18 Musicals Set in Africa – The Full List of Shows
Whether you’re doing some research, putting on a show, or simply looking for 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 list for you! A full list of musicals set in Africa are included below.
This list is broken down into three categories – “Musicals Fully Set in Africa”, “Musicals Partially Set in Africa”, and “Musicals Set in Egypt“. Each category is sorted alphabetically.
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Musicals Fully Set in Africa
Music/Lyrics: Fela Kuti Book: Bill T. Jones, Jim Lewis
Musical Type: Contemporary (2008)
Setting: Africa (Nigeria)
Music: Taliep Petersen Lyrics/Book: David Kramer
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1996)
Setting: Africa (South Africa)
Music/Lyrics: Todd Matshikiza Lyrics: Pat Williams Book: Harry Bloom
Musical Type: Golden Age (1959)
Setting: Africa (South Africa)
Music: Kurt Weill Lyrics/Book: Maxwell Anderson
Musical Type: Golden Age (1949)
Setting: Africa (South Africa)
Music/Lyrics/Book: Mbongeni Ngema Music/Lyrics: Hugh Masekela
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1987)
Setting: Africa (South Africa)
Music/Lyrics: Phil Collins Book: David Henry Hwang
Musical Type: 1999 Film/Contemporary Musical (2006)
Setting: Africa
Music: Sigmund Romberg Lyrics/Book: Otto Harbach, Oscar Hammerstein II, Frank Mandel
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1926)
Setting: Africa (Northern)
Music: Elton John Lyrics: Tim Rice Book: Rodger Allers, Irene Mecchi
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1997)
Setting: Africa
Music/Lyrics: Harold Rome Book: Howard Da Silva, Felix Leon
Musical Type: Post-Golden Age (1965)
Setting: Africa (South Africa)
Musicals Partially Set in Africa
Music: Andrew Lippa Lyrics/Book: Brian Crawley
Musical Type: Contemporary (2004)
Setting: Africa, England (London)
Music/Lyrics/Book: Christopher Smith Book: Arthur Giron
Musical Type: Contemporary (2012)
Setting: Africa, England
Music: Sammy Fain Lyrics: Dan Shapiro Book: Guy Bolton, Eddie Davis
Musical Type: Golden Age (1955)
Setting: Africa (Morocco), Italy, At Sea
Music: George Gershwin Lyrics: Ira Gershwin Book: Peter Stone, Timothy S. Mayer
Musical Type: Jazz Age/Pre-Contemporary (1983)
Setting: Africa (Morocco), USA (NYC)
Music/Lyrics/Book: Trey Parker, Robert Lopez, Matt Stone
Musical Type: Contemporary (2011)
Setting: Africa (Uganda), USA (Utah)
Music/Lyrics/Book: Matt Gould, Griffin Matthews
Musical Type: Contemporary (2014)
Setting: Africa (Uganda), USA (NYC)
Musicals Set in Egypt
Music: Elton John Lyrics: Tim Rice Book: Linda Woolverton, Robert Falls, David Henry Hwang
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1998)
Setting: Egypt
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Music: Andrew Lloyd Webber Lyrics: Tim Rice
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1968)
Setting: Canaan, Egypt
Music/Lyrics: Stephen Schwartz Book: Philip LaZebnik
Musical Type: Contemporary (2017)
Setting: Egypt
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Which of these musicals set in Africa is your favorite?
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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.