From show-stopping divas to breakout stars, Broadway has seen some incredible performances since 2000. Join us as we celebrate the most unforgettable musical theater moments of each year, featuring Tony-winning turns and career-defining roles that left audiences spellbound and critics raving. Get ready for a journey through two decades of theatrical magic!
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00:00I'm changin' and howlin'
00:02Listen to me and you'll see
00:04Listen to me, I hope that this one's the best
00:06And if you want me, me, me
00:08We're so gonna be modern
00:12Welcome to Ms. Mojo.
00:14And today, we're counting down our picks for the most
00:16legendary Broadway musical performances
00:18of each year since 2000.
00:20For this list, we'll be considering
00:22productions by the year of Broadway opening.
00:24You're all winners in my book.
00:26There's only one winner.
00:302000
00:32Heather Headley as Aida
00:34Aida
00:36Those very rare occasions
00:38Don't let up, they keep on comin'
00:42All I've ever wanted
00:44And I'm throwing it away
00:48It's one of the most
00:50famous roles in all of opera.
00:52Under the care of composer Elton John
00:54and lyricist Tim Rice,
00:56Aida was rewritten into a Broadway lead
00:58for a performer with a big voice
01:00and an even bigger presence.
01:02We have to keep believin'
01:04Though we're scattered
01:06Surrounded by it
01:08Oh, oh, oh
01:12Original star Heather Headley
01:14became synonymous with the role.
01:16Even negative reviews of the show
01:18highlighted her towering performance
01:20as the captured princess torn between her loyalty
01:22to her people and a forbidden love.
01:24Rosie O'Donnell was calling her Tony win
01:26just before she actually won the award.
01:28It's a performance so good
01:30that her win was clearly written in the stars.
01:32This God's experiment
01:36In which we have no sway
01:40In which we give up paradise
01:422001
01:44Gary Beach as Roger Debris
01:46The producers
01:48He brings the money, we're on our way
01:50Keep it gay, keep it gay, keep it gay
01:52We can do it, we have our value
01:54Keep it gay
01:56Mel Brooks' madcap musical still holds the record
01:58for most Tony wins.
02:00Nathan Lane's performance as Max Bialystock,
02:02the crooked producer, is genius.
02:04But the best of 2001 might have to go
02:06to Gary Beach's turn as Roger Debris.
02:08A theater so obsessed
02:10With dramas so depressed
02:12It's hard to sell a ticket on Broadway
02:14Shows should be more pretty
02:16Shows should be more witty
02:18Shows should be more
02:20What's the word?
02:22As the eccentric and over-the-top director
02:24brave and foolish enough to cast himself
02:26in his own production as Adolf Hitler,
02:28Beach is hilarious.
02:30Despite all the flamboyant gestures
02:32and insane ideas Roger has,
02:34Beach was grounded in reality.
02:36One reviewer even called his
02:38the most honest performance in the show.
02:40Like most of the original cast,
02:42Beach got to reprise his brilliant work
02:44in the 2005 film version.
02:46I'll buy a cell
02:48Watch my show
02:50I'm the German Ethel Merman
02:52Don't you know
02:542002
02:56Sutton Foster as Millie Delmont
02:58Thoroughly modern Millie
03:00But the fact is everything today
03:02is thoroughly modern
03:04Check your personality
03:06Everything today makes yesterday slow
03:08Taking on a role first played by
03:10Julie Andrews in a 1967 movie,
03:12Foster had big shoes to fill
03:14as Millie, the small-town girl
03:16who comes to New York in search of her dreams.
03:18Sutton Foster tore through
03:20the show's dance numbers and comedy scenes
03:22with ease.
03:24Forget about the boys
03:34Considering 2002 was also
03:36the year Hairspray opened,
03:38there's a lot of competition for this spot.
03:40Harvey Fierstein's unsurpassed
03:42take on Edna Turnblad is a close
03:44second to Foster. The newcomer
03:46reminded critics of an old-fashioned
03:48type of star made new.
03:50True triple threats are few and far between.
03:52When Foster burst onto the scene
03:54in her breakthrough role, Broadway
03:56had to sit up and take notice of a perky
03:58and insanely talented new star.
