Jazzy Musicals

With soul-stirring rhythms and unforgettable melodies, musicals with jazz-infused scores bring a vibrant energy perfect for audiences craving the bold and exciting. Blending the passion and spontaneity of jazz with powerful storytelling, these shows are as dynamic as the genre itself. Discover musicals with jazzy scores, from classics to modern gems, below!

A Charlie Brown Christmas by Charles M. Schulz, Bill Melendez, Lee Mendelson and Eric Schaeffer (US/UK)  
(Short Musical, Dramatic Comedy / 5w, 5m, 1 any gender) 
The classic animated television special, featuring Vince Guaraldi’s classic jazz score, comes to life in this faithful stage adaptation in which Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the rest of the Peanuts gang discover the true meaning of Christmas.

Bandstand by Robert Taylor and Richard Oberacker (US/UK)
(Full-Length Musical, Drama / 6w, 12m)
It’s 1945. American soldiers return home to ticker-tape parades and overjoyed families, and Private First Class Donny Novitski, singer and songwriter, returns with the hope of rebuilding his life. When NBC announces a competition to find the next swing band sensation, Donny joins forces with fellow veterans – and a young singer named Julia – to form a band unlike any the nation has ever seen. Bandstand is an unflinching and honest musical about confronting the cost of war and finding salvation in the notes of a song.

Chicago by John Kander, Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse (US/UK)  
(Full-Length Musical, Comedy / 10w, 9m) 
Murder, celebrity, musical theatre… and All That Jazz! In “Roaring Twenties” Chicago, Roxie Hart murders a faithless lover and convinces her hapless husband, Amos, to take the rap… until he finds out he’s been duped. Convicted and sent to death row, Roxie and another “Merry Murderess,” Velma Kelly, vie for the spotlight and the headlines, ultimately joining forces in search of the American Dream: fame, fortune and acquittal.

City of Angels by Larry Gelbart, Cy Coleman and David Zippel (US/UK) 
(Full-Length Musical, Dramatic Comedy / 8w, 8m +Ensemble) 
In the late 1940s, a bookish writer of detective stories struggles to adapt his crime novel into a workable screenplay. With wit, humor, and a fantastic Cy Coleman score, City of Angels captures the snappy dialogue of a Raymond Chandler novel and the glitzy showmanship of classic Hollywood in a unique, jazzy and stylish crowd-pleaser. 

Far From Heaven by Richard Greenberg, Scott Frankel and Michael Korie (US)
(Full-Length Musical, Drama / 9w, 7m, 1 girl, 1 boy)
In this compelling musical based on Todd Haynes’ 2002 film, Cathy Whitaker seems to be the picture-perfect wife and mother in 1957 suburban Connecticut. But roiling beneath the surface, secret longings and forbidden desires cause her world to unravel. With a lush score that is both jazz-inflected and hauntingly lyrical, Far From Heaven is a powerful story of romance, betrayal and intolerance, as a woman grapples with her identity in a society on the verge of upheaval.

Glimpses of the Moon by Tajlei Levis, John Mercurio and Edith Wharton (US)
(Full-Length Musical, Dramatic Comedy / 3w, 3m)
With plenty of friends but little money, Susy Branch and her friend Nick Lansing devise a clever scheme to live beyond their means: they’ll marry and live off the wedding gifts, while they help one another secure more suitable spouses. The plan works perfectly – until they fall in love. Set amid the whirl of 1922 Manhattan society, this sparkling musical comedy features a jazzy, danceable score and a timeless story of romance.

Golden Boy by William Gibson, Clifford Odets, Charles Strouse and Lee Adams (US) 
(Full-Length Musical, Drama / 4w, 17m) 
Adapted from Clifford Odets’ classic drama, Golden Boy is the tale of a young Black man from Harlem trying to rise up out of the ghetto to fame in the brutal world of boxing. The rousing musical begins and ends with the rhythmic, breathing exhaust of the prizefighting ring. Sammy Davis originated the lead role of Joe Wellington, a promising boxer who makes one mistake: falling in love with his manager’s girl, a seen-it-all white woman named Lorna.

