From Newsies to Dear Evan Hansen, Mean Girls to Mamma Mia, there’s a musical for everyone. There’s different styles and genres, different plots, and even different time periods! Though there’s a lot of popular musicals that it seems everyone knows. Then, there’s a lot of lesser known musicals that are just as amazing! Here are 2 of Jay’s favorite picks for lesser known musicals!
Up first is The Mad Ones! The Mad Ones is written by Kait Kerrigan (she/her) and Mx. Brian Lowdermilk (they/she). They have both earned multiple awards, including the Alan Menken award. The Mad Ones is a musical with a cast of only 4 people. The characters are Samantha Brown, her mom, her boyfriend, and her (now dead) best friend. The story follows Samantha Brown (Sam) in her journey of overcoming grief and moving on. Will she follow in her mother’s footsteps or take the dare of her best friend and find a new path? A great story with romance, friendship, grief, and so much more! A musical I would easily listen to on repeat
The next musical is 33mm: A Musical Exhibition! This show is very interesting in terms of set up. Though this show doesn't have a plotline, each song has its own story. From Gothic thrillers to queer poperettas, and high-octane rock, the songs have something for everyone. Some of the more popular songs are “The Ballad of Sara Berry” and “Leave Luanne,” both of which have darker themes to them. You can find the whole album on Spotify and multiple videos on Youtube!