04:102003
04:12Idina Menzel as Elphaba
04:14It's time to trust my instincts
04:16Close my eyes
04:18and leave
04:20It's time to try
04:22defying gravity
04:242003
04:26saw the opening of Avenue Q,
04:28Bernadette Peters stunning everyone
04:30as Mama Rose and Gypsy,
04:32and Kristen Chenoweth dazzled as Glinda the Good Witch
04:34of the North. But depending on who
04:36you talk to, it's Chenoweth's co-star
04:38whose work in Wicked most endures.
04:40Idina Menzel's distinctive,
04:42high-flying voice is just one component
04:44of her incredible Elphaba.
04:46Tell them I'm flying
04:48defying gravity
04:50I'm flying
04:52high
04:54defying gravity
04:56And soon I'll match them in
04:58renown
05:00Her Tony-winning
05:02performance as the green-skinned witch
05:04who will eventually become the Wicked Witch of the
05:06West was a marvel of vocal
05:08technique and dramatic skill.
05:10Even the production's most underwhelmed critics
05:12couldn't deny her powers.
05:14I swear someday there'll be
05:16a celebration
05:18throughout ours
05:20that's all to do
05:22with me
05:24with me
05:26with me
05:28with me
05:302004
05:32Tanya Pinkins as Caroline Thibodeau,
05:34Caroline or Change.
05:36At least there's something that
05:38I could teach you
05:40is not to talk on one's
05:42wholly, completely,
05:44abysmally
05:46ignorant lips
05:48In this musical set in the 1960s,
05:50a maid's warm relationship
05:52with her employer's young son is tested
05:54and eventually broken.
05:56Caroline Thibodeau is haunted by bitter disappointments,
05:58even as her children keep telling
06:00her that the world is changing.
06:02Tanya Pinkins' arresting performance
06:04is not your standard Broadway musical
06:06fare.
06:18Her performance was marked by
06:20a stoicism and passive aggression
06:22that ultimately gave way to soul-bearing,
06:24voice-shredding emotion in the climactic
06:26song, Lot's Wife.
06:36Reviewers described her work as epic,
06:38extraordinary, and even legendary.
06:40Pinkins was nominated for a Tony
06:42for the role, which she reprised
06:44on the West End.
06:462005, Sara Ramirez as
06:48Lady of the Lake, Spamalot.
07:02This Monty Python musical is clearly
07:04about the yucks. When they originated
07:06the role of the fabled Lady of the Lake,
07:08Sara Ramirez brought the funny,
07:10but they also brought a resonant,
07:12rafter-ringing voice that could give you chills.
07:14Watching Ramirez toy with their
07:16gorgeous voice was mesmerizing
07:18and hysterical.
07:20It was a masterclass in scenery-chewing
07:22and vocal acrobatics.
07:24The role required them to be able to volley
07:26between different pastiches of performance
07:28styles, from pop diva
07:30to glitzy jazz singer. Ramirez
07:32was equal to the task.
07:50Their work, which won the Tony
07:52for Best Featured Actress in a Musical,
07:54was described as
07:56scene-stealing.
07:582006,
08:00Raul Esparza as Bobby,
08:02Company.
08:20In 2006, Spring Awakening
08:22was exploding onto the Broadway stage.
08:24Tony winner John Gallagher Jr.'s
08:26Moritz and his co-stars led
08:28a rallying cry of adolescent angst.
08:42But it's a smoldering
08:44ember next to the volcanic eruption
08:46that is Esparza's take on being alive.
08:50Stephen Sondheim's
08:52concept musical about marriage
08:54and commitment was given a dramatic
08:56overhaul for its 2006
08:58revival. Director John Doyle
09:00stripped down the production and handed
09:02the actors the instruments, making
09:04them the show's orchestra.
09:06Raul Esparza played the leading role,
09:08perennially single and alone
09:10by himself.
09:12In 2006,
09:14he was cast for the role of
09:16a young woman named
09:18Laura Bell Bundy.
09:20In 2007,
09:22Laura Bell Bundy
09:24as Elle Woods,
09:26Legally Blonde.
