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The rock musical is a genre in theatre often attempted and seldom well executed. Too often does the term refer to a jukebox musical, where the songs of a particular band are simply collected and set as the score to tell a shaky story… Here, I cite ABBA’s Mamma Mia!, Queen’s We Will Rock You, Billy Joel’s Movin’ Out, Rock of Ages, Elvis’ All Shook Up, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons’ Jersey Boys, etc. However, the best rock musicals are not just songs loosely tied together–they are epic journeys that leave you reeling in the same way a great concert does. When they are well done, you forget that you’re sitting in an audience and that people don’t usually burst into song. Instead, it seems natural that the only way so much emotion and power could possibly be expressed is through belting a high note while a guitar wails underneath. So, here’s a quick list of the top 5 musicals that rock.

5. Spring Awakening

With a score written by pop master Duncan Sheik, Spring Awakening rocked Broadway between 2006 and 2009. In the clip above you will notice Lea Michele from Glee, who starred in the show as Wendla. Although it’s not the edgiest musical that’s ever been produced, Spring Awakening appealed to the MTV crowd who may have never have otherwise given theatre a second thought. And frankly, as far as teen/tween musicals, this is a whole lot better than High School Musical.

4. The Wild Party

The Wild Party is regrettably an often overlooked musical with an amazing score. Set in the roaring twenties, the story focuses on vaudevillian stars at (unsurprisingly) a wild party. There are two versions by two different composers but I strongly prefer the one that ran Off-Broadway by Andrew Lippa. Songs that especially rock are “The Juggernaut” and “Make Me Happy.” Buying the soundtrack would definitely a worthwhile investment, especially because there are no quality videos of the production available online.

3. Hedwig and the Angry Inch

Hedwig and the Angry Inch follows a fictional rock band and their transgender singer. Yeah, pretty ballsy (puns as always). Although the show never hit Broadway, it ran Off-Broadway for two years and has gained a cult following in the same vain as The Rocky Horror Picture Show (another musical which could have been on an expanded version of this list). Above is the trailer for the film made based on the play.

2. Hair

Hair is a classic rock musical–in fact, it was the first show to define the genre. Opening first in 1968, the show returned last year again to an overwhelmingly strong response. The play is irreverent, fervently anti-war, and a great example of how music can express beautifully the things which spoken might be trite.

1. Rent

Rent is possibly the best known in the genre of rock musical. The show originally opened in 1994 and ran for twelve intense years, making it one of the top ten longest running Broadway musicals of all time. The story chronicles the lives of young artists living in New York City, trying to survive despite financial problems and the AIDS epidemic. The video above should give you a sample and make it clear why it affected so many theatre-goers and helped propagate the rock musical for the future.

Honorable Mentions: Tommy, Passing Strange, and Next to Normal

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