Your Personal Top 10 (or 5) of 2024

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 9:58am

Now that the season is over and the year is almost at an end, I like to ask most years what your personal top 10 (or top five if you can narrow down better than me) were. Doesn't matter where - Broadway, Off Broadway, your 5 year old's school play in a cafetorium.  What are the best things you got to experience this year? I really enjoy seeing what people loved in a year and it jogs my memory a lot about things I maybe forgot about. 

Personally, I don't think I've ever had such a clear number one as I do this year. I remember thinking back in February that it would take a miracle in the coming year for something to overtake "I Love You So Much I Could Die" as my number one. And while "Illinoise" came REALLY close, not even that could move Mona Pirnot's miraculous "ILYSMICD" from that top slot.
So for me personally, 

1. I Love You So Much I Could Die (NYTW)
2. Illinoise (Bway)

and then the other 8 in alphabetical order -

25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Kennedy Center)
Gatsby (A.R.T.)
Heart of Rock and Roll (Bway)
Little Bear Ridge Road (Steppenwolf)
Maybe Happy Ending (Bway)
Oedipus (West End)
Oh, Mary! (Bway & Off)
Ragtime (NYCC)

Updated On: 12/27/24 at 09:58 AM

[DramaTeach]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 10:25am

My top ten:

1) Illinoise

2) Maybe Happy Ending

3) Ragtime at City Center 

4) Cats: Jellicle Ball at PAC 

5) Oh Mary

6) Heart of Rock and Roll

7) Guys and Dolls in London

8) The Motive and the Cue in London

9) Outsiders

10) Titanic at City Center

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 10:32am

Off the top of my head and in no order whatsoever...

Ragtime (NYCC)

Sunset Boulevard

Job

Illinoise

Suffs

An Enemy of the People

Appropriate

Days of Wine and Roses

Lempicka

Cabaret

Honorable Mentions for Death Becomes Her and The Notebook.

Updated On: 12/27/24 at 10:32 AM

[OhHiJohnny]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 10:33am

Cats: The Jellicle Ball

Oh Mary!

Maybe Happy Ending

Sunset Boulevard

Jelly’s Last Jam (Encores)

The Notebook

Cabaret

Death Becomes Her

Prayer for the French Republic

Dead Outlaw

Honorable Mentions: Getting very drunk while watching “Tammy Faye” and enjoying it… immensely. 

[Fordham2015]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 6:33pm

Favorite of 2024 was The Outsiders

The rest alphabetically:

The Counter
Here There Are Blueberries
Job
Mary Jane
McNeal
Mother Play

[Menken Fan]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 7:03pm

Of the 86 shows I saw in 2024, my top ten are:

1. Dead Outlaw 

2. Death Becomes Her, in Chicago and NY

3. Little Shop of Horrors, for the 5th time, with Sherie

4. 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, DC

5. Titanic, NYCC

6. Ragtime, NYCC

7. The Connector

8. The Notebook, in Chicago and NY

9. Cats: The Jellicle BalL

10. Gypsy

Next to Normal on the West End was pretty fantastic too

 

 

[ColorTheHours048]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 7:12pm

1. Stereophonic

2. I Love You So Much I Could Die (funnily enough, on Jordan’s recommendation, so thanks!)

3. The Notebook

4. Sunset Boulevard

5. Oh, Mary!

Honorable mention to NY Philharmonic playing the score to E.T. live. A core memory.

Updated On: 12/27/24 at 07:12 PM

[MidWestTheater]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 7:19pm

1. Purpose (Steppenwolf-Chicago. Saw it twice)

2. Stereophonic (Braodway -NY I know most saw it in 2023, I didn't see it until 2024)

3. Illinoise (Chicago Shakespeare-Chicago)

4. Primary Trust (Goodman Theater-Chicago)

5. Into the Woods (Kokandy-Chicago - the best production of Into the Woods I've ever seen, including the OBC)

6. Data (Arena Stage-DC)

7. Inanimate (TheaterWit-Chicago)

8. Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet ( Writer's Theater - Chicago)

9. Appropirate (Broadway - NY)

10. The Matchbox Magic Flute (Goodman - Chicago)

 

[THDavis]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 7:30pm

I’m sticking to top five and Broadway - lots of fantastic stuff off-Broadway this year, too. No particular reason, just the shows that left an impact on me.

