hoff, Christine
Ebersole, Coleman Domingo, Colony Records, composers, composing,
contemporary musical theatre, David Sisco, De'Andre Aziza, Green Day, Heidi
Blickenstaff, John Gallagher, Jr., Julia Murney, Kelli O'Hara, Lauren Molina, Lin
Manuel Miranda, Lorene Phillips, Marc Kudish, Megan Hilty, Michael Cavanaugh,
musical theater, musical theatre singers, musicals, Norbert Leo Butz, printed
sheet music, repertoire, Sheri Renee Scott, shows, Stephanie Block, Stew,
Sutton Foster, The Four Seasons, Victoria Clark
This blog is a part of The Directory of Contemporary Musical Theatre Writers,
found online at www.contemporarymusicaltheatre.com.
__________________

[UPDATED 3/16/15 Now with additional shows and links to vocal scores, cast
recordings and MP3 recordings! Please note most 2015 shows do not yet have
recordings or vocal selections available. We will continue to update this list.]

At the beginning of our exploration of contemporary musical theatre repertoire

in 2012, Lorene Phillips and I went to the (now sadly defunct) Colony Records to
see how many scores we could find for contemporary shows. Click here to read
more about our initial research.

To our amazement, we found over seventy selection books for shows presented
on Broadway and Off-Broadway from 2000 to the present. We thought this
roster was rather impressive, and quite possibly exhaustive. That wasnt far
from true, but thanks to Lorenes initial research, we began a more complete
list of shows

Below is the updated list, broken down by genre: Legit, Contemporary Mix,
Pop/Rock (Original Score), Pop/Rock (Jukebox), World Music and Miscellaneous.

You may notice some of the shows were not on our initial list, which means we
were able to find a score elsewhere (most likely through amazon.com). While
we always encourage people to buy locally, its hard to speak ill of Amazons
amazing selection and zippy delivery.

There are several shows for which a vocal selections book was never released
(or hasnt yet been released). Those musicals are still listed here because a
soundtrack is available.

Again, shows marked with a (+) are ones we believe are particularly worth your
time.
LEGIT SHOWS

As you would expect, legit shows demand the performers sing in a more
classically trained way. These shows tend to utilize singing actors who can use
their strong technical backgrounds in music and drama to bring the characters
to life. On the whole, these cross-over musicals are much more intricate and
demand excellent musicians. Works like Craig Lucas and Adam Guettels

breathtaking Light in the Piazza are being performed by opera and theatre
companies alike.

Contemporary performers who fall into this category include: Victoria Clark,
Christine Ebersole, Aaron Lazar, Marc Kudish, Audra McDonald, Brian Stokes
Mitchell and Kelli OHara, among others.
SHOW

VOCAL SCORE

CAST RECORDING MP3

Adding Machine (2008) Amour (2002)*+

Beautiful Game, The (2000
Chaplin (2012)
Christmas Story, A (2012)
Dance of the Vampires (2004)*
Death Takes a Holiday (2011)
Dr. Zhivago (2015)
Gentlemans Guide to Love & Murder, A (2013)+
Grey Gardens (2006)+
Honeymoon in Vegas (2015
It Shoulda Been You (2015)+
Jane Eyre (2000)
Jerry Springer, the Opera (2003)
Light in the Piazza, The (2005)+
Love Never Dies (2010)
Matilida (2012)+
People in the Picture, The (2011)*
Visit, The (2015)
White Christmas (2008)+

CONTEMPORARY MIX

These scores highlight more variety in singing styles from legit (Marc Kudish in
See What I Wanna See) to belt (Megan Hilty in 9 to 5). The shows feature
diverse musical influences, from Classical to Pop/Rock and everything in
between.

Contemporary performers who fall in this category include: Heidi Blickenstaff,

Norbert Leo Butz, Sutton Foster, Brian Darcy James, Julia Murney and Aaron
Tveit, among others.
SHOW

VOCAL SCORE

13: The Musical (2008)

9 to 5 (2009)
Addams Family (2010)
Aladdin (2014)
Avenue Q (2003)+
Big Fish (2013)
Billy Elliot (2008)
Bonnie and Clyde (2012)*

CR
mp3
Book of Mormon, The (2011)+
Caroline or Change (2003)*

CAST RECORDING

Catch Me if You Can (2011)

Chitty, Chitty Bang, Bang (2005)+
Class Act, A (2001)
Color Purple, The (2005)
Curtains (2007)
Dessa Rose (2005)
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (2005)+
Dogfight (2012)+*
Dracula (2004)*
Drowsy Chaperone, The (2006)+
Elegies (2003)+
Elf: The Musical (2010)
Everyday Rapture (2010)*
Fun Home (2015)+*
Giant (2012)
Glorious Ones, The (2007)
Immigrant, The (2004)+*
Its Only Life (2006)
Last Five Years, The (2002)+
Last Ship, The (2014)*
Legally Blonde (2007)
Little Mermaid, The (2008)
Little Women (2005)
Man of No Importance, A (2002)+
Marguerite (2008)
Mary Poppins (2006)

Newsies (2012)+
Pirate Queen, The (2007)
Producers, The (2001)+
Rocky (2014)
Scottsboro Boys, The (2010)+*
See What I Wanna See (2005)+
Seussical (2000)
Shrek (2008)
Silence: The Musical (2012)*
Sister Act (2011)
Something Rotten (2015)
Spamalot (2005)
Spelling Bee, The 25th Annual Putnam County (2005)+
Story of My Life, The (2009)
Sweet Smell of Success (2002)+
Tale of Two Cities, A (2008)
Thing About Men, The (2003)
Thoroughly Modern Millie (2002)+
Title of Show (2008)+
Urinetown (2001)+
Violet (2014)+
Wicked (2003)
Wild Party, LaChiusa (2000)
Wild Party, Lippa (2000)+
Witches of Eastwick, The (2000)
Woman in White, The (2005)

Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (2011)

Wonderland (2011)
Year with Frog and Toad, A (2004)+*
Young Frankenstein (2007)
Walmartopia (2006)

POP/ROCK (ORIGINAL SCORE)

These scores are decidedly pop/rock influenced, though that still covers a broad
range of styles, from R&B/Hip-Hop (In The Heights) to Indie Folk-Rock (Spring
Awakening). Performers auditioning for these shows will almost always be
asked to sing a pop/rock song at their audition. For the more hard rock shows,
much is demanded of these singers, and often times, there are more
replacement casts because of the difficulty of sustaining an eight-show week.

Contemporary performers who fall into this category include: DeAndre Aziza,
Coleman Domingo, John Gallagher, Jr., Chad Kimball, Lin Manuel Miranda,
Sherie Renee Scott and Stew, among others.

SHOW

VOCAL SCORE

CAST RECORDING

Aida (2000)
Altar Boys (2005)+
Bat Boy (2001)+*
Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson (2010)*
Bring it On (2012)
Brooklyn (2004)
Carrie (2011)*
Finding Neverland (2015)
First Date (2013)*

Full Monty, The (2000)

Hairspray (2002)
Hedwig and The Angry Inch (2014)*
Holler If Ya Hear Me (2014)
If/Then (2014)
In The Heights (2008)+
Kinky Boots (2013)*
Leap of Faith (2012)*
Lysistrata Jones (2011)*
Memphis (2009)
Murder Ballad (2013)*
Next to Normal (2009)+
Once (2012)+
Passing Strange (2008)
See Rock City (2010)*
Spider-man, Turn of the Dark (2011)
Spring Awakening (2006)
Striking 12 (2006)
Taboo (2004)*
Toxic Avenger, The (2009)
Wedding Singer, The (2006)
Zanna Dont (2003)*

POP/ROCK (JUKEBOX)

Jukebox musicals have grown in popularity over the last decade. They often
feature songs from one artist or group (i.e. Green Day in American Idiot, or

The Four Seasons in Jersey Boys), which are tied together with some sort of
narrative or plot. These theatrical hybrids bring together musical theatre and a
rock concert, sometimes in very entertaining ways. Again, much is demanded
of these singers, especially if the show has a hard rock score (i.e. Rock of
Ages).

Performers who have worked in this category include: Stephanie Block, Michael
Cavanaugh, Christian Hoff, Cheyenne Jackson and Amy Spangler, among
others.
SHOW

VOCAL SCORE

CAST RECORDING MP3

All Shook Up (2005)+

American Idiot (2010)
Beautiful The Carol King Musical (2014)+*
Boy from Oz (2003)
Come Fly Away (2010)+
Jersey Boys (2005)
Here Lies Love (2013)*
Let It Be (2013)
Mamma Mia (2002)
Marvelous Wonderettes, The (2001)
Million Dollar Quartet (2010)
Movin Out (2002)
Motown (2013)
Night With Janis Joplin, A (2013)
Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (2011)
Rain (2010)
Rock of Ages (2009)

WORLD MUSIC

These two shows utilize specific musical influences from the particular
countries in which the musicals take place. As such, they dont easily fall into
the above categories.
SHOW

VOCAL SCORE

CAST RECORDING MP3

Bombay Dreams (2002)*

Fela! (2010)*

MISCELLANEOUS

There are always shows that dont seem to really fit in a particular genre.
Weve classified them to the best of our ability below.

Legit (Jukebox)

SHOW

VOCAL SCORE

CAST RECORDING MP3

After Midnight (2013)

Bullets Over Broadway (2014)*
End of the Rainbow (2012)*
Lady Day at Emersons Bar & Grill (2014)*
Love Musik (2007)*
Soul Doctor (2013)

Legit (Review)

SHOW

VOCAL SCORE

CAST RECORDING MP3

An American in Paris (2015)

Nice Work if You Can Get It (2012)+

In full disclosure, Laura Josepher and I have been overwhelmed by this growing
list of musicals. Not only has it taken considerable time to gather and edit the
information, its hard not to feel personally responsible for knowing each show.
But, frankly, its not possible. If all we had to do each day was listen to a new
musical, maybe wed be able to manage, but as active theatre artists, we
struggle to keep up with contemporary work.

We hope youll use this categorized roster of shows as a jumping-off point to

become familiar with some contemporary musicals. Start with the shows weve
highlighted as being worth your time. Follow your gut. Ask your colleagues
what shows they know. Compare notes.

And I highly recommend not only researching the shows, but also the
performers. The above artists are all at the top of their game in this business.
You should have a working knowledge of who they are and what theyve done.
It will help you understand a performers type (which well discuss in an
upcoming blog) and give you a sense of their career development.

Keep in mind many performers fluidly move from one genre of show to another.
My favorite example is dynamo Lauren Molina, who was in John Doyles revival
of Sweeney Todd, then went to Rock of Ages and recently played Cunegonde in
Bernsteins Candide in several regional productions. Thats versatility!

Its inevitable weve missed something. If we did, let us know by writing a

comment. Well be happy to add the information to our list. Questions? Well
happily answer them to the best of our ability.

We hope this growing list gets you excited about exploring new work. Theres a
ton of good stuff out there just waiting to be discovered.

Go to it!!