The top theatre of 2024

New York Theatre Guide's editor rounds up her favorite shows of the year on Broadway and beyond, along with additional recommendations for shows to see in 2025.

I see over 100 shows a year on Broadway and beyond, and whenever it comes time to do a "best of" roundup, I can't shake the feeling that I've barely scratched the surface when it comes to the excellence of 2024's plays, musicals, and more. It's bittersweet to know I could have missed something extraordinary, while also remembering I'll never run out of options to see something new — and maybe find a new favorite.

I found a lot of new favorites in 2024. What most of them had in common is that they're in some way out-of-the-box, unexpected, and/or even a little weird (complimentary). I guess that's what happens when you see so much theatre — I love having an old-fashioned good time at a traditional musical comedy or family drama, but I really love when something upends my expectations and successfully tells a story that seems unlikely to work on stage.

So without further ado, here is my top theatre of 2024 in no particular order. Many of these shows have closed, but if one sounds like it's up your alley as much as it was mine, check out the recommendations below it for similar theatre you can see in 2025, and click the links on each for tickets.

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Maybe Happy Ending

Simply put, this rom-com about obsolete robots entering their second act of life is the most well-crafted musical I've seen in a long time. I don't even usually gravitate toward romances! But I was captivated by the snappy and clever writing, gorgeous set, and tender lead performances by Darren Criss and Helen J. Shen. It's rare for a show to be basically flawless, but Maybe Happy Ending's parts all make one well-oiled machine.

Get Maybe Happy Ending tickets now.

If you liked it, see: More original musicals like & Juliet, The Last Five Years, and Drag: The Musical

Oh, Mary!

I liked Cole Escola's madcap historical comedy when I saw its Off-Broadway world premiere, but when its overnight success propelled it to Broadway and I saw it again there, I loved it. Escola blazes as "well-known niche cabaret star" Mary Todd Lincoln, and a show that smartly sends up both American history and theatre itself gets a delicious level of extra irony when it's being performed in an opulent venue not unlike the one in which Abraham Lincoln met his end.

Get Oh, Mary! tickets now.

If you liked it, see: Over-the-top comedy that doesn't take itself too seriously, like Titanique, Drunk Shakespeare, and Little Shop of Horrors

Swept Away

The Avett Brothers' Swept Away centers on a whaling ship's ill-fated voyage, and I've gone on that voyage three times. Everything about this daring new show moved me: John Gallagher Jr., Stark Sands, Adrian Blake Enscoe, and Wayne Duvall excelled as that shipwreck's four survivors, who are pushed to the limits of their humanity as they fight for life. The Avett Brothers' folk-rock music, which I'd never heard before, is now on constant repeat on my Spotify. Rachel Hauck's shapeshifting set anchored the all-around stunning design, which also included maritime sounds and wind effects to immerse the audience. Swept Away closes December 29, but if it ever docks in NYC again, I'll be the first one on board.

Get Swept Away tickets now.

If you liked it, see: I'll repeat — more original musicals like Maybe Happy Ending tickets, & Juliet, The Last Five Years, and Drag: The Musical

Sunset Boulevard

Yes, director Jamie Lloyd's Sunset Boulevard revival is as good as all of my London colleagues had been telling me for the last year (I admit I went in skeptical!). Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical exposes the dark side of Hollywood, so the interweaving of stage acting and screens, onto which both onstage and backstage action are projected, works. The result is a production that feels like a Broadway show and a blockbuster film all in one. Opening credits rolled, and I was sold.

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If you liked it, see: A bold reimagining of classic, dramatic material like Cabaret, Hadestown, or Romeo + Juliet

Gypsy

A last-minute entry into this list (it only began performances in late November) is Gypsy, a musical esteemed critics have dubbed one of the best in Broadway history — and one I'd never seen despite knowing the banner hit songs like "Rose's Turn." Director George C. Wolfe's production doesn't employ any kind of novel "gimmick" (contrary to the advice given in another famous song from the show) in his revival, but simply lets the excellent material shine on its own.