09:48Reese Witherspoon
09:50left some big, fashionable
09:52pink shoes behind.
09:54When Legally Blonde made its transition
09:56to the stage, it was going to take a very
09:58special actress to fill them.
10:00Elle Woods is an effervescent, high-energy
10:02role that needs someone seriously
10:04talented.
10:12For Broadway audiences
10:14and fans of the MTV presentation,
10:16Laura Bell Bundy was the
10:18perfect choice. Regardless of the
10:20reviews that were critical of the show,
10:22Bundy received widespread acclaim.
10:36She was celebrated for making
10:38Elle's apparent silliness always
10:40feel real. That's not even to mention
10:42her fleet feet and irrepressible
10:44energy.
10:462008. Patti LuPone as Rose,
10:48Gypsy.
11:08This is one of those productions that felt inevitable.
11:10All the most legendary Broadway divas
11:12play Rose at some point, and
11:14in 2008, it was Patti's
11:16turn. LuPone won her second
11:18Tony for her fierce, full-throttle
11:20embodiment of the stage mother.
11:34This was also the year Billy Elliot
11:36Fever came to New York. Where
11:38the amazing young actors playing Billy
11:40shared triple duty, LuPone just
11:42had years of experience and a dynamic
11:44stage presence. By all accounts,
11:46LuPone swallowed the role whole.
11:48Her single-minded determination matched
11:50that of her character, whose obsession
11:52with stardom threatened to burn down
11:54everything around her.
12:102009. Alice Ripley as Diana
12:12Goodman, Next to Normal.
12:24Given its complicated
12:26themes, it took the team behind Next to Normal
12:28several passes to get it right. Alice
12:30Ripley had been attached to the role as early
12:32as its 2006 workshop.
12:40By the time she got to Broadway,
12:42the role of Diana fit her like
12:44a glove. Her intensity and
12:46raspy voice gave her character, who's
12:48trying to manage her bipolar disorder,
12:50a desperation that might not have been
12:52so effective from a more traditional voice.
13:10Long-time New York Times
13:12theater critic Ben Brantley called it the
13:14performance of the season. Ripley
13:16naturally went on to win the Tony.
13:182010. Douglas Hodge
13:20as Albin, La Cage aux Folles.
13:22The best of
13:26times is
13:28now.
13:30What's left of
13:32summer but a
13:34faded rose.
13:38Based on the traditional French film that
13:40inspired The Birdcage, La Cage
13:42is the heartwarming and hilarious story
13:44of two gay men who own and operate a
13:46gay nightclub. Douglas Hodge won
13:48a Tony in the role of Albin, the club's
13:50star drag performer.
13:52Cause everything's ravishing,
13:54sensual,
13:56fabulous, when Albin
13:58is tucked away and
14:00does
14:02as he
14:04is.
14:06The show was Hodge's Broadway
14:08debut. However, the British actor was
14:10a West End veteran who had already won
14:12an Olivier Award for the role and was more
14:14than experienced in bringing an audience
14:16to its feet. Reviewers noted that
14:18Hodge was able to balance Albin's intensity
14:20and care and ground it in reality.
14:22Your life
14:24is a sham
14:26till you can
14:28shout out
14:30loud, I am
14:32what I
14:34am.
14:362011.
14:38Audra McDonald as Bess, Porgy
14:40and Bess.
14:42Summertime
14:46and leave the
14:48disease
14:50in.
14:52Sutton Foster was dazzling
14:54audiences as Reno Sweeney, and
14:56Andrew Rannells was making us believe as
14:58Elder Price. But 2011 belongs
15:00to Audra McDonald. She won
15:02her fifth Tony for the 2011
15:04revival of the famous Gershwin opera.
15:06Porgy
15:10as your woman
15:14is yours
15:18forever.
15:22The revival was controversial for the changes
15:24made to modernize the text, but
15:26McDonald received near-unanimous
15:28praise as Bess, an outcast shunned
15:30by her community.
15:32I loves you, Porgy.
15:36Don't
15:38let it take me.
15:42The role was one McDonald had wanted
15:44the chance to perform for years.
15:46It turned out to be the perfect marriage of her
15:48superhuman classical voice and her
15:50modern style of acting.
