Musicals of the 1920s – The Full List of Shows
The musicals of the 1920s boasted happy endings, simple plots, light-hearted shows, and larger-than-life dance numbers. A few of the popular trends at the time included jazz, Gershwin, Cole Porter, and romantic comedies.
The 1920s marked the beginning of the “jazz age” of musical theatre, or the pre Golden Age era. Here’s the full list of musicals that premiered during the decade. And to enhance your researching experience, you can pop on Theatre Trip’s Spotify playlist while scrolling – “The Best Musical Songs of the Jazz Age”➝.
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Contents:
1920 Musicals
Music: Jerome Kern Lyrics: Clifford Grey Book: Guy Bolton Additional Music/Lyrics: Victor Herbert, Anne Caldwell, Buddy DeSylva, P.G. Wodehouse
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1920)
1921 Musicals
Music/Lyrics: Eubie Blake, Noble Sissle Book: Flournoy Miller, Aubrey Lyles
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1921)
1922 Musicals
Music: Jerome Kern Lyrics/Book: George Grossmith, Jr., P.G. Wodehouse
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1922)
1924 Musicals
Music: George Gershwin Lyrics: Ira Gershwin Book: Guy Bolton, Fred Thompson
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1924)
1925 Musicals
Music: Richard Rodgers Lyrics: Lorenz Hart Book: Herbert Fields
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1925)
Music: Vincent Youmans Lyrics: Irving Caesar Lyrics/Book: Otto Harbach Book: Frank Mandel
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1925)
1926 Musicals
Music: Con Conrad Lyrics: Gus Kahn Book: Philip Bartholomae, Otto Harbach
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1926)
Music: George Gershwin Lyrics: Ira Gershwin Book: Guy Bolton, P.G. Wodehouse
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1926)
Music: Sigmund Romberg Lyrics/Book: Otto Harbach, Oscar Hammerstein II, Frank Mandel
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1926)
Music: Richard Rodgers Lyrics: Lorenz Hart Book: Herbert Fields
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1926)
1927 Musicals
Music: Richard Rodgers Lyrics: Lorenz Hart Book: Herbert Fields
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1927)
Music: Ray Henderson Lyrics/Book: Buddy DeSylva Lyrics: Lew Brown Book: Laurence Schwab
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1927)
Music: Jerome Kern Lyrics/Book: Oscar Hammerstein II
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1927)
Music: George Gershwin Lyrics: Ira Gershwin Book: Morrie Ryskind Original Libretto: George S. Kaufman
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1927)
Music: Sigmund Romberg Lyrics/Book: Oscar Hammerstein II, Frank Mandel, Laurence Schwab
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1927)
1928 Musicals
Music: Jimmy McHugh Lyrics: Dorothy Fields
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1928)
Music: Vivian Ellis, Richard Myers Lyrics/Book: Clifford Grey, Greatrex Newman
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1928)
Music: Kurt Weill Lyrics/Book: Bertolt Brecht
Musical Type: Opera (1928)
1929 Musicals
Music/Lyrics: Cole Porter Book: Herbert Fields
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1929)
Music: Kurt Weill Lyrics: Bertolt Brecht Book: Elisabeth Hauptmann, Michael Feingold
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1929)
More Musicals by Year
• Musicals of the 1920s → You are here!
• Golden Age Musicals (1940 – 1959)
• Post-Golden Age Musicals (1960 – 1969)
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Which of these musicals of the 1920s is your favorite?
Or have you ever played a role in any of these 1920s musicals? Feel free to share in the comments below! And if you enjoy exploring these lists, check out the musical database, where you can discover musicals organized by composer, theme, setting, and much more!
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 and a TESOL drama certificate, with experience working and interning in Broadway and Off-Broadway theaters.