55+ Musicals with Animals in Them – The Full List
Last Updated: June 4, 2025
Looking for a musical with a furry or feathered co-star? Whether they take center stage or steal one memorable moment, these animals add charm and character in all the right places. Here’s a full list of musicals with animals in them, sorted by how they appear onstage.
Post Contents:
Musicals Featuring Live Animals
Musicals With Performers in Animal Costumes
Musicals with Scenic, Prop, or Puppet Animals
Musicals with Implied / Symbolic Animals
Musicals Featuring Live Animals
Animals in these productions may appear live, or be thoughtfully substituted with props, puppets, or other theatrical magic.
Music/Lyrics: Benj Pasek, Justin Paul Book: Joseph Robinette
Musical Type: Contemporary (2009)
Live Animals: The Bumpus Hounds
Music: Charles Strouse Lyrics: Martin Charnin Book: Thomas Meehan
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1976)
Live Animal: Sandy the Dog
Music/Lyrics: Various Book: Woody Allen
Musical Type: Contemporary (2014)
Live Animal: Mr. Woofles the Dog
Music/Lyrics: Richard M. Sherman, Robert B. Sherman Adaptations: Jeremy Sams, Ray Roderick
Musical Type: 1968 Film/Contemporary Musical (2002)
Live Animals: A Pack of Dogs
Music: Jule Styne Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim Book: Arthur Laurents
Musical Type: Golden Age (1959)
Live Animals: Chowsie the Dog and a Baby Lamb
Music/Lyrics: Nell Benjamin, Laurence O’Keefe Book: Heather Hach
Musical Type: Contemporary (2007)
Live Animals: Bruiser and Rufus the Dogs
Music/Lyrics/Book: Lionel Bart
Musical Type: Post-Golden Age (1960)
Live Animal: Bullseye the Dog
Music: Cy Coleman Lyrics: Betty Comden, Adolph Green Book: Peter Stone
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1991)
Live Animals: Wild West Show Dogs
Music/Lyrics: Charlie Smalls Book: William F. Brown
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1974)
Live Animal: Toto the Dog
Music/Lyrics: Harold Arlen, Yip Harburg Music: Herbert Stothart Book: L. Frank Baum, John Kane
Musical Type: 1939 Film/Pre-Contemporary Musical (1987)
Live Animal: Toto the Dog
Music: Harold Arlen, Herbert Stothart Music/Book: Andrew Lloyd Webber Lyrics: Yip Harburg, Tim Rice Book: Jeremy Sams
Musical Type: Contemporary (2011)
Live Animal: Toto the Dog
Musicals with Performers in Animal Costumes
These musicals feature animal roles portrayed by actors, dancers, or puppeteers in costume.
Music: Robert Reale Lyrics/Book: Willie Reale
Musical Type: Contemporary (2002)
Animal Roles: Frog and Toad
Music: Alan Menken Lyrics/Book: Chad Beguelin Lyrics: Tim Rice, Howard Ashman
Musical Type: 1992 Film/Contemporary Musical (2011)
Animal Role: Iago
Music: Duncan Sheik Lyrics/Book: Steven Sater Book: Jessie Nelson
Musical Type: Contemporary (2019)
Animal Roles: Cheshire Cat, White Rabbit, Others
Music/Lyrics: Daniel Messé Lyrics: Nathan Tysen Book: Craig Lucas
Musical Type: Contemporary (2015)
Animal Role: Fluffy the Goldfish
Music/Lyrics: Laurence O’Keefe Book: Keythe Farley, Brian Flemming
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1997)
Animal Roles: Bat Boy, Various Animals
Music: Alan Menken Lyrics: Howard Ashman, Tim Rice Book: Linda Woolverton
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1994)
Animal Roles: Wolves
Music/Book: David Evans Lyrics/Book: Winnie Holzman
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1987)
Animal Roles: Andy, Hope, and Dave in Penguin Suits
Music: David Foster Lyrics: Susan Birkenhead Book: Bob Martin
Musical Type: Contemporary (2023)
Animal Roles: Pudgy the Dog
Music/Lyrics/Book: Robert J. Sherman
Musical Type: Contemporary (2016)
Animal Roles: Multiple Rats
Music/Lyrics: Leonard Bernstein Lyrics: Richard Wilbur, John La Touche, 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)
Animal Roles: Two Pink Sheep
Music: Andrew Lloyd Webber Lyrics: T.S. Eliot, Trevor Nunn, Richard Stilgoe
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1981)
Animal Roles: Multiple Cats
Music/Lyrics: Stephen Schwartz Book: John Caird
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1991)
Animal Roles: Animals (Storytellers)
Music/Lyrics/Book: Leslie Bricusse
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1998)
Animal Roles: Polynesia the Parrot, Misc. Animals
Music: Brad Alexander Lyrics/Book: Kevin Del Aguila
Musical Type: Contemporary (2019)
Animal Roles: Dog Man, Flippy the Fish, Lil Petey, Petey the Cat
Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!
Music: Deborah Wicks La Puma Lyrics/Book: Mo Willems Book: Mr. Warburton
Musical Type: Contemporary (2019)
Animal Roles: The Pigeon, Puppy, Ducklings
Elephant and Piggie’s “We are in a Play!”
