Most Prominent Off-Broadway Musical

The discussion in the Here We Are thread got me thinking, what's the most prominent/well-regarded musical that has never been on Broadway? I'm not talking things like Assassins or Little Shop which did eventually make it to Broadway in a revival, but things that have firmly stayed off-Broadway/regional and still manage to be significant today.

For the sake of the question, I'm considering mostly American shows, since there's a whole slew of West End/other European shows that have never made the transfer, but I think one that comes to mind for me is Hunchback of Notre Dame.

You're absolutely right and it seems very obvious in hindsight! (Fwiw I never got a chance to see it and Hunchback is talked about quite a bit in my theater circles)

Every show named so far is really great and definitely significant for their only Off-Broadway runs 

But might I add a very unconventional long running show: 

Blue Man Group 

I don't know if you count that as a musical

But it's not not a musical

The Last Five Years

Heathers

 

I know Little Shop was on Broadway, but that production was easily its least successful iteration. It was basically an instant classic, going straight from off-bway to movie musical. The original off-bway and current off-bway runs have been much much more successful than its brief Broadway run.

The Last Five Years is an excellent, excellent show

And it's a very popular Off Broadway show

But the most prominent, as I said and many others have echoed, is absolutely The Fantasticks

I mean when you really think about its run and its legacy, it's fairly likely that every musical today has some kind of influence from it

Like if I ever meet Sondheim's ghost first thing I'm asking

Is if Sunday in the Park with George, my favorite Sondheim show by far, is structured in a way that's based on The Fantasticks

I would be extremely shocked if it wasn't 

The Last Five Years is mostly so well known amongst theatre fans because of the excellent Jason Robert Brown score

But The Fantasticks

Has been a critical success for sixty years 

And it's one of the only Off Broadway musicals that I think can be counted amongst the greats

It's just such an incredibly written show with so much to it even though it's literally an eight person show

It's the ultimate evolution of the uniquely theatre suspension of dibelief and pretty much the blueprint for every concept musical that came afterwards 

Also it probably has the best book of a musical ever written???? 

If not the best at least like top ten 

Obviously Fiddler, Gypsy, Sunday, Into the Woods, Sweeney Todd, and a few other shows that are currently slipping my mind might have something to say about that 

Maybe I'm just biased because I think Tom Jones was one of the most brilliant men in the theatre and, even though he hadn't done much in a while at the time of his death, I feel it so profoundly

I feel like we all feel the loss of Tom Jones, and it's even stronger than the feeling of loss when The Fantasticks revival closed

Back then I thought it could always be revived again 

But something about the death of the author of the show makes it feel so distant

Oh and by the way if you never got to see him acting in the show 

It was probably one of the best performances in a non speaking role in a musical ever

He was really, truly phenomenal 

chrishuyen said: "The discussion in the Here We Are thread got me thinking, what's the most prominent/well-regarded musical that has never been on Broadway? I'm not talking things like Assassins or Little Shop which did eventually make it to Broadway in a revival, but things that have firmly stayed off-Broadway/regional and still manage to be significant today.

For the sake of the question, I'm considering mostly American shows, since there's a whole slew of West End/other European shows that have never made the transfer, but I think one that comes to mind for me is Hunchback of Notre Dame."

I guess it depends on the use of the word significant - but FANTASTICKS, LSOH, NUNSENSE, FORBIDDEN BROADWAY, ALTAR BOYZ, NAKED BOYS SINGING, like them or not, have proved to be the most successful Off-Broadway and have all had touring productions our separate non-replica productions. I think the meat and bones of your question is which ones have artistic merit, have had success other places, but not made it to Broadway, TICK TICK BOOM, DOGFIGHT, TL5Y (and some might argue SONGS FOR A NEW WORLD). I personally like ZOMBIE PROM and RUTHLESS a lot too, which were pretty well received during their time IIRC.

Just as a note of interest The Fantasticks did receive a special Tony Award. I’m not aware of many or any other Off-Broadway shows that received special Tony Award recognition but there may be others.

Kad said: "Yeah I’d say The Fantasticks for its longevity and cultural impact.


Also, I’d throw in shows like Forever Plaid and Forbidden Broadway."

Lord, this reminded me how much I miss Forbidden Broadway's regular skewering of the industry.

baritonewithtenortendencies said: "Like if I ever meet Sondheim's ghost first thing I'm asking

Is if Sunday in the Park with George, my favorite Sondheim show by far, is structured in a way that's based on The Fantasticks

I would be extremely shocked if it wasn't"

The story told here answers your question pretty clearly! Long story short: I'd find another question to ask Sondheim's ghost.