Musical Theatre Bucket List

In the last few months, I’ve really been getting into musical theatre a lot more than I ever have before. I’ve always been a big theatre fan – going to see a show is one of my favourite things to do, and always has been.

But recently, I’ve really got a bit obsessed with keeping up with the latest shows, even if I can’t go and see them all (which makes me a bit sad) and I’ve got some of the soundtracks on repeat.

In this post, I’m going to share my musical theatre bucket list – a list of the shows I plan to see soon, or that I’d love to see if it were even possible. I say that because my number one show literally doesn’t exist anymore on Broadway, and was never in the West End, and it kills me a little bit that I’ll probably never get to see this show. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

This list will be in descending order, so I’ll start with ones that would be cool to see if I got the chance, and then end with ones that I’d literally PAY HUNDREDS OF POUNDS or EVEN SELL A LIMB to see if I could. Let’s go!

My Musical Theatre Bucket List

5. Come From Away

Come From Away is set in the week following the 9/11 attacks and tells the true story of what transpired when 38 planes were ordered to land unexpectedly in a small town in Canada. The characters in the musical are based on (and in most cases share the names of) real residents as well as some of the 7,000 stranded travellers they housed and fed.

The show seems like the perfect story in this crazy world right now, and has been received by audiences and critics as a cathartic reminder of the capacity for human kindness in even the darkest of times, and the triumph of humanity over hate.

This is the latest edition to my bucket list because it’s a brand new show that’s only recently come to London. I’ve only known about this for a short amount of time and it’s gone straight on my list! A few people I know have seen the show in London and they all said it’s incredible, and I’m excited that I’m going to see this in May!

4. The Book of Mormon

The Book of Mormon follows two Mormon missionaries as they attempt to preach the Mormon religion to the inhabitants of a remote Ugandan village. The young men are challenged by the lack of interest of the locals, who are distracted by more pressing issues such as AIDS, famine and oppression from the village warlords.

This has been on my bucket list for a long time, mostly because I have a couple of friends who absolutely adore it (Beth, if you’re reading this, I’m looking at you!). It’s one of those shows that I actually know very little about, but it’s had some incredible cast members in the past and I know just from the plot, the writers, and the songs I’ve listened to that I’ll love it. I just really need to find time and money to be able to see it!

3. Kinky Boots

Kinky Boots is one of my favourite films so when I found out it was going to be turned into a musical a couple of years ago, I was over the moon. It’s the perfect film to turn into a musical, so I could picture it straight away! It’s about a guy called Charlie whose dad owned a shoe factory that made Oxford shoes. But when Charlie’s dad dies, the factory is left to him – and Charlie decides to turn the factory into a producer of sturdy but sexy books for Drag Queens. It’s such a fun story with a positive message of acceptance, and I love it!

Kinky Boots is now HUGE in the theatre world, with shows in New York and London, and even with people like Brendon Urie playing the main character.

I honestly haven’t seen much about the show – I’ve listened to the Broadway cast recording a bit, but it kind of bothered me that some of the American British accents were not the best. 😀 So with real British people, I can’t wait to hear the songs again. But from what I’ve heard, the songs themselves are so great! I’m not sure if they’ve changed the story much, but judging from the soundtrack, it all sounds like it’s pretty similar to the plot of the film.

This is the only one on this bucket list that I’m actually seeing soon and I’m so excited! I’ll be going to see it in Cardiff when the show goes on tour this summer, so I’ll definitely be reviewing it as soon as I do.

2. Dear Evan Hansen

This is a show I’ve only discovered fairly recently and oh my god, I am SO glad I did because I am completely in love with it. Listening to the Broadway cast recording is pretty much a daily occurrence, and I’ve also read (and loved) the novel adaptation. (How cool is that? Usually books are adapted into other things, but this time, the musical was adapted into a YA novel!)

Dear Evan Hansen is about Evan Hansen (if you couldn’t tell from the title), an anxious teenage boy who makes up a story about being secret best friends with Connor Murphy, a boy from his school who committed suicide. Evan and his friends set up The Connor Project, a student project dedicated to keeping Connor’s memory alive and showing students that they all matter. However, as all of this is happening, he buries himself deeper and deeper into a hole as he keeps up this pretence that he was Connor’s best friend, and when people start to notice inconsistencies in Evan’s story, his life kind of goes downhill.

It’s such a beautiful show with songs that make you want to sing along. If I could go back in time, save loads of money, and fly to New York to see Ben Platt star as Evan Hansen, I totally would. Or if I could go right now and see Andrew B. Feldman play him (he’s so young at just 16, and he’s incredible!!), then I would happily pay so much to do that. BUT the show is coming to London in November and I’m SO EXCITED! It may not star Ben Platt or Andrew Feldman, but it’s still going to incredible and I can’t wait.

1. Next to Normal

This is the show that I mentioned at the beginning of this post that I’d kill to see if I could but I probably won’t. That makes me die a little inside. Next to Normal is a Tony and Pulitzer award-winning show that was on Broadway in 2007 and starred some incredible people, including Alice Ripley and my ultimate love, Aaron Tveit.

The show focuses on Diana, a mum who suffers from depression and probably PTSD (although it’s not mentioned) caused by the death of her son when he was a baby. It shows how the family copes when Diana goes through a series of treatments, including ECT (electroconvulsive therapy), leading to a loss of memory.

It sounds like a barrel of laughs, but it’s such an incredible show and the music is amazing and ugh, I just love this show so much. I’ve been listening to the soundtrack for about six years, and I never get tired of it.

This is the only show that I’ve watched a full bootleg of on YouTube, which isn’t something I usually encourage (because it’s like pirating a film), but as I said, this show was on Broadway 12 years ago.

Please come back, Next to Normal. My money is ready.

Honourable Mentions

Waitress

“Jenna, a waitress and expert pie maker, is stuck in a small town and a loveless marriage. Faced with an unexpected pregnancy, Jenna fears she may have to abandon the dream of opening her own pie shop…until a baking contest in a nearby county and the town’s handsome new doctor offer her a tempting recipe for happiness. Supported by her quirky crew of fellow waitresses and loyal customers, Jenna summons the secret ingredient she’s been missing all along — courage.” (source)

Heathers

“Heathers The Musical is based on the ’80s cult movie, Heathers, following the twisted relationship between lead characters Veronica Sawyer and Jason Dean, known to all as JD. Veronica is struggling her way through high school as a nobody, desperate for acceptance from the in-crowd, namely the three Heathers and their leader Heather Chandler. After new kid JD arrives at Westerberg High, sweeping Veronica off her feet, things take a turn for the macabre. JD plunges Veronica into a dark world of murder, suicide and lies, as he delivers his own take on justice on the high school bullies.” (source)

Newsies

“Based on the real-life Newsboy Strike of 1899, this musical tells the story of Jack Kelly, a rebellious newsboy who dreams of a life as an artist away from the big city. After publishing giant Joseph Pulitzer raises newspaper prices at the newsboys’ expense, Kelly and his fellow newsies take action. With help from the beautiful female reporter Katherine Plumber, all of New York City soon recognizes the power of “the little man.”” (source)

I could carry on listing shows that I want to see because there are just SO MANY, but I tried to limit my list as much as I could, otherwise this post will easily end up being longer than my university dissertation, and no one wants that.

What’s on your theatre bucket list? If you’ve been lucky enough to see any of the shows on my list, please let me know what you thought of them!