15:52I remember being at Juilliard and frustrated
15:54and not sure wanting to do, wanting to
15:56sing operatically and listening to
15:58Porgy and Bess over and over again and saying,
16:00well, if I were to do opera, that would be the
16:02one I would do. 2012. Steve
16:04Kazee as Guy, once.
16:06Take this
16:08seeking
16:10hope
16:12and
16:14we
16:16still
16:18got
16:20transferring the movie musical
16:22about busking musicians in Dublin to
16:24the Broadway stage. Steve Kazee
16:26originated the role of the brooding
16:28guitar playing man known only as
16:30Guy. His was a tall
16:32order because he played the male lead as
16:34the guy who pulls out a guitar at the party
16:36that you actually want to listen to.
16:38And I love her so
16:42I wouldn't
16:44strain her for gold
16:48The New York Times described
16:50his performance as quote, a soulful
16:52quietly erotic energy.
16:54His seductive power on stage was noted
16:56by several critics, but it was also his
16:58handling of the character's deep longing and
17:00pain that endeared him to audiences and
17:02Tony voters, who handed him the trophy
17:04for best leading actor in a musical.
17:06When your mind's
17:08made up
17:10when your mind's
17:12made up
17:14there's no point in even
17:16talking. 2013
17:18Jefferson Mays as the Dysquiff
17:20family, a gentleman's guide to love
17:22and murder. Oh I say, what
17:24do you think you're doing?
17:26Yes, well I'm here to
17:28introduce a number
17:30from this smart and hilarious
17:32musical.
17:34Billy Porter was a revelation as he
17:36originated the role of Lola in Kinky Boots,
17:38but how many actors can play nine
17:40performances in one? Jefferson
17:42Mays originated the role of the entire
17:44Dysquiff family in the witty and
17:46inventive best musical winner, A Gentleman's
17:48Guide to Love and Murder. Congratulations
17:50to this year's Tony nominees.
17:52What the hell are the Tonys? C-O-N-G
17:56I dated a Tony.
17:58She spelled it with an I.
18:00You're all winners in my book.
18:02Shuffling through all the Dysquiffs
18:04took more than costume changes.
18:06It required Mays to create nine
18:08different, distinct, and completely
18:10different personalities. From a
18:12hammy actress to a confused vicar,
18:14the Dysquiffs are an eccentric bunch.
18:16Mays took to the task with relish.
18:18I find the species
18:20frankly problematical.
18:26I don't understand the poor.
18:28His characters even
18:30became an integral part of the show's
18:32social media presence.
18:342014. Neil Patrick Harris
18:36as Hedvig. Hedvig and the Angry
18:38Inch. Hey sugar daddy,
18:40Hansel needs some sugar
18:42in his bowl. Aladdin's
18:44James Monroe Iglehart and Beautiful
18:46the Carole King musical's Jessie Mueller
18:48were obvious standouts of this year, but
18:50Neil Patrick Harris' portrayal of Hedvig
18:52was the clear frontrunner of 2014.
18:54Undoubtedly a complex character,
18:56Harris' performance as Hedvig brings
18:58her to life in all of her vulnerability,
19:00musicality, and nuance.
19:02That's the pain
19:04that cuts a straight
19:06line down through the heart.
19:08We call it
19:10love. He is absolutely
19:12electrifying up on stage. Hedvig
19:14is a certified rock star after all.
19:16Being a tale centered around gender
19:18identity, Harris plays Hedvig with
19:20the utmost care and respect for the
19:22LGBTQIA plus community,
19:24cementing this role as one of the most iconic
19:26of all time.
19:322015
19:34Leslie Odom Jr. as Aaron Burr
19:36Hamilton
19:46This spot could
19:48belong to anyone in the cast of this culture
19:50shifting show. Lin-Manuel Miranda
19:52gave Hamilton his scrappiness.
19:54Jonathan Groff made a meal of
19:56King George III's small role.
19:58Christopher Jackson made George Washington come alive.
20:00Renee Lee's Goldsberry had the
20:02world-singing Angelica.
20:04And David Diggs dazzled us with his rapping.