Jelly’s Last Jam by George C. Wolfe, Susan Birkenhead, Jelly Roll Morton and Luther Henderson (US/UK) 
(Full-Length Musical, Dramatic Comedy / 8w, 10m) 
A dynamic investigation of the life and work of Jelly Roll Morton, Jelly’s Last Jam is a vital piece of African American history set to a splashy, vibrant score from one of America’s greatest composers. Take your seat at the legendary Jungle Inn nightclub for an electrifying musical telling the story of jazz through one of its most notorious entertainers in this sizzling memoir of pride, lust and a past denied.

Johnny Manhattan by Robert Lorick and Dan Goggin (US/UK)
(Full-Length Musical, Comedy / 7w, 7m)
It’s 1958 and Johnny, the owner of swanky nightclub Johnny Manhattan’s, has invited his closest friends to a private party for a surprise announcement. Throughout the evening, unexpected revelations abound as relationships clash and secrets are exposed. With book and lyrics by Robert Lorick (The Tap Dance Kid) and music by Dan Goggin (the Nunsense musicals), you’ll find it hard to resist the lure of a night at Johnny Manhattan’s!

Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill by Lanie Robertson (US)
(Full-Length Musical, Drama / 1w, 1m)
The time is 1959. The place is a seedy bar in Philadelphia. The audience is about to witness one of Billie Holiday’s last performances, given four months before her death. More than a dozen musical numbers are interlaced with salty, often humorous reminiscences to project a riveting portrait of the lady and her music.

Love, Linda (The Life of Mrs. Cole Porter) by Cole Porter, Stevie Holland and Gary William Friendman (US/UK)
(Full-Length Musical, Dramatic Comedy / 1w)
In this sensational one-woman show, Linda Lee Thomas recounts her life’s journey with Cole Porter. Though Porter was gay, their companionship lasted through 35 years of spectacular, glamour-filled marriage. In creative new jazz arrangements, the music of Cole Porter weaves through the compelling narrative, examining the darker sides of their life, while also celebrating the deep love in their unconventional relationship.

Over Here! by Richard M. Sherman, Robert B. Sherman and Will Holt (US)
(Full-Length Musical, Comedy / 8w, 10m)
This affectionate lampoon of the brassy 1940s Big Band era, from the composers of Mary Poppins, is a choo-choo ride into America’s patriotic wartime past. On a train full of draftees heading for Europe, the “DePaul Sisters” are looking for a third singer to transform their duo into a trio. They find her in Mitzi – a down-home girl with a secret: she’s a Nazi spy with a slinky Dietrich accent and a microphone conveniently hidden in her lipstick.

Pal Joey by Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart and John O’Hara (US/UK)
(Full-Length Musical, Dramatic Comedy / 4w, 2m)
The penultimate Rodgers & Hart collaboration was decades ahead of its time, introducing the first anti-hero to propel a musical. Joey, an opportunistic cad, elbows his way into a job at a seedy Chicago nightclub and is soon juggling the affections of a chorus girl and a wealthy society dame. Once Joey has charmed the socialite into setting him up in his own joint, he ditches the chorine and plays the big-time operator – until he gets a taste of his own medicine.

Sophisticated Ladies by Donald McKayle, Duke Ellington, Lloyd Mayers and Malcolm Dodds (US)
(Full-Length Musical, Comedy / 3w, 4m)
The musical legacy of Duke Ellington is celebrated in this stylish and brassy retrospective, which has taken audiences and critics by storm. Act I takes us from Ellington’s early days at The Cotton Club through his widening acceptance abroad, while Act II explores the private man as captured in his music. Sophisticated Ladies a jazzy, high-stepping salute inspired by the glamorous nightlife and sensuous high life of a man who lived to love.

Storyville by Mildred Kayden and Ed Bullins (US)
(Full-Length Musical, Drama / 6w, 6m)
When a notorious prize fight sends New Orleans’ musicians, bands and entertainers “rollin’ up the river” to the North, jazz becomes America’s musical gift to the world. This rousing tale celebrates the birth of jazz and dramatizes an important chapter in the history of New Orleans.