1.) Oh, Mary!

2.) Death Becomes Her

3.) Merrily

4.) Maybe Happy Ending

5.) Suffs

 

Special shoutout to Lempicka for being an exhilarating evening of theatre - I’m shocked it wasn’t received better.

[amiyagi]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 8:00pm

1) Suffs, Broadway

2) Something Rotten, Stratford

3) Ragtime, NYCC

4) Sweeney Todd, Broadway

5) We Live in Cairo, NYTW

[alexidarling15]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 9:28pm

Fun thread...in this rough order:

Next to Normal (West End)

Stereophonic (Broadway)

Ragtime (NYCC Encores)

Sunset Boulevard (Broadway) 

Maybe Happy Ending (Broadway) 

Guys and Dolls (West End)

Operation Mincemeat (West End)

Cabaret (Broadway with Redmayne)

Gatz (Public Theater)

Here There Are Blueberries (NY Theater Workshop) 

The Outsiders (Broadway - I can have 11 right?) 

 

Updated On: 12/27/24 at 09:28 PM

[George in DC]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 9:56pm

“Oh Mary” - Off B’way

“Sunset Boulevard” - B’way

“Comedy of Errors” - Shakespeare Theatre DC

“Leopoldstadt” - Shakespeare Theatre DC

“Ragtime” Signature Theatre Arlington

“”Prayer For the French Republic”  B’way

“Primary Trust” Signature Theatre Arlington

“Exception to the Rule” Studio Theatre DC

“A Hanukkah Carol, or GELT TRIP! The Musical” Roadhouse Theater MD

“Maybe Happy Ending” B’way

[RUkiddingme]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 10:10pm

1.       Illinoise – at Park Avenue Armory

2.       Stereophonic

3.       Appropriate

4.       Oh Mary

5.       Dead Outlaw

 

[BOM]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 10:13pm

In no particular order:

Oh, Mary!

Sunset Boulevard

Maybe Happy Ending

Ragtime

Gatsby (A.R.T.)

Teeth (Playwrights) 

Tommy

Stereophonic

Merrily We Roll Along 

Cabaret

 

[Melissa25]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 10:47pm

Favorite Broadway & Off Broadway 2024

Lempicka

Dead Outlaw

Appropriate

Here We Are

Death Becomes Her 

Swept Away 

Illinoise

Suffs

The Outsiders

Cult of Love

Favorite Regional 2024

Young Frankenstein at Berkshire Theater Group & Bay Street Theater

Sunday in the Park with George at Axelrod Performing Arts Center

The Prom at The Sharon Playhouse

Gatsby at A.R.T.

A Complicated Woman - Goodspeed Terris

A Tender Thing at Barrington Stage

Boeing Boeing at Barrington Stage

Pamela Palmer at Williamstown

 

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 11:05pm

Cats

Sunset Blvd.

Cabaret

Maybe Happy Ending

Illinoise 

Oh, Mary!

The Roommate

The Effect

Days of Wine and Roses

Tuesdays with Morrie

 

[InTheBathroom1]

Posted: 12/27/24 at 11:34pm

1. Illinoise
2. Maybe Happy Ending
3. Jonah
4. Cats: The Jellicle Ball
5. The Outsiders
6. The Ally
7. Ragtime
8. Pre-Existing Condition
9. Merrily We Roll Along
10. I Love You So Much I Could Die

[Skip23]

Posted: 12/28/24 at 2:25am

10  Swept Away

9  Maybe Happy Ending

8   (Still love &Juliet, Chicago and MJ)