20:06The show may be about Alexander
20:08Hamilton, but as the man who shot him,
20:10Leslie Odom Jr. got to bite into
20:12some of Hamilton's juiciest, most
20:14psychologically complex moments.
20:16I am the one thing in life
20:18I can control
20:20I am inimitable
20:22I am an original
20:24His Aaron Burr is torn
20:26apart by the words of a man who once admired
20:28him. Watching him descend into
20:30prideful, murderous anger gave the
20:32musical its dramatic stakes.
20:34The world was wide enough
20:36for both
20:38Hamilton and
20:442016
20:46Ben Platt as Evan Hansen
20:48Dear Evan Hansen
20:52Waiting through a window
20:54Denae Benton's
20:56Tony-nominated work in Natasha, Pierre,
20:58and the Great Comet of 1812 was
21:00a revelation. But 2016
21:02belonged to the boy in the arm cast.
21:04Evan is a socially anxious teenager
21:06who inserts himself into the tragic circumstances
21:08surrounding a classmate's death.
21:10Things get complicated and heavy
21:12pretty fast. Ben Platt
21:14had been playing the role from its earliest workshops.
21:16It'd be fair to say the role
21:18is as much his creation as it is
21:20the writer's.
21:30Apart from those precise runs and insane
21:32falsetto notes, Evan was a role
21:34that put the actor through an almost relentless
21:36cycle of intense emotions eight shows
21:38a week.
21:40Platt nailed the necessary
21:42balance of Evan's anxiety
21:44and his sense of humor.
21:462017
21:48Katrina Lenk as Dena,
21:50The Band's Visit
21:56The long-awaited revival of
21:58Evan Hansen's
22:00The Great Comet of 1812
22:02was a major milestone
22:04for the musical.
22:06The long-awaited
22:08revival of Hello Dolly
22:10was led by an incandescent
22:12Bette Midler and Gavin Creel.
22:14But the surprise hit of the season was
22:16The Band's Visit. Katrina Lenk and
22:18Tony Shalhoub earned raves as the café
22:20owner and band leader thrown together by
22:22fate in Tel Aviv. Lenk's highly
22:24physical portrayal of Dena was an
22:26arresting experience.
22:28This movement style is all based on
22:30instead of making shapes,
22:32you move in a way that feels
22:34certain way. Her longing came through
22:36loud and clear. The role was considered
22:38a breakthrough for the actress, showcasing
22:40an incredible talent for transporting the
22:42audience.
22:54Originating the role off-Broadway
22:56before its Broadway transfer, she won
22:58a Lucille Lortel Award and a Tony
23:00Award for her work.
23:02In 2018, Joshua Henry is
23:04Billy Bigelow, Carousel.
23:06Let my golden chances
23:08pass
23:10me by.
23:16Rodgers and Hammerstein's controversial
23:18hero is one of the most iconic roles in
23:20all of musical theater. When Carousel
23:22came to Broadway in 2018,
23:24Joshua Henry had a lot to
23:26live up to. He and co-star Lindsay
23:28Mendez garnered stellar reviews.
23:30Henry was humbled by the history attached
23:32to the show. I think he
23:34comes from an abusive
23:36past. I think he had a really
23:38bad relationship with his dad. His
23:40electrifying voice sent shivers up and down
23:42the spines of all who saw the production.
23:44He brought Billy's rage and frustration
23:46to life and nailed his seven-minute
23:48aria, the ambivalent tour-de-force
23:50soliloquy.
23:52Go out and make it
23:54or steal it
23:56or take it
23:58take it
24:00On the other side
24:02of the spectrum, 2018 was also
24:04the year Stephanie J. Block embodied
24:06Cher in the biomusical The Cher
24:08Show. 2019
24:10Aaron Tveit as Christian, Moulin
24:12Rouge.
24:14There's no mountain too high
24:16no river
24:18too wide
24:20Taking on the role played by Ewan McGregor in the
24:22movie, Aaron Tveit scored his first
24:24Tony for the high-flying musical fantasy.