Sweet Smell of Success by Marvin Hamlisch, Craig Carnelia and John Guare (US/UK)
(Full-Length Musical, Drama / 9w, 13m)
It’s New York, 1952. Welcome to Broadway, the glamour and power capital of the universe. Based on the 1957 movie of the same name, Sweet Smell of Success tells the story of a powerful gossip columnist named J.J. Hunsecker who uses his connections to ruin his sister’s relationship with a man he deems inappropriate. Marvin Hamlisch’s jazz-inspired score pulsates with the energy and conflict of mid-century New York City.

Swing! by Paul Kelly and Lynn Taylor-Corbett (US/UK)
(Full-Length Musical, Comedy / 2w, 3m)
Exploded out of pre-war Harlem’s hotbed of youth culture, swing shattered ethnic and cultural barriers as it swept the world. Swing! celebrates this remarkable diversity to the beat of the most exhilarating songs of the period. But as this enthralling song-and-dance show makes abundantly clear, swing was never a time or place – it has always been a state of mind.

Swingtime Canteen by Charles Busch, Linda Thorsen Bond and William Repicci (US) 
(Full-Length Musical, Comedy / 5w) 
In this nostalgic and hilarious songfest set in London, 1944, Marian Ames and her all-girl band sing a bundle of swinging wartime hits to entertain the fighting boys of WWII. Songs include “I’ll Be Seeing You,” “Sing Sing Sing,” “How High the Moon,” “Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive,” “Sentimental Journey,” a fast paced, 12-song Andrews Sisters medley, and many more. 

The 1940s Radio Hour by Walton Jones (US) 
(Full-Length Musical / 5w, 10m) 
Set during a live 1942 broadcast of The Mutual Manhattan Variety Cavalcade, this marvelously theatrical and nostalgic show features a panoply of lovable characters, including a harassed producer, a drunk lead singer, a fame-hungry delivery boy, a beleaguered second banana and a trumpet-playing sound effects man who chooses a fighter plane over Glenn Miller.

The Wild Party by Michael John La Chiusa, George C. Wolfe and Joseph Moncure March (US/UK)
(Full-Length Musical, Drama / 7w, 8m)
Manhattan decadence in the 1920s provides the backdrop for this tough musical fable. Queenie, a vaudeville chorine, hosts a blow-out with her lover. The guests are a vivid collection of the unruly and the undone, including bargain basement Valentino, who catches Queenie’s roving eye. The jazz- and gin-soaked party rages to a mounting sense of threat, until midnight debauchery leads to tragedy at dawn.

Twelve Angry Men: A Musical by Michael Holland, David Simpatico and Reginald Rose (US/UK)
(Full-Length Musical, Drama / 12m)
In a small New York City jury room, on the hottest day of the year, twelve men debate the fate of a young defendant charged with murdering his father. In form, Twelve Angry Men: A Musical is a courtroom drama; in purpose, it’s a riveting crash course in those passages of the U.S. Constitution that promise defendants a fair trial and the presumption of innocence.

Victor/Victoria by Blake Edwards, Henry Mancini, Leslie Bricusse and Frank Wildhorn (US/UK) 
(Full-Length Musical, Comedy / 2w, 3m) 
Hilarious, brassy and surprisingly touching, Victor/Victoria is a sophisticated musical comedy based on the acclaimed movie from director Blake Edwards. In 1930s Paris, chanteuse Victoria Grant poses as a man in order to achieve fame as a female impersonator. Complications ensue when a gangster falls for her/him. Songs include “Paris by Night” and “Le Jazz Hot.” 

And coming soon…

Some Like It Hot by Matthew López, Amber Ruffin, Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (US/UK)
(Full-Length Musical, Comedy / 3w, 4m, 1gnc adult +Ensemble)
Based on the beloved 1959 film, Some Like It Hot centers on Joe and Jerry, two jazz musicians who are forced to flee the Windy City after witnessing a mob hit. With gangsters hot on their heels, they take on new identities as “Josephine” and “Daphne” and get recruited into Sweet Sue’s all-women band. Retaining the slapstick humor and glamour of the film, the musical ventures into new territory, exploring the characters’ self-discoveries with a fresh perspective.

For more great plays and musicals, visit Concord Theatricals in the US and UK.