Hello, tickets please!
The holiday season will soon be upon us, and the hills are alive with the sound of music, Hakuna Matata and… Hygge! All sayings of a care free culture that are experienced in stage musicals, where you get comfy in a theatre, enjoy interval ice cream, and are taken away from the worries of the world for a couple of hours. Society loves this feeling - musicals about musicals, movies about musicals, shows about musicals about movies about musicals!
Miller and I share a passion for stage musicals. I’ve seen 52 musicals live in 2024 (and counting) and had a go on the stage too! Miller has also had a go in the theatre realm as well, indulging in playwriting and performing exceptionally in a solo musical theatre performance.
We felt there’s no better day to celebrate this phenomenon and the wikis about it, with Wicked releasing in cinemas today! Starting life as a novel about an unlikely friendship, it was reworked into an award-winning stage musical. With its cinema release bringing the show to a new audience, it's time for us to bring musical theatre and the wiki communities covering it to a wider audience too!
With that, please turn off all mobile devices (unless you’re reading this on one, in which case just pretend) and enjoy the show.
The Music
The opening number to this musical celebration has to be, well, music. A good musical has songs that serve as the emotional driver to the show, telling stories, driving the plot forwards, and all that jazz. Musical songs can take any form too, and there really is a song for everyone! The SpongeBob Musical amazingly has one of my favourite musical power ballads, Six has one of the best pop soundtracks, and Little Shop of Horrors has a great song, but won't help any fears of going to the dentist. What's not to like?! Musicals often have songs from multiple genres, so a single soundtrack can help change up the journey to work or school!
Looking for some awesome musical songs to start with? Consider yourself sorted. We’ve put together a playlist below that will send you to a whole new world of pure imagination.
Editor Stories
We wanted to hear from our amazing community members and their experiences with musical theatre. We asked a few editors from some of our most popular and well-known wikis that contain musicals the following:
- What are your favorite stage musicals?
- What got you into stage musicals?
- What makes a good stage musical?
- Why should people watch stage musicals?
- What advice would you give to someone who wants to watch stage musicals? Where should they start?
Hear from community editors
TheKingofFables (Fandom Star and Bureaucrat of Michael Jackson Wiki / Administrator of Oz Wiki) -
- Well to me it's a tie between The Wiz and The Lion King. I love them both equally.
- It was definitely The Lion King that got me into it, seeing many of the behind the scenes features as well as the book and just seeing the magic that's brought to life when the show begins is what brought me into it.
- A good stage musical is a musical that doesn't rely on something popular and trendy. It needs to simply tell a great story with great music and choreography. It doesn't need to compete with other forms of media.
- Because we're so conditioned to the media on a screen, seeing something live is a whole different experience because its there in the present time.
- I'd say if you want to just have a good time to see a stage play and I'd highly recommend seeing The Lion King first.
Cabbage Man Fan (Fandom Star and Administrator on Hamilton Wiki) -
- Hamilton, Grease, The Sound of Music
- Mostly my friends and watching Glee
- Good music, good plot, good choreography
- It's a very good and unique experience that not many people get to experience, and it's very worth it.
- First of all they should find something they are interested like for example a musical adaptation of their favourite book or movie or something like that. Even if that isn't possible they should still find something that might be up their alley. Hamilton is usually the best starter musical in my opinion largely because it's pretty unique compared to most. Grease and Six are also good starter shows.
Briyonce (Administrator on Six the Musical Wiki) -
- Six, Wicked, Tina, Moulin Rouge!
- I've always loved live entertainment and theatre, my love started when my parents brought me to live children's shows!
- Good music, immersing the audience, something to connect people to the story/characters
- Seeing everything happen in real life/the intimacy! You can choose what to focus on, whether it's the main character or a moving set piece in the background
- Start with something simple! Keeping up with the story can be tricky if you're not used to the way musicals are presented, so pick something shorter or a story you're already familiar with!
Recommendations
Last but not least, we'd like to present some musical recommendations that will have you carrying the banner for musicals, whether you are new to musical theatre, or a seasoned veterans! These shows are often available to watch a professional recording on streaming services, or indeed touring productions may make their way to your area. Of course, keep an eye out for amateur productions too - a great way to experience these iconic shows, while supporting local drama groups! I can say from firsthand experience both in front of and on stage - this is well worth your time. Be sure to explore the respective wikis to read more about each show!
It's now time for the curtain to close! Hopefully this has given you some new musicals to try out, and new wikis to explore! Did we miss any of your favourite shows from our playlist? What other shows would you recommend? Please do comment below!
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