What is the Funniest Broadway Musical of All Time?
Over the years, Broadway has produced an incredible number of mega-hit shows that have captured the attention and love of audiences all over the world. From The Phantom of the Opera, to Lion King, to Mamma Mia, to Hamilton, Broadway musicals tell stories that touch the heart, heal the soul, and provide emotional release for its many fans. But if you're a musical theatre fan, then you know that some of the best comedy happens every night on Broadway, from Leopold Bloom's seduction of The Little Old Ladies in The Producers, to the various feckless contestants misspelling words in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Glitzy scenery, show stopping numbers, and slapstick gags happen every night, and audiences love it.
BROADWAY PRODUCES LOADS OF FUNNY MUSICALS PROVIDING COMIC RELIEF TO THEATRE GOING MASSES!
Broadway also produces a number of shows that aim less at the heart and more at the funny bone. Satires, spoofs, and edgy musical comedies are another staple product of the “Great White Way.” Every season we are treated to one or two new examples of this kind of show and audiences looking for a laugh flock to see them. Shows like The Producers, Spamalot, The Book of Mormon, and Shucked are a hilarious mainstay of the Broadway repertoire. From the point of view of producing organizations, these shows are a solid bet for turning a healthy profit and it is likely that we will continue to enjoy them long into the future. CLICK HERE for another Broadway list!
Comedic Musicals Genres and the Best Musicals Ever
Here is a quick glossary to various musical comedy genres.
Musical Comedy: Traditional book musical form invented and developed in the early 20th Century: My Fair Lady, School of Rock, Hairspray, Spelling Bee, Hello Dolly.
Musical Farce: A musical filled with comic idiocy, mistaken identity, improbably situations and over-the-top comic acting, i.e. A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.
Musical Spoof: A musical imitating another style or form in order to make fun of the original, i.e. Thoroughly Modern Millie. Singin in the Rain.
Meta-Musical: Self-referential and humorous musical that acknowledges it's own existence during the performance, i.e. Spamalot.
Juke-Box Musical: A musical assembled from pre-existing pop songs, i.e. Mamma Mia.
Click here for Urinetown -- a Metamusical!
FUNNIEST MUSICAL COMEDY COUNTDOWN!
Though certainly subjective, the following list includes Broadway’s biggest comedy hits. Here is my personal countdown of the 10 Funniest Broadway Musicals.
10. A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder
With deliciously dark humor, this witty and hilarious musical was easily the funniest new musical of 2013. With a retro-operetta score by Steven Lutvak, and lyrics by Robert L. Freedman and Lutvak, this show featured a tour-de-force performance by Jefferson Mays playing, as usual, multiple roles. Watching Monty scheme and murder his way into the D'Ysquith family fortune makes this high-energy romp an audience favorite.
9. Little Shop of Horrors
Easily one of the 10 greatest comedy musicals of all time, from its modest beginnings Off-Broadway, to the film adaptation, revivals, etc., the story of the nerdy flower store clerk and his romance with the down-trodden sales assistant, Audrey -- originally played by the unforgettable Ellen Greene, make this musical one for the heart and the laugh-o-meter. Almost a perfect balance of music and comedy, Little Shop seems more relevant with every passing year. The opening song, Skid Row, is the perfect example of how to begin your show with a show-stopping number.
8. The Drowsy Chaperone
The Drowsy Chaperone is a one part spoof, and one part pastiche -- that is, a musical that makes fun of its original source by reproducing it almost exactly. The silly 1920's musical comedy at the center of this ridiculously funny show is more or less exactly the same sort of nonsense that Broadway churned out with alarming rapidity in the 1920's. The description of that show by the delightful Man in the Chair makes this show an actor's dream come true. A comic gem for audiences of all ages full of glitz and genuine affection for the source material.
7. Something Rotten!
The origins of musical theatre absolutely didn't happen in the way described by this meta-musical about an Elizabethan playwright named Nick Bottom who invents the form with the help of a Soothsayer and none other than William Shakespeare -- a rock star in this tongue-in-cheek spoof. The sheer number of theatre references in the musical numbers will both enchant fans and leave them helpless with laughter.
IT AIN'T THE MUPPET MOVIE!
6. Avenue Q
As Ru Paul would say, "who doesn't love a puppet"? Avenue Q can easily be described as Sesame Street for Adults. The joyous and quirky send-up of the passage from youth to adulthood is full of wit, catchy tunes and comedy set pieces. Be warned! It might be filled with puppets, but this ain't The Muppet Movie! The show is aimed at adults who will find the raunchy antics pretty funny!
#5. Shucked
You'll find that corn meets corn in this 2022 musical by Brandy Clark & Shane McAnally. The puns might make you groan, but the score is ear-candy and once you let your guard down, you'll realize that you are witnessing one of the funniest musicals ever perpetrated. Will the citizens of Cob County survive the mysterious ailment threatening their precious corn crop? The countryfied shenanigans will certainly be recognizable by anyone who grew up alongside Dolly Parton and Hee-Haw.
Click Here for Independently Owned
MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL -- The Musical!
#4. Spamalot
Monty Python and the Holy Grail" was a milestone film for the eponymous comedy troupe. The eminently quotable film has been adapted into an equally fun and tuneful show about King Arthur's quest for the Holy Grail. The adaptation for the theatre by troupe member Eric Idle is easily one of the silliest and smartest musicals to ever play the West End and Broadway. You might be in pain from the side-splitting finale by the end. Don't say you weren't warned.
NOT SOUTH PARK!
#3. The Book of Mormon
Trey Parker and Matt Stone of South Park fame have a side hustle as theatre writers! This irreverent show about two young Mormon missionaries on a trip to war-torn Africa hits the bullseye as it tackles everything from religion to politics, to The King and I (of all things). The toe tapping score is by Bobby Lopez. The big surprise here is the heartfelt message -- religion is a force for good in the world. Along with spectacular dance numbers and witty lines that make us laugh -- who saw that one coming?
#2. The Producers
Mel Brooks adaptation of his own film set Broadway on fire with this smash hit about two grifting producers (Nathan Lane & Matthew Broderick) who deliberately set out to create the most offensive flop musical of all time in order to defraud their investors. A campy send-up of both Broadway and the Third Reich, The Producers is easily one of the funniest machines ever made. The staging of the title tune alone is legendarily outrageous in both conception and realization. The unforgettable Busby Burkeley "swastika" chorus line goes right up to the line and then goose-steps over it -- yet people laugh in spite of themselves. You'll be laughing too hard to be offended.
Click here for the original Producers film!
If not The Producers, what is the Funniest Musical of All Time? Sondheim -- but not Sweeney Todd!
#1. A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
Farce meets Burlesque in Burt Shevelove and Steven Sondheim's classic romp around the seven hills of Rome. This book is sadistically plotted with jokes unfolding over time and paying off massively in the riotous second act which makes most audience roar with laughter. Undeniably hysterical, totally sexist, and generously stuffed with classic Sondheim, Forum dares you not to laugh. If you measure by laughter, easily the winner of this contest.
Bonus Show!
#11. How Rude
Okay, I'm cheating here. As the writer of this blog post, I think I've earned the right to plug my own show. You should definitely explore the website!
