Musicals of the 1930s – A Complete Ordered List
The musicals of the 1930s boasted glamorous showgirls, light-hearted shows, complex plots, and larger-than-life dance numbers. A few of the popular trends at the time included jazz, Gershwin, Cole Porter, romantic comedies, movie musicals, and flirtatious themes.
The 1930s marked the end of the “jazz age” of musical theatre, but is still pre Golden Age. The most notable musicals of the decade are included below.
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Contents:
1930 Musicals
Music: Kay Swift Lyrics: Paul James Book: Donald Ogden Stewart
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1930)
Music: George Gershwin Lyrics: Ira Gershwin Book: Guy Bolton, John McGowan
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1930)
Music/Lyrics: Cole Porter Book: Herbert Fields
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1930)
1931 Musicals
Music: George Gershwin Lyrics: Ira Gershwin Book: George S. Kaufman, Morrie Ryskind
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1931)
Music: Arthur Schwartz Lyrics/Book: Howard Dietz Book: George S. Kaufman
Musical Type: Jazz Age/Revue (1931)
1932 Musicals
Music/Lyrics: Irving Berlin Book: Moss Hart
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1932)
Music: Vincent Youmans Lyrics: Edward Heyman Book: Brian Hooker
Musical Type: Jazz Age/Operetta (1932)
1933 Musicals
Music/Lyrics: Irving Berlin Book: Moss Hart
Musical Type: Jazz Age/Revue (1933)
Music: George Gershwin Lyrics: Ira Gershwin Book: George S. Kaufman
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1933)
Music/Lyrics: Cole Porter Book: Romney Brent
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1933)
Music: George Gershwin Lyrics: Ira Gershwin Book: Herbert Fields, Morrie Ryskind
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1933)
Music: Jerome Kern Lyrics/Book: Otto Harbach
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1933)
1934 Musicals
Music/Lyrics: Cole Porter Book: Guy Bolton, P.G. Wodehouse
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1934)
Music: Harold Arlen Lyrics: Ira Gershwin, E.Y. Harburg
Musical Type: Jazz Age/Revue (1934)
1935 Musicals
Music/Lyrics: Cole Porter Book: Moss Hart
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1935)
Music: Richard Rodgers Lyrics: Lorenz Hart Book: Ben Hecht, Charles MacArthur
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1935)
Music: George Gershwin Lyrics: Ira Gershwin Libretto: DuBose Heyward
Musical Type: Opera (1935)
1936 Musicals
Music/Book: Richard Rodgers Lyrics/Book: Lorenz Hart Book: George Abbott
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1936)
1937 Musicals
Music/Book: Richard Rodgers Lyrics/Book: Lorenz Hart
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1937)
Music: Noel Gay Lyrics/Book: Douglas Furber, L. Arthur Rose
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1937)
Music/Lyrics: Harold Rome Book: Various
Musical Type: Jazz Age/Revue (1937)
1938 Musicals
Music: Richard Rodgers Lyrics: Lorenz Hart
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1938)
Music: Kurt Weill Lyrics/Book: Maxwell Anderson
Musical Type: Jazz Age/Operetta (1938)
Music/Lyrics: Cole Porter Book: Samuel Spewack, Bella Spewack
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1938)
Music: Richard Rodgers Lyrics: Lorenz Hart Book: George Abbott
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1938)
Music/Lyrics/Book: Marc Blitzstein
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1938)
Music/Lyrics: Cole Porter, Robert Katscher Book: Rowland Leigh
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1938)
1939 Musicals
Music: Jerome Kern Lyrics/Book: Oscar Hammerstein II
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1939)
Other Decades
• Musicals of the 1930s → You are here!
• Golden Age Musicals (1940 – 1959)
• Post-Golden Age Musicals (1960 – 1969)
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Which of these musicals of the 1930s is your favorite?
Or have you ever played a role in any of these 1930s 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!
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 has a TESOL drama certificate, a BA in theatre, and has worked and interned with Broadway and Off-Broadway theaters.