i'll never be able to decide that one. les miz would be one of my contenders though... and um... o hell, i'll just say it: rent. and of course their is sweeny todd and gypsy and fiddler, etc. etc.
I definately agree with WillParker on West Side Story, its really the first musical on any format I saw and to this day I love it, maybe its that deep down shakespeare geek in me
You, you are the worst thing to happen to musical theater since Andrew Lloyd Webber... and you I just don't like you.
I don't understand how A CHORUS LINE could be THE BEST. The music is great, yes, and from only seeing the movie: the plot is dull and boring. I hope the original Broadway production was much different than the film.
BEST DRAMA: WEST SIDE STORY BEST COMEDY: THE PRODUCERS FAVORITE DRAMA: INTO THE WOODS, AIDA FAVORITE COMEDY: SEUSSICAL, PETER PAN, URINETOWN
"The Spectacle has, indeed, an emotional attraction of its own, but, of all the parts, it is the least artistic, and connected least with the art of poetry. For the power of Tragedy, we may be sure, is felt even apart from representation and actors. Besides, the production of spectacular effects depends more on the art of the stage machinist than on that of the poet."
--Aristotle
When I was little my parents refused to let me see the movie of A Chorus Line because they told me it was a travesty to the real production. So I've never actually seen it to comment on the differences.
"First up was Max who sang "Can You Feel the Love Tonight?" [...] I haven't seen that big of a reaction to a stair descent since Audra left the attic in Ragtime." --Seth Rudetsky
I'll only include shows I saw in their original Broadway or First National Tour versions:
Sweeney Todd, A Chorus Line, Les Miz, and Ragtime all thrilled me. The Producers and Urinetown made me laugh my ass off. Crazy For You had me smiling non-stop for 2 and a half hours. All very different kinds of shows, but all unforgettable experiences.
The movie and the original stage prodution of "A Chorus Line" are two COMPLETELY different entities -- there really is no comparison between the two. Even the songs that remained lyrically and structurally intact for the film were either poorly performed, lacked urgency or had their impact muted and altered by poor editing and camerwork. The whole thing has a ridulous Vegas-y look and attitude that gives the show a totally different feel. I won't even go into the ludicrous changes to the Zach-Cassie subplot. A wrongheaded bastardization of one of the finest shows ever created.
Check out the video of the original cast at the Lincoln Center archives and you'll understand.
Margo (who would put "A Chorus Line" near the top of any list of "Best Musical Ever")
"What a story........ everything but the bloodhounds snappin' at her rear end." -- Birdie
[http://margochanning.broadwayworld.com/]
"The Devil Be Hittin' Me" -- Whitney