Music: Deborah Wicks La Puma Lyrics/Book: Mo Willems
Musical Type: Contemporary (2013)
Animal Roles: Gerald, Piggie, Squirrels, Dog, Penguin
Music/Lyrics: Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert Lopez Book: Lindsay Anderson
Musical Type: Contemporary (2007)
Animal Roles: Multiple Fish and Sea Life
Music/Lyrics: Robert Lopez, Kristen Anderson-Lopez Book: Jennifer Lee
Musical Type: Contemporary (2017)
Animal Role: Sven the Reindeer
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
Music: George Stiles Lyrics/Book: Anthony Drewe
Musical Type: Contemporary (2013)
Animal Roles: Baby Bear, Father Bear, Mother Bear, Puppet Bird
Music/Lyrics: Jerry Herman Book: Michael Stewart
Musical Type: Post-Golden Age (1964)
Animal Role: Horse
Music: Bree Lowdermilk Lyrics/Book: Kait Kerrigan
Musical Type: Contemporary (2006)
Animal Role: Mudge the Dog
Music: George Stiles Lyrics/Book: Anthony Drewe
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1993)
Animal Roles: Multiple Farm Animals
Music/Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim Book: James Lapine
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1986)
Animal Role: Wolf
Music: Justin Paul Lyrics: Benj Pasek Book: Timothy Allen McDonald
Musical Type: Contemporary (2010)
Animal Roles: Grasshopper, Spider, Centipede, Earthworm, Ladybug, Seagulls
Music: George Stiles Lyrics/Book: Anthony Drewe
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1984)
Animal Roles: A Variety of Animals
Music/Lyrics/Book: Justin Huertas
Musical Type: Contemporary (2015)
Animal Role: Lizard Boy
Music/Lyrics/Book: Robert J. Sherman
Musical Type: Contemporary (2015)
Animal Roles: Multiple Birds
Music: Moose Charlap, Jule Styne Lyrics: Carolyn Leigh, Betty Comden, Adolph Green Book: J.M. Barrie
Musical Type: Golden Age (1954)
Animal Roles: Crocodile, Nana, Various Animals
Peter Pan: A Musical Adventure
Music: George Stiles Lyrics: Anthony Drewe Book: Willis Hall
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1997)
Animal Roles: Crocodile, Nana
Music/Lyrics/Book: Brooke Maxwell, Jacob Richmond
Musical Type: Contemporary (2015)
Animal Featured: Virgil the Rat
Music/Book: Stephen Flaherty Lyrics/Book: Lynn Ahrens
Musical Type: Contemporary (2000)
Animal Roles: A Variety of Animals
Music: Jeanine Tesori Lyrics/Book: David Lindsay-Abaire
Musical Type: Contemporary (2008)
Animal Roles: Donkey, Dragon, Misc. Animals
Music/Lyrics: Jon Kaplan, Al Kaplan Book: Hunter Bell
Musical Type: Contemporary (2005)
Animal Roles: A Chorus of Lambs
Music: Larry Grossman Lyrics: Hal Hackady Book: Warren Lockhart, Arthur Whitelaw, Michael Grace
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1975)
Animal Roles: Snoopy, Woodstock
Music/Lyrics: Phil Collins Book: David Henry Hwang
Musical Type: 1999 Film/Contemporary Musical (2006)
Animal Roles: Apes, Gorillas, Leopard
Music/Book: Jerry Bock Lyrics/Book: Sheldon Harnick Book: Jerome Coopersmith
Musical Type: Post-Golden Age (1966)
Animal Role: The Snake
Music/Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim Book: Burt Shevelove, Nathan Lane
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1974)
Animal Roles: Frogs
Music: Elton John Lyrics: Tim Rice Book: Roger Allers, Irene Mecchi
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1997)
Animal Roles: A Variety of Animals
Music: Alan Menken Lyrics: Howard Ashman, Glenn Slater Book: Doug Wright
Musical Type: 1989 Film/Contemporary Musical (2007)
Animal Roles: Multiple Fish and Sea Life
Music/Lyrics: Various Book: Kyle Jarrow
Musical Type: Contemporary (2016)
Animal Roles: Multiple Fish and Sea Life
Music: George Stiles Lyrics/Book: Anthony Drewe
Musical Type: Contemporary (2013)
Animal Roles: A Variety of Animals
Music: George Stiles Lyrics: Anthony Drewe Book: Julian Fellowes
Musical Type: Contemporary (2016)
Animal Roles: A Variety of Animals
Music/Lyrics: Dave Malloy Lyrics/Book: Lucy Kirkwood
Musical Type: Contemporary (2023)
Animal Roles: Children Turned to Mice
Music/Lyrics: Charlie Smalls Book: William F. Brown
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1974)
Animal Roles: Lion, Winged Monky, Crows, Field Mice
Music/Lyrics: Harold Arlen, Yip Harburg Music: Herbert Stothart Book: L. Frank Baum, John Kane
Musical Type: 1939 Film/Pre-Contemporary Musical (1987)
Animal Roles: Cowardly Lion, Crows, Flying Monkeys
Music: Harold Arlen, Herbert Stothart Music/Book: Andrew Lloyd Webber Lyrics: Yip Harburg, Tim Rice Book: Jeremy Sams
Musical Type: Contemporary (2011)
Animal Roles: Cowardly Lion, Flying Monkeys
Music: A.J. Holmes Lyrics: Kaley McMahon Book: Matt Lang, Nick Lang, Eric Kahn Gale
Musical Type: Contemporary (2013)
Animal Roles: Bird, Monkey
Music/Lyrics: PigPen Theatre Co. Book: Rick Elice
Musical Type: Contemporary (2023)
Animal Roles: A Variety of Animals
Music/Lyrics: Stephen Schwartz Book: Winnie Holzman
Musical Type: Contemporary (2003)
Animal Roles: Dr. Dillamond, Chistery, Monkeys
You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown
Music/Lyrics/Book: Clark Gesner Additional Songs: Andrew Lippa
Musical Type: Post-Golden Age (1967)
Animal Role: Snoopy
Musicals with Scenic or Prop Animals
These musicals feature animals portrayed as props, puppets, or scenic pieces.
