With So Many Choices Out There We’ve Put Together A List Of The Top Ten New Shows To See On Broadway In 2023, Take Your Pick From A Wide Variety Of Broadway Show Options
Top 10 Best New Broadway Shows in 2023 That You Must See
2023 has shown that Broadway is back with a vengeance! Whether you’re in the mood for a long-running stalwarts, a fresh take on vintage fare, a sprawling drama or an original corn-fest, Broadway has got you covered. Here are the ten best new shows to wow theatre lovers and cynics alike in 2023.
10. Here Lies Love
Here Lies Love, a concept album and stage musical created by David Byrne and Fatboy Slim, chronicles the life and times of Imelda Marcos. The innovative, immersive musical that wowed audiences off-Broadway at the Public Theatre in 2013 is set to take its Broadway bow a decade later. Set designer David Korins has reimagined the Circle in the Square theatre into a dance club so that audiences can move and dance along with the actors.
9. Peter Pan Goes Wrong
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right? Spawned from the creators of the popular farce The Play That Goes Wrong, this new iteration running on Broadway for a limited time, takes a similar approach to J.M. Barrie’s classic story of Peter Pan. Neverland was never so full of hijinks, chaos or abject hilarity.
8. Shucked
Billed as a farm to fable musical, this brand new comedy (which no longer has anything to do with the Hee-Haw franchise) is up to its ears in corn puns and tuneful ditties. The creators, including Tony winning bookwriter Robert Horn (Tootsie) and country songwriters Shane McAnally and Brandy Clark, have woven an old-fashioned style show with modern resonances.
7. Fat Ham
Winner of the 2022 Pulitzer Prize in Drama, Fat Ham is an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. In James Ijames version, a queer Black man called Juicy wrestles with the ghost of his father, who commands his son to avenge his death. But Juicy, not wanting to go down the same road as Hamlet, attempts to break the trauma cycle.
6. & Juliet
Shakespeare continues to be ripe for modern adaptations, this time in the form of a jukebox musical built on the songs of hitmaker Max Martin. With a book by David West Read, this Romeo and Juliet hot take imagines a world in which the titular female character does not die. The score includes a host of familiar bops including Oops! I Did It Again and Since You’ve Been Gone.
5. Funny Girl
Based on the life of Fanny Bryce, this classic musical with an iconic score by Jule Styne and Bob Merrill seemed to have its fate sealed when Beanie Feldstein, the original star of the revival, failed to wow critics and audiences. But superstar replacement Lea Michele (Glee, Spring Awakening) has brought her powerhouse vocals to songs like People and Don’t Rain On My Parade and has now made the show a bona fide hit.
4. Wicked
Wicked has stood the test of time for many reasons: its heartfelt message, its stirring score and its ability to appeal to audiences of all ages. Another added virtue of a long running hit like Wicked is that it need not depend on bankable names to sell tickets. As a result, the Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman vehicle about good witch Galinda and green witch Elphaba may just run forever.
3. Kimberly Akimbo
While a disease causing a young girl to age more than 4 times faster than the average human doesn’t seem like fertile ground for an enchanting gem of a musical, David-Lindsay Abaire (whose play serves as the source material) enlisted the singular virtues of composer Jeanine Tesori to meet the challenge. The result is a quirky, feel-good show featuring a tour-de-force performance by Tony Award winner Victoria Clark (Light in the Piazza).
2. Leopoldstadt
What do you do when you find out that your whole family history is not what you thought it was? If you’re Tom Stoppard, you write an epic play about it featuring 38 actors, and spanning over five decades. The gripping story centers on a Viennese Jewish family, many of whom ultimately perish at the hands of the Nazi regime.
1. Some Like It Hot
Taking a beloved classic and reinventing it as a new musical is no easy feat. Marc Shaiman, Scott Whitman, Matthew Lopez, and Amber Ruffin do exactly that with their offering. While many of the film’s plot details remain intact, there’s one notable exception. Although some have criticized the creators for catering to ‘woke’ culture, Some Like It Hot on Broadway is filled with heart, levity and several literally toe-tapping production numbers.
