Musical Lists

35+ Classical Musicals – A Full List of Shows

Whether you’re auditioning for musicals, setting up your rep book, or simply looking for some new musicals to get into, it’s good to get familiar with what’s out there. And that’s why we’ve put together this full list of classical musicals for you below.

The following list is broken down into six categories – “Chamber Musicals”, “Classical Musicals” “Experimental Classical Musicals”, “Mixed Genre Classical Musicals”, “Operatic Classical Musicals”, “Operettas”, and “Operetta/Musical Theatre Mixes”. Each category is sorted alphabetically.


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Chamber Musicals

First Daughter Suite

Music/Lyrics: Michael John La Chiusa

Musical Type: Contemporary (2015)

Music Genre: Chamber


First Lady Suite

Music/Lyrics/Book: Michael John LaChiusa

Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1993)

Music Genre: Chamber


Octet

Music/Lyrics/Book: Dave Malloy

Musical Type: Contemporary (2019)

Music Genre: Chamber


Classical Musicals

Goblin Market

Music: Polly Pen  Lyrics: Peggy Harman

Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1985)

Music Genre: Classical


Experimental Classical Musicals

Adding Machine

Music/Lyrics/Book: Joshua Schmidt  Lyrics/Book: Jason Loewith

Musical Type: Contemporary (2007)

Music Genres: Classical/Experimental


Preludes

Music/Lyrics/Book: Dave Malloy

Musical Type: Contemporary (2015)

Music Genres: Classical/Experimental


Wings

Music: Jeffrey Lunden  Lyrics/Book: Arthur Perlman

Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1992)

Music Genres: Classical/Experimental/Legit


Mixed Genre Classical Musicals

A Minister’s Wife

Music: Joshua Schmidt  Lyrics: Jan Levy Tranen  Book: Austin Pendleton

Musical Type: Contemporary (2011)

Music Genres: Legit Musical Theatre/Classical


An American in Paris

Music/Lyrics: George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin  Book: Craig Lucas

Musical Type: 1951 Film/Contemporary Musical (2014)

Music Genres: Jazz/Classical


Chess

Music: Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus  Lyrics: Tim Rice  Book: Richard Nelson

Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1984)

Music Genres: Rock/Pop/Musical Theatre/Classical


Contact

Music/Lyrics: Various  Book: John Weidman

Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1999)

Music Genres: Jazz/Classical/Rock & Roll


Lend Me a Tenor

Music: Brad Carroll  Lyrics/Book: Peter Sham

Musical Type: Contemporary (2010)

Music Genres: Musical Theatre/Classical/Opera


Love Story

Music/Lyrics: Howard Goodall  Lyrics/Book: Stephen Clark

Musical Type: Contemporary (2010)

Music Genres: Musical Theatre/Classical


Movin’ Out

Music/Lyrics: Billy Joel

Musical Type: Contemporary/Jukebox (2002)

Music Genres: Rock/Classical


My Life with Albertine

Music/Lyrics: Ricky Ian Gordon  Lyrics/Book: Richard Nelson

Musical Type: Contemporary (2003)

Music Genres: Legit Musical Theatre/Classical


The Bridges of Madison County

Music/Lyrics: Jason Robert Brown  Book: Marsha Norman

Musical Type: Contemporary (2013)

Music Genres: Legit Musical Theatre/Classical/Country


The Hatpin

Music: Peter Rutherford  Lyrics/Book: James Millar

Musical Type: Contemporary (2008)

Music Genres: Legit Musical Theatre/Classical


The Light in the Piazza

Music/Lyrics: Adam Guettel  Book: Craig Lucas

Musical Type: Contemporary (2003)

Music Genres: Legit Musical Theatre/Classical


The Light Princess

Music/Lyrics: Tori Amos  Lyrics/Book: Samuel Adamson

Musical Type: Contemporary (2013)

Music Genres: Musical Theatre/Pop/Classical


The Woman in White

Music: Andrew Lloyd Webber  Lyrics: David Zippel  Book: Charlotte Jones

Musical Type: Contemporary (2004)

Music Genres: Legit Musical Theatre/Classical


West Side Story

Music: Leonard Bernstein  Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim  Book: Arthur Laurents

Musical Type: Golden Age (1957)

Music Genres: Musical Theatre/Jazz/Classical


Operatic Classical Musicals

Carmen Jones

Music: Georges Bizet  Lyrics/Book: Oscar Hammerstein II

Musical Type: Golden Age (1943)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


Chu Chin Chow

Music: Frederic Norton  Book: Oscar Asche

Musical Type: Pre-Jazz Age (1916)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


Happy End

Music: Kurt Weill  Lyrics: Bertolt Brecht  Book: Elisabeth Hauptmann

Musical Type: Jazz Age (1929)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


Lost in the Stars

Music: Kurt Weill  Lyrics/Book: Maxwell Anderson

Musical Type: Golden Age (1949)

Music Genres: Opera/Blues


LoveMusik

Music: Kurt Weill  Lyrics: Various  Book: Alfred Uhry

Musical Type: Contemporary (2007)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


Love Never Dies

Music/Book: Andrew Lloyd Webber  Lyrics/Book: Glenn Slater  Book: Ben Elton, Frederick Forsyth

Musical Type: Contemporary (2010)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


Phantom

Music/Lyrics: Maury Yeston  Book: Arthur Kopit

Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1991)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


Porgy and Bess

Music: George Gershwin  Lyrics: Ira Gershwin  LibrettoDuBose Heyward, Dorothy Heyward