7  The Mousetrap (London)

6  SH*T Meet Fan

5  All Things Equal (the Life and Trials of Ruth Bader Ginsburg)

4  Job 

3  Appropriate 

2  Guys and Dolls (London)

1  Heart of Rock and Roll 

[VernonGersch]

Posted: 12/28/24 at 3:48am

In no particular order:

People Places Things - National Theatre At Home

Oh, Mary! - Off Broadway

Appropriate - Broadway

Maybe Happy Ending - Broadway

Prayer For The French Republic - Broadway

Sunset Blvd - Broadway

Death Becomes Her - Broadway

Little Bear Ridge Road - Stepenwolf

Illinois - Park Ave Armory

The Effect - The Shed

Stereophonic - Broadway

 

***I didn't get to see The Jellicle Ball and saw Merrily We Roll Along (Nov 2023 at NYTW)

 

[Sytwix]

Posted: 12/28/24 at 8:39am

Stereophonic (Broadway) 

Appropriate (Broadway)

Ragtime (NYCC)

Next to Normal (West End)

Maybe Happy Ending (Broadway)

Gypsy (Broadway)

Sunset Boulevard (Broadway)

Two Strangers Carry a Cake Across NY (West End)

Death Becomes Her (Broadway)

Turandot (Met Opera)

[EmceeHammer]

Posted: 12/28/24 at 11:04am

I live in WI so I’m mostly prevented from catching limited engagements (aka Cats: The Jellicle Ball). When I do get to Manhattan my time constraints force me to focus only on shows with personal interest or strong buzz. I’m often able to see tryouts in Chicago and am amazed what makes it to Broadway for the better (Illinoise) and the worse (Michelle Williams in DBH). I saw Merrily, Here We Are, and Appropriate late in 2023 and all three would top anything on my list for this year. 
 

Fave Shows of 2024:

1. Gypsy (Broadway-Original Cast)

2. Illinoise (Chicago)

3. Cabaret (Broadway- Lambert/Cravalho)

4. Oh, Mary! (Broadway- Original Cast)

5. Maybe Happy Ending (Broadway- Original Cast)

Honorable mention: Stereophonic (Broadway- Replacement Cast)
 

Most Deranged Delusional Divas of 2024:

1. Mary Todd Lincoln

2. Norma Desmond

3. Madeline Ashton

4. Mama Rose

5. Sally Bowles

Honorable mention: Simon Rich

Outside of the legit theater, I loved seeing a reemergence and reinvention of the movie musical with a wide-range of notable takes including Wicked, Joker 2, Mean Girls, and Emilia Perez. Despite the overall quality of each film, it was great to see such different approaches to the form. 

Updated On: 12/28/24 at 11:04 AM

[berniesb!tch]

Posted: 12/28/24 at 11:19am

Top 9 because I may see a show before new years so leaving my options open….in order 

1. Titanic 
2. Oh, Mary
3. Sunset Boulevard 
4. The Effect
5. Stereophonic 
6. The Hills of California 
7. Job
8. Maybe Happy Ending
9. The outsiders 
10.  

[Yessica Haircut]

Posted: 12/28/24 at 3:08pm

In no particular ranking:

• Days of Wine and Roses (saw it at Atlantic last year and revisited it in January)
• An Enemy of the People
• Stereophonic
• Uncle Vanya at Lincoln Center
• Three Houses
• Titanic and Ragtime at City Center (cheating a bit)
• JOB
• The Hills of California
• Swept Away (for being, honestly, the most unique musical I've seen/for introducing me to Avett Brothers)
• Cult of Love

[MasterThespian 2]

Posted: 12/28/24 at 3:52pm

Thought Appropriate, Enemy of the People, and The Outsiders were quite good. Wanted to like McNeal more than I did.
But by far, the best thing I saw in ‘24 was Operation Mincemeat in London. 

[kmpellicone]

Posted: 12/28/24 at 4:15pm

1. CATS: The Jellicle Ball
2. Mary Jane
3. Stereophonic
4. The Outsiders
5. Appropriate