In this article we're going to try to give an idea of what shows to go see if you want to get as broad a musical theater background as possible.

To just say you're going to see a musical is not only less than adequate but it's inaccurate at best. The truth is, a musical is not just a musical. Just like in television and movies there are different types of shows, dramas, comedies, mysteries, science fictions, and a number of other genres, so it is the same in musical theater. So if you're looking to get a well rounded education and see the best of the best in each genre, what follows is a list, if not totally comprehensive at least representative, of the kinds of musical plays that are a must see.

If you're looking for some serious entertainment that is tense and dramatic, your best bets are shows like Phantom Of The Opera and Jekyll and Hyde. These also fit well in with the thriller type theme. Phantom is still currently running as well as Hyde and both are very dramatic stage adaptations of a couple of very old and well worn movies. The original Phantom Of The Opera was actually a silent movie with Lon Chaney. The updated version is beautifully done with some of the most breathtaking music in recent musical theater history, including the ever popular "Music Of The Night" made famous by the performance of Michael Crawford back in the 80s. Jekyll and Hyde, while not quite as famous, is also an excellent dramatic play about a man who basically leads a double life, one good, one evil. The musical show stopper of this play is "This Is The Moment" sung like nobody else can by Robert Cuciolli.

If you want something a little more light hearted there is always "The Producers" or "A Funny Thing Happened" which are also both currently playing as of this writing. The Producers is probably one of the funniest and off the wall musical comedies ever written while Funny Thing is a wonderful parody of Roman times. It's worth going to see this farce just to hear the classic "Comedy Tonight" which has been sung by many great performers including Nathan Lane who was also in Producers. Of course, nothing needs to be said about "Springtime For Hitler" which is probably one of the funniest songs ever written.

If fantasy is your thing, there is always "Wicked" which is one of the more recent fantasy plays. Wicked is actually a prequel to "The Wizard Of Oz" that tells the story of how the Wicked Witch Of The West actually became evil. Ironically, at the beginning, she was the good witch and her sister was the conniving one. This is one musical that if you go see it you will never see the original the same way again. Musical highlights from "Wicked" include "No One Mourns the Wicked", "Popular", "Defying Gravity", and "I'm Not That Girl". The original cast of Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth, who later went on to "West Wing" fame, may never be duplicated again. They were just brilliant.

The above shows don't even scratch a very broad surface. There have been a number of great musicals, dramas, comedies and fantasies that have come and gone over the years. Starting with the ones mentioned, however, will certainly get you started on what will hopefully be a long and enjoyable education.