Oh, what a celebration we’ll have this year! It’s been 70 years since Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon’s first collaboration on Damn Yankees and 10 years of spotlighting “the 10-dollar founding father” in Hamilton, so here are 25 Broadway musicals that are marking major anniversary milestones in 2025.
Carousel — 80 Years (April 19, 1945)
Eight decades ago, songwriting team Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II invited Broadway audiences to a real nice clambake with their second musical collaboration, Carousel. The story follows the relationship between carousel barker Billy Bigelow and mill worker Julie Jordan. It ran at the Majestic Theatre for 890 performances, before its 1956 film adaptation and three subsequent Broadway revivals. According to Rodgers’s autobiography, Carousel is his favorite of his own musicals.
Guys and Dolls — 75 Years (November 24, 1950)
Based on Damon Runyon’s short stories about 1920s–1930s New York gangsters and gamblers, Guys and Dolls opened at the 46th Street Theatre (now the Richard Rodgers) and ran 1,200 performances. Winning all five Tony Awards it was nominated for in 1951, including Best Musical, it received a film adaptation in 1955 starring Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra, with “Luck Be a Lady” becoming one of Sinatra’s signature songs.
Damn Yankees — 70 Years (May 5, 1955)
Songwriting team Richard Adler and Jerry Ross knocked it out of the park 70 years ago when Damn Yankees ran for 1,019 performances at the 46th Street Theatre (now the Richard Rodgers). Based on Douglas Wallop’s novel The Year the Yankees Lost the Pennant, the 1956 Tony winner for Best Musical is a Faustian tale with a baseball twist. This show marked Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon’s first time working together, with notable numbers such as “Whatever Lola Wants” and “Who’s Got the Pain?” resulting from their collaboration.
Oklahoma! movie musical — 70 Years (October 13, 1955)
Celebrating 70 years? You’re doing fine, Oklahoma! Based on the 1943 Broadway musical, the 1955 film adaptation of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II’s first collaboration starred Gordon MacRae as Curly and Shirley Jones in her film debut as Laurey Williams. In 2007, the film was selected by the Library of Congress to be preserved in the United State National Film Registry because of its “culturally, historically, or aesthetically” significance.
Bye Bye Birdie — 65 Years (April 14, 1960)
Inspired by the fame and military draft of rock ’n’ roll star Elvis Presley, Bye Bye Birdie centers around singer Conrad Birdie and his farewell gift to one lucky member of his fan club. Starring Dick van Dyke and Chita Rivera, the 1961 Tony Award winner for Best Musical opened at the Martin Beck Theatre (now the Al Hirschfeld) and ran for 607 performances. Van Dyke won a Tony Award for his performance and reprised his role in the 1963 film.
Camelot — 65 Years (December 3, 1960)
More than a fleeting wisp of glory, Camelot opened at the Majestic Theatre, won four Tony Awards, and ran for 873 performances. The Lerner and Lowe musical, based on the legend of King Arthur, starred Richard Burton, Julie Andrews, and Robert Goulet, and found a fan in U.S. President John F. Kennedy. With a film adaptation and four Broadway revivals, Camelot was certainly a spot that shined for much longer than a brief moment.
The Sound of Music movie musical — 60 Years (March 2, 1965)
The hills are alive with the sound of music, and so were movie theatres 60 years ago! The film adaptation of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II’s Tony Award–winning Best Musical starring Julie Andrews became a smash hit at the box office, becoming the highest grossing film of 1965. By November 1966, it became the highest grossing film of all time, and had won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
Man of La Mancha — 60 Years (November 22, 1965)
Sixty years ago, Man of La Mancha opened at the Martin Beck Theatre (now the Al Hirschfeld) and onward to glory they went! Running 2,328 performances, the Tony-winning Best Musical inspired by Miguel de Cervantes’s 17th century novel Don Quixote boasts a legacy of a film adaptation and four Broadway revivals. In 2020, Brian Stokes Mitchell, the 2002 revival’s Tony-nominated star, serenaded essential workers and passersby with the anthemic “The Impossible Dream” from the window of his New York City apartment during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Company — 55 Years (April 26, 1970)
I’d like to propose a toast — to over half a century of Company! With a score by musical-theatre titan Stephen Sondheim, this concept musical explored relationships and marriage as protagonist Bobby turns 35 years old. Running 705 performances at the Alvin Theatre (now the Neil Simon), the musical earned a record-setting 14 Tony Award nominations, winning six, including Best Musical. In 2020, Tony-winning director Marianne Elliot helmed a gender-swapped production, changing Bobby to Bobbie, winning it the 2022 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical.