Musical Type: Opera (1935)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


Show Boat

Music: Jerome Kern  Lyrics/Book: Oscar Hammerstein II

Musical Type: Jazz Age (1927)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


The Cabaret Girl

Music: Jerome Kern  Lyrics/Book: George Grossmith, P.G. Wodehouse

Musical Type: Jazz Age (1922)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


The Cradle Will Rock

Music/Lyrics/Book: Marc Blitzstein

Musical Type: Jazz Age (1938)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


The Golden Apple

Music: Jerome Moross  Libretto: John Latouche

Musical Type: Golden Age (1954)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


The Most Happy Fella

Music/Lyrics/Book: Frank Loesser

Musical Type: Golden Age (1956)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


The Phantom of the Opera

Music/Book: Andrew Lloyd Webber  Lyrics: Charles Hart  Lyrics/Book: Richard Stilgoe

Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1986)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


The Threepenny Opera

Music: Kurt Weill  Lyrics/Book: Bertolt Brecht

Musical Type: Play with Music (1928)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


Wuthering Heights

Music/Lyrics/Book: Bernard J. Taylor

Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1992)

Music Genres: Opera/Musical Theatre


Operettas

Candide

Music/Lyrics: Leonard Bernstein  Lyrics: Richard Wilbur, John Latouche, Stephen Sondheim*, Dorothy Parker  Book: John Caird*, Hugh Wheeler*, Lillian Hellman

* Writers who worked on the 1974/1999 revivals of the show

Musical Type: Golden Age (1956)

Music Genre: Operetta


Dearest Enemy

Music: Richard Rodgers  Lyrics: Lorenz Hart  Book: Herbert Fields

Musical Type: Jazz Age (1925)

Music Genre: Operetta


Knickerbocker Holiday

Music: Kurt Weill  Lyrics/Book: Maxwell Anderson

Musical Type: Jazz Age (1938)

Music Genre: Operetta


Robert and Elizabeth

Music: Ron Grainer  Lyrics/Book: Ronald Millar

Musical Type: Post-Golden Age (1964)

Music Genre: Operetta


Song of Norway

Music: Edvard Grieg  Lyrics: Robert Wright, George Forrest  Book: Milton Lazarus, Homer Curran

Musical Type: Golden Age (1944)

Music Genre: Operetta


The Desert Song

Music: Sigmund Romberg  Lyrics/Book: Otto Harbach, Oscar Hammerstein II, Frank Mandel

Musical Type: Jazz Age (1926)

Music Genre: Operetta


The Happiest Girl in the World

Music: Jacques Offenbach  Lyrics: E.Y. Harburg  Book: Fred Saidy, Henry Mayers

Musical Type: Post-Golden Age (1961)

Music Genre: Operetta


The New Moon

Music: Sigmund Romberg  Lyrics/Book: Oscar Hammerstein II, Frank Mandel, Laurence Schwab

Musical Type: Jazz Age (1927)

Music Genre: Operetta


The Student Prince

Music: Sigmund Romberg  Lyrics/Book: Dorothy Donnelly

Musical Type: Jazz Age (1924)

Music Genre: Operetta


Operetta/Musical Theatre Mixes

Bravo Giovanni

Music: Milton Schafer  Lyrics: Ronny Graham  Book: A.J. Russell

Musical Type: Post-Golden Age (1962)

Music Genres: Musical Theatre/Operetta


Kean

Music/Lyrics: Robert Wright, George Forrest  Book: Peter Stone

Musical Type: Post-Golden Age (1961)

Music Genres: Musical Theatre/Operetta


Lady in the Dark

Music: Kurt Weill  Lyrics: Ira Gershwin  Book: Moss Hart

Musical Type: Golden Age (1941)

Music Genres: Musical Theatre/Operetta


Magdalena

Music: Heitor Villa-Lobos  Lyrics: Robert Wright, George Forrest  Book: Frederick Hazlitt Brennan, Homer Curran

Musical Type: Golden Age (1948)

Music Genres: Musical Theatre/Folk Operetta


Promenade

Music: Al Carmines  Lyrics/Book: María Irene Fornés

Musical Type: Post-Golden Age (1965)

Music Genres: Musical Theatre/Operetta/Folk


The Gay Life

Music/Lyrics: Arthur Schwartz, Howard Dietz  Book: Fay Kanin, Michael Kanin

Musical Type: Post-Golden Age (1961)

Music Genres: Musical Theatre/Operetta


The Girl in Pink Tights

Music: Sigmund Romberg  Lyrics: Leo Robin  Book: Jerome Chodorov, Joseph Fields

Musical Type: Golden Age (1954)

Music Genres: Musical Theatre/Operetta


Through the Years

Music: Vincent Youmans  Lyrics: Edward Heyman  Book: Brian Hooker

Musical Type: Jazz Age (1932)

Music Genres: Musical Theatre/Operetta


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Which of these classical musicals is your favorite?

Or have you ever played a role in any of the above classical musicals? Feel free to share in the comments below! And if you like these types of lists, check out the musical database. That’s where you’ll find musicals sorted by composer, theme, setting, and more!


Stacy Karyn, Author of Classical Musicals.
Author: Stacy Karyn

Stacy Karyn is the founder of Theatre Trip, author of The Thespian’s Bucket List, and creator of The Cast Album List. She holds a BA in theatre, a TESOL drama certificate, and has worked and interned with Broadway and Off-Broadway theaters.


 

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