Other standouts include Camille A. Brown's spirited choreography, Joy Woods as the title character who gradually comes into her own as a performer and person, and of course, six-time Tony Award winner Audra McDonald playing the monstrous stage mother Rose with shades of desperation and compassion.

Get Gypsy tickets now.

If you liked it, see: Another beloved Broadway giant like Chicago, Wicked, The Lion King, or Cabaret.

Cats: The Jellicle Ball

Directors Zhailon Levingston and Bill Rauch set Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats in the world of queer ballroom culture, and it felt like that's how the musical was always meant to be. The characters vie for a second chance at life, and by making the "cats" into contestants at a ballroom competition — a historically covert scene in which marginalized people can freely express themselves — Levingston and Rauch breathed fresh, fabulous, and utterly exuberant life into the show. I hope Cats: The Jellicle Ball gets a second life of its own.

If you liked it, see: A reimagined classic like Sunset Boulevard or Cabaret, or a queer (or queer-adjacent) spectacle like Drag: The Musical or Death Becomes Her

Illinoise

I'm always thrilled to see a dance show on Broadway, and Illinoise was no exception. Dance is the perfect medium for a show set to Sufjan Stevens's acclaimed album Illinois: His music, inspired by people and events from the state, is abstract and sprawling, so it made sense to create movement that matched the emotions rather than trying to shoehorn the songs into a traditional plot. Justin Peck won the Tony Award for his expressive choreography, and rightfully so.

If you liked it, see: NYC's latest dance shows at storied venues like New York City Center, Park Avenue Armory, and the Joyce Theater

Three Houses

Dave Malloy's musical Three Houses is the only piece of theatre about Covid that hasn't plunged me into dread, anxiety, or despair all over again. Granted, the show is about people mired in all those emotions in lockdown, but Malloy's darkly humorous, clever framing of the story as a Three Little Pigs reimagining — plus fantastical, larger-than-life puppetry by James Ortiz — made it cathartic and genuinely enjoyable.

If you liked it, see: An offbeat Off-Broadway musical like Little Shop of Horrors, Teeth, or even Titanique

Prayer for the French Republic

Joshua Harmon's Prayer for the French Republic isn't just a 3-hour epic, but one that makes 3 hours fly by. The show only got more timely since I saw its 2021 Off-Broadway premiere, using the story of one intergenerational Jewish family to explore sprawling themes of assimilation, memory, cultural and religious identity, and more.

If you liked it, see: A meaty, topical drama like Cult of Love, English, or Purpose

i love you so much i could die

How do we convey our emotions when they're hard to talk about? Mona Pirnot found a unique answer to that question: Type them out and have voice-to-text software read them aloud. This is how she shared her story of grief over her sister's debilitating illness, interspered with original songs she performed live. The show was unexpectedly effective and touching in its simplicity.

If you liked it, see: Any and all work that New York Theatre Workshop is putting on next

Sunset Baby

Dominique Morisseau is incapable of writing a bad play — and Signature Theatre's revival of Sunset Baby, which premiered in 2010, reminds us that's always been true. With vivid dialogue, Morisseau spins the story of a Black revolutionary's daughter, who has always taken a backseat to his work. The confrontation between father and daughter, in which they both reckon with their history and legacy, rang as searingly relevant. Whenever Morisseau's name is attached to a show, take note.

If you liked it, see: Branden Jacobs-Jenkins's Purpose, another drama from an across-the-board excellent writer about a family of Black luminaries examining its legacy

New York City Center's Encores! season

It was impossible to pick just one of New York City Center's 2024 slate of limited-run Encores! productions. The joyously funny Once Upon a Mattress starring Sutton Foster got a Broadway transfer, and Jelly's Last Jam made jazz musician Jelly Roll Morton's life thrilling with fiery music, tap dancing, and a star turn by Nicholas Christopher in the title role.

Titanic's simple staging put the lush music and human tragedy front and center, and even though it's not an official Encores! production, I'm including NYCC's fall gala production of Ragtime here for the same reason. I saw the show twice in my hometown as a teenager, but to hear Ragtime's vibrant score on a much bigger stage was utterly mesmerizing.

If you liked it, see: New York City Center's 2025 Encores! shows: Urinetown, Love Life, and Wonderful Town