Biographical Jukebox Musicals:
A Beautiful Noise, the Neil Diamond Musical follows the life and career of Neil Diamond and features hits like “Sweet Caroline,” “America,” and “Cracklin’ Rosie.” It ran at the Broadhurst Theatre with a book by Anthony McCarten and direction by Michael Mayer.
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical follows the life and career of Carole King and includes songs like “Some Kind of Wonderful,” “Happy Days Are Here Again,” “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling,” and the titular song “Beautiful.”
Ain't Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations follows the story of The Temptations and includes songs like “The Way You Do the Things You Do,” “My Girl,” “I Can’t Get Next to You,” and “In the Still of the Night.”
The Cher Show follows the life and career of Cher and features three actors playing Cher at different times in her life. It includes songs like “If I Could Turn Back Time,” “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes,” “Strong Enough,” and “Take Me Home.”
Million Dollar Quartet dramatizes a legendary recording session in 1956 at Sun Studio in Memphis, Tennessee where Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis all recorded together. It includes songs like “Blue Suede Shoes,” “Folsom Prison Blues,” “Memories Are Made of This,” “Great Balls of Fire,” “See You Later Alligator,” and “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On.”
Fela! is based on Nigerian singer, composer and activist Fela Kuti and the time he was performing at the The Shrine nightclub and a thousand government soldiers were tasked with ending his public performances. It includes songs like “I Got the Feelin,” “Expensive Shit,” “Suffering and Smiling,” “Sorrow, Tears and Blood,” and “Kere Kay.”
Summer: The Donna Summer Musical follows Duckling Donna – Donna in her pre-teens, Disco Donna – during the Disco era, and Diva Donna – at the top of her career in her 50s. It includes songs like “I Remember Yesterday,” “White Boys,” “She Works Hard for the Money,” “Hot Stuff,” and “Last Dance.”
Lennon about the life of John Lennon includes only work from his solo career and includes songs like “Money (That’s What I Want),” “Give Peace a Chance,” “I’m Stepping Out,” and “Imagine.”
A Night with Janis Joplin follows Janis Joplin during a concert in 1970 not long before she died from a drug overdose. This musical was produced by Mike Stoller and Corky Hale Stoller and includes songs like ”Summertime,” “Cry Baby,” “Piece of My Heart,” and “Mercedes Benz.” You can watch this musical now on BroadwayHD.
Buddy: The Buddy Holiday Story follows Buddy’s rise to fame, from 1957 when the song “That’ll Be the Day” hit the airwaves until his tragic death less than two years later on “The Day the Music Died.” Other songs include “Peggy Sue,” “Oh Boy,” and “Rave On.” This musical theatre show ran on the West End for over 12 years.
Tina: The Tina Turner Musical tells the previously untold story of music legend Tina Turner, a woman who defied convention and continues to push musical boundaries. From her childhood in Tennessee to being a global superstar, this Broadway musical opened in 2019 and is back after a long shutdown to delight audiences with songs like “Don’t Turn Around,” “River Deep Mountain High” and “Proud Mary.” The New York Times says “this story comes with songs that can thrill an audience.”
Films like Rocketman about Elton John, Bohemian Rhapsody about Queen, and Respect about Aretha Franklin and the upcoming movie Elvis about Elvis Presley are sometimes referred to as jukebox musical films.
Jukebox Musicals with Original Stories:
The Who's Tommy played at the Nederlander Theatre after its hit run in Chicago. Des McAnuff directed the original Broadway show in 1993, and he returned to direct the triumphant revival in a production The Chicago Sun-Times said “dazzles at every turn…‘Tommy’ remains the pulsing roller coaster of a show it was when it premiered.” Based on the album Tommy by The Who, the musical features songs like “The Acid Queen,” “Pinball Wizard,” “I’m Free,” and “We’re Not Gonna Take It."
The Heart of Rock and Roll, with book by Jonathan A. Abrams and story by Tyler Mitchell and Jonathan A. Abrams features hit songs from Huey Lewis and the News, including “Working for a Living,” “Stuck with You,” “If This Is It,” and of course, “The Heart of Rock and Roll.” This romantic comedy follows a promising musician who has put down his guitar in favor of a full time corporate job and his all-business boss Cassandra as they each get a second shot at what they truly love.
Once Upon a One More Time has a book by Jon Hartmere and features hit songs made popular by Britney Spears. Including songs like “Lucky,” “Oops!...I Did It Again,” “Baby One More Time,” and “Toxic,” this musical follows a group of fairy-tale princesses after a fairy godmother gives their book club The Feminine Mystique to read, and they find there may be more than one way to reach happily ever after.
Movin' Out was conceived and created by Twyla Tharp. It features the songs of Billy Joel and follows five friends in Long Island amidst the turbulence of the Vietnam War. Songs include “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” “Piano Man,” “Angry Young Man,” “Goodnight Saigon,” “New York State of Mind,” and “Movin’ Out.”
Rock of Ages uses classic 80s rock songs and follows a small-town girl who wants to be an actress, and a busboy in a club who wants to be a rocker. They meet on the Sunset Strip, start a romance, and chase their dreams. This jukebox musical includes songs like “We Built This City,” “We’re Not Gonna Take It,” “Every Rose Has Its Thorn,” and “Don’t Stop Believin’” and has also been turned into a feature film.
Jagged Little Pill follows the Healy family and the cracks that form beneath their perfect appearance. Featuring songs by Alanis Morissette including “Ironic,” “Hand in my Pocket,” “You Oughta Know,” and “Head Over Feet.”
American Idiot uses songs from Green Day’s album of the same name and follows three young men as they struggle to find meaning. Songs from this rock musical include “Holiday,” “Jesus of Suburbia,” “Boulevard of Broken Dreams,” and “American Idiot.”
Head Over Heels uses the music of The Go-Go’s while telling the adapted story of The Countess of Pembroke’s Arcadia by Sir Philip Sidney. Songs include “We Got the Beat,” “Our Lips are Sealed,” “Heaven is a Place on Earth,” and “Head Over Heels.”
Singin' in the Rain was made before the term ‘jukebox musical’ was popular. The original film starring Gene Kelly and the subsequent musical used both existing songs and originals like “Make ‘Em Laugh.”