Music/Lyrics: Cole Porter Book: Guy Bolton, P.G. Wodehouse, Howard Lindsay, Russel Crouse
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1934)
Animal Featured: Prop/Puppet Dog
Music: George Stiles Lyrics: Anthony Drewe Book: Ron Cowen, Daniel Lipman
Musical Type: Contemporary (2011)
Animal Featured: Prop Pig
Music/Lyrics: Richard M. Sherman, Robert B. Sherman Book: A.J. Carothers
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1995)
Animal Featured: Marionette/Puppet Dog
Music: Richard Rodgers Lyrics/Book: Oscar Hammerstein II Book: Douglas Carter Beane
Musical Type: 1957 Film/Contemporary Musical (2013)
Animals Featured: Puppet Mice and Cat
Music/Lyrics/Book: Irene Sankoff, David Hein
Musical Type: Contemporary (2013)
Animals Featured: Prop Animals / Sounds
Music/Lyrics/Book: George Reinblatt Music: Christopher Bond, Frank Cipolla, Melissa Morris
Musical Type: Contemporary (2003)
Animals Featured: Puppet Beaver
Music/Lyrics: Tim Minchin Book: Danny Rubin
Musical Type: Contemporary (2016)
Animal Featured: Set/Prop Groundhog
Music/Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim Book: James Lapine
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1986)
Animal Featured: Prop Cow
Music: Richard Rodgers Lyrics: Lorenz Hart Book: Ben Hecht, Charles MacArthur
Musical Type: Jazz Age (1935)
Animals Featured: Puppet/Prop Animals
Music/Lyrics: Stephen Schwartz Book: Roger O. Hirson
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1972)
Animal Featured: Prop Duck
Sunday in the Park with George
Music/Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim Book: James Lapine
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1984)
Animal Featured: Implied/Set Dog
Music/Lyrics: Stephen Schwartz Book: Joseph Stein
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1976)
Animal Featured: Prop/Implied Cat
Music/Book: Andrew Lloyd Webber Lyrics: Jim Steinman Book: Patricia Knop, Gale Edwards
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1996)
Animals Featured: Prop Kittens
Musicals with Implied / Symbolic Animals
These musicals feature symbolic or metaphorical animals, occasionally represented with props, costumes, or set pieces.
Music/Lyrics: Andrew Lippa Book: John August
Musical Type: Contemporary (2013)
Animals Featured: Implied Fish and Circus Animals
Music/Lyrics: Jay Livingston, Ray Evans Book: Abram S. Ginnes
Musical Type: Post-Golden Age (1961)
Animals Featured: Implied Horses
Music/Lyrics/Book: Michael John LaChiusa
Musical Type: Contemporary (2003)
Animal Featured: Metaphorical Fish
Music: Stephen Flaherty Lyrics/Book: Lynn Ahrens
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1988)
Animals Featured: Implied Dogs
Music/Lyrics/Book: Robert Longden, Hereward Kaye
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1990)
Animal Featured: Symbolic Whale
Music/Lyrics/Book: Benjamin Scheuer
Musical Type: Contemporary (2014)
Animal Featured: Metaphorical Lion
Music: Richard Rodgers Lyrics: Martin Charnin Book: Peter Stone
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1970)
Animals Featured: Implied Animals
Music/Lyrics/Book: Preston Max Allen
Musical Type: Contemporary (2015)
Animals Featured: Metaphorical Tigers
Music: Dick Gallagher Book/Lyrics/Concept: Mark Waldrop Concept: Howard Crabtree
Musical Type: Pre-Contemporary (1996)
Animals Featured: Metaphorical Pigs
Music: Cy Coleman Lyrics: Carolyn Leigh Book: N. Richard Nash
Musical Type: Post-Golden Age (1960)
Animal Featured: Metaphorical Wildcat
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Which of these musicals with animals is your favorite?
Or have you ever played a role in any of the above musicals about animals? 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.