The Wiz — 50 Years (January 5, 1975)
Based on The Wizard of Oz, The Wiz’s debut at the Majestic Theatre certainly felt like a brand-new day for Broadway, featuring an all-Black cast led by Stephanie Mills and André de Shields, and an R&B–soul score. Running for 1,672 performances, the Tony-winning Best Musical has a long-lasting legacy, with a 1978 film adaptation starring Diana Ross and Michael Jackson, a live television event on NBC in 2016, and a 2024 Broadway revival that is set to go on tour beginning this February.
Chicago — 50 Years (June 3, 1975)
Set in 1920s Chicago, the John Kander–Fred Ebb musical Chicago offers a satirical take on celebrity criminals and corruption within America’s justice system. The Tony-nominated musical, starring Chita Rivera and Gwen Verdon, ran for 936 performances at the 46th Street Theatre (now the Richard Rodgers) before inspiring a 2002 Best Picture Academy Award–winning film adaptation and a 1996 Tony-winning Broadway revival that is still running. It holds the title of Broadway’s longest-running American show and Broadway’s longest-running revival.
A Chorus Line — 50 Years (October 19, 1975)
A-5, 6, 7, 8! The success of A Chorus Line drew audiences back to Times Square at a time when Broadway attendance was at a record low due to crime. Developed from Broadway dancers sharing their stories during a taped group interview, the Pulitzer Prize– and Tony-winning musical ran for 6,137 performances at the Shubert Theatre, holding the title of longest-running show in Broadway history until it was surpassed by Cats in 1997. The 2006 Broadway revival received its own documentary titled Every Little Step.
The Rocky Horror Show — 50 Years (March 10, 1975)
Ready to do the Time Warp again? After a successful premiere run of 2,000-plus performances in London, the mid-century B sci-fi and horror parody ran 45 performances at the Belasco Theatre. Later that year, the film adaptation, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, became a cult classic, and still plays in movie theatres across the country, with attendees dressing up as characters and singing along. The film’s success led to a Broadway revival in 2000 and a television movie starring Laverne Cox in 2016.
42nd Street — 45 Years (August 25, 1980)
This showbiz love letter about a chorus kid becoming a Broadway star is one of musical theatre’s most adored tap-dance spectaculars, winning the Tony Award for Best Musical and running for 3,486 performances. Though its opening at the Winter Garden Theatre was triumphant, the night became tinged with sadness when producer David Merrick announced the tragic death of the show’s director-choreographer, Gower Champion, who died earlier that day. The Tony-winning 2001 revival ran for 1,524 performances.
Once on This Island — 35 Years (October 18, 1990)
Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty’s musical retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid set in the Caribbean was inspired by the novel My Love, My Love; or, The Peasant Girl by Rosa Guy. Playing at the Booth Theatre, the Tony-nominated musical ran for 469 performances, starring future Tony winners LaChanze and Kecia Lewis as Ti Moune and Asaka, respectively. The 2017 revival won the Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical, and a film adaptation was announced in 2020.
Aida — 25 Years (March 23, 2000)
A quarter of a century ago, the Aida opera was given the most arresting, most heart-stopping Broadway makeover. The musical starred Heather Headley, Adam Pascal, and Sherie Rene Scott, whose characters find themselves in a love triangle. Running 1,852 performances at the Palace Theatre, the pop opera won the Tony Award for Best Score. The Schele Williams–helmed revival made its world premiere in the Netherlands in 2023.
Spamalot — 20 Years (March 17, 2005)
A musical that always looked on the bright side opened at the Shubert Theatre and ran for 1,575 performances? It must be Spamalot! Based on the 1975 film Monty Python and the Holy Grail, the Tony-winning Best Musical pays tribute to the legend of King Arthur and Camelot, spoofing musical-theater songs and tropes along the way. In 2023, James Monroe Iglehart led the cast of the first Broadway revival.
The Light in the Piazza — 20 Years (April 18, 2005)
Two decades ago, a new musical based on Elizabeth Spencer’s 1960 novella opened at the Vivian Beaumont Theater that centers around a mother and daughter as they spend the summer in Florence, Italy. Running 504 performances, the Tony-nominated musical starred Kelli O’Hara, Victoria Clark, and Matthew Morrison. Two weeks before its closing, its broadcast on PBS’s Live From Lincoln Center drew in 2 million viewers.