24:26His performance as Christian allowed him
24:28to show off his charm and exuberance,
24:30but it also took him to some dark
24:32places. Infusing pop songs by
24:34Elton John and Sia with grandiose
24:36theatrics and sweeping romance,
24:38Tveit got the perfect opportunity to
24:40showcase his crystal-clear voice.
24:42Well the thing is
24:44what I really
24:46mean
24:48Yours are the
24:50sweetest eyes
24:52that I've ever
24:54seen
24:56Tveit's
24:58El Tango de Roxanne was a particular
25:00highlight.
25:02Believe me
25:04when I say
25:06I love you
25:08He
25:10became the single best leading actor
25:12in a musical nominee at the 2020
25:14Tonys, as Broadway theaters shut down
25:16during the COVID-19 pandemic.
25:182021
25:20Patti LuPone as Joanne, Company
25:22Lounging in their
25:24caftans and planting
25:26a branch
25:28on their own
25:30behalf
25:34The musical theater legend had played the role
25:36of Joanne at least twice by the time
25:38she took it to Broadway. Once in a
25:402011 concert version, and once
25:42in the same gender-swapped production of the
25:44Stephen Sondheim musical when it premiered in the West End.
25:46The hobbies you pursue together
25:48Savings you accrue together
25:50Things you misconstrue together
25:52That make marriage a joy
25:58By the time she got to Broadway in the role,
26:00it was the culmination of years
26:02of work. Given her no-nonsense
26:04public persona, LuPone's
26:06a natural fit for Joanne's acid-tongue
26:08discontent. The Ladies Who Lunch,
26:10the character's anthem of bitterness and
26:12misplaced resentment, has never been
26:14funnier or more uncomfortable.
26:16Let's hear it for the ladies
26:18Everybody
26:20rise
26:24rise
26:282022, Joaquina Calacango
26:30as Nellie O'Brien, Paradise
26:32Square
26:34Let it burn
26:48In 2022, Jaquel Spivey led the Boundary pushing A Strange Loop, and Jay Harrison Gee made
26:56history in Some Like It Hot.
26:59Meanwhile, Joaquina Calacango became the beating heart of Paradise Square.
27:11Set amid the New York City draft riots of 1863, Paradise Square scored middling reviews
27:16and only ran for 108 performances.
27:19The reason that no one who saw it can forget it is because of Joaquina Calacango.
27:23In her Tony-winning role, which Variety called a star-making performance, Calacango delivered
27:29the performance that became the glue holding the piece together.
27:32As Nelly, a bar and brothel owner, she became the production's breakout star.
27:36The performance was so well-received in pre-Broadway tryouts that it inspired the writers to center
27:41her narrative in the story.
27:472023, Alex Newell as Lulu, shot.
28:07While Jonathan Groff and Daniel Radcliffe dealt with the joys and pains of friendship
28:11in Merrily We Roll Along, Alex Newell was serving up corn.
28:14Playing the protagonist's whiskey-making cousin Lulu, Alex Newell won the Tony for
28:19Best Featured Actor and had the audiences have shucked on their feet night after night.
28:29Newell became one of the first non-binary actors to win the Tony.
28:33They also got to introduce one of Broadway's new classics.
28:36Independently Owned is Lulu's unforgettable I Am song.
28:39A testament to the character's strength and determination to get by on her own.
28:51The reviews never failed to mention Newell's fierce and explosive vocal ability.
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29:112024, Malia Joy Moon as Ali, Hell's Kitchen.
29:26Based on the life of singer-songwriter Alicia Keys, Hell's Kitchen made its Broadway premiere
29:30in 2024.
29:32As Ali, Keys' in-show facsimile, Malia Joy Moon has to nail comic timing, welcoming narration,
29:38and deliver a silky-smooth vocal.
29:52She did it all in Moore.
29:54Moon is a marvel of technical skill.
29:56Given that she was almost done with theater when she auditioned for the role, it couldn't
30:00have come at a better time.
30:02Its entire cast was celebrated, but Moon picked up several awards for her performance, including
30:07the Drama Desk Award and the coveted Tony.
30:15Did your favorite Broadway performance make the list?
30:18Let us know in the comments.
30:20Do you agree with our picks?
30:33Check out this other recent clip from Ms. Mojo.
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