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee — 20 Years (May 2, 2005)
Though six students competing in a spelling bee might feel like an unexpected topic for a musical, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee won over the hearts of audiences, running for 1,136 performances at the Circle in the Square Theatre. Based on Rebecca Feldman’s C-R-E-P-U-S-C-U-L-E, an improv play performed by improv comedy group The Farm, the Tony-nominated musical starred future Tony winners Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Dan Fogler, and Celia Keenan-Bolger. In April 2021, it was announced that Disney was planning a film adaptation.
Jersey Boys — 20 Years (November 6, 2005)
Oh, what a night: early November in 2005, when Jersey Boys, a landmark jukebox bio-musical, opened at the August Wilson Theatre. Centered around the 1960s music group The Four Seasons, the Tony-winning Best Musical ran for 4,642 performances, becoming the August Wilson Theatre’s longest-running tenant and setting the box-office record 30 times. In 2014, Clint Eastwood directed the film adaptation. Just 10 months after closing on Broadway in January 2017, an Off-Broadway production opened, running until May 2022.
The Color Purple — 20 Years (December 1, 2005)
LaChanze won a Tony Award for bringing Celie to life when The Color Purple opened at the Broadway Theatre two decades ago. Based on Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize–winning 1982 novel, the Tony-nominated musical ran for 910 performances and inspired a 2023 film adaptation starring Fantasia Barrino, Colman Domingo, and Danielle Brooks. It’s a year of milestones for The Color Purple: The 1985 film adaptation starring Whoopi Goldberg celebrates its 40th anniversary, and the 2015 revival starring Tony winner Cynthia Erivo celebrates its 10th anniversary.
The Scottsboro Boys — 15 Years (October 31, 2010)
What was a whisper became a roar when The Scottsboro Boys opened at the Lyceum Theatre. The Tony-nominated musical tells the true, yet fairly unknown story of nine Black teenagers who were falsely accused of committing a crime and spent more than 10 years incarcerated, their trial marking the unofficial launch of the Civil Rights Movement. Starring Tony nominee Joshua Henry and future Academy Award nominee and Emmy winner Colman Domingo, this show also marked the final collaboration between legendary songwriting duo John Kander and Fred Ebb.
Fun Home — 10 Years (April 19, 2015)
Broadway audiences got to see all of Pennsylvania when this Pulitzer Prize finalist opened at the Circle in the Square Theatre a decade ago. The musical adaptation of Alison Bechdel’s 2006 graphic memoir explored Bechdel’s coming-of-age story as she discovered her own lesbian sexuality and tried to connect with her closeted gay dad. The Tony-winning Best Musical ran for 583 performances and made history when its songwriting team, Lisa Kron and Jeanine Tesori, became the first female writing duo to win a Tony Award for Best Score.
Something Rotten! — 10 Years (April 22, 2015)
Set in Elizabethan England, Something Rotten! follows the Bottom brothers as they compete against Williams Shakespeare to write the next stage sensation. The Tony-nominated musical ran for 708 performances at the St. James Theatre, with Brian d’Arcy James starring as Nick Bottom and alongside Shakespeare played by Christian Borle, who won a Tony Award for his performance.
Hamilton — 10 Years (August 6, 2015)
What is a legacy? For this Pulitzer Prize and Tony winner, its legacy has been secured as one of the most popular musicals of all time, breaking records and making an impact on Broadway and beyond. Becoming the hottest ticket in town when it opened at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s successful fusion of hip-hop with musical theater ushered in a new era on Broadway. As for celebrating the #HamilTEN anniversary, Miranda is sharing archival footage and behind-the-scenes snippets on his Instagram.
Believe it or not, these 25 Broadway musicals are only the beginning of a long list celebrating milestone anniversaries! If you are looking for others to learn about, you can check out the following as well:
40 years:
Big River
Song & Dance
30 years:
Singin’ in the Rain
Smokey Joe’s Cafe
The Mystery of Edwin Drood
Victor/Victoria
25 years:
Contact
Seussical
The Full Monty
The Wild Party
20 years:
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Little Women
15 years:
American Idiot
Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson
Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown
10 years:
Allegiance
Finding Neverland
School of Rock