A Teenagers Take on Broadway

I've seen some people on this sub asking which show is best to take their kid/teenager to, and as someone who is a teenager and who has seen a majority of the shows on broadway right now, I figured I would add my input. I won't be talking about any of the obvious ones (Wicked, Hamilton, etc), but if anyone finds this useful at all, don't be afraid to ask about any other shows.

From best to worst:

Maybe Happy Ending - 100/10 If you’re reading this, you’ve either heard from this sub how good this show is, or you’ve seen it and you know how good this show is. This is my favorite show of all time. It is a romcom, so if your kid isn’t into those it might not land as well, but it’s still super charming and funny. The show physically looks great, the set is super creative and the actors are amazing. It might sound dumb, but I swear it’s good, if your kid likes rom coms definitely take them to this, and even if they don’t it's still a really good show.

Outsiders - 9/10 It’s good. The only reason a teenager wouldn’t like this is because they were force fed the book during school, but I never had to read the book at my school so I wouldn’t know. Some scenes are a little bit violent, but the music is amazing and this is one of the better shows that are about teenagers.

& Juliet - 8.5/10 I haven't met a single teenager who's seen & Juliet and regretted it. It's a fun show. Unless you’re literally the grinch, you’ll think this is a fun show. High energy dances, songs you’ll recognize, characters you’ll enjoy, artsy sets, what’s not to like.

Six - 8/10 Really fun, it’s on the shorter side so not much ‘bang for your buck’ as my mom says, but I’d say overall its enjoyable and fun the entire way through.

Hells Kitchen - 7.5/10 Alicia Keys’ music is great, the story is average, the characters can be hard to like, but it’s another show where it has the potential to be a good time if you get cheap tickets.

Death Becomes Her - 7.5/10 It’s fun. Probably more fun for adults than it is for teenagers, but it’s still an entertaining show. Great actors, good music, funny jokes (some of which I didn’t get but it wasn’t a huge issue), it’s an all around entertaining show even if you aren't the target audience.

Hadestown - 7/10 If your kid wants to see it, then go ahead by all means. It has some good music. It’s a vibe. It can be a little bit boring in the middle, but if your kid wants to see it then they wont think that.

Great Gatsby - 6.75/10 The advertising for this show has made a lot of people really want to see it, but I don’t know if it’s worth the watch now that both Eva Noblezada and Jeremy Jordan are gone. Personally, I was a bit let down by it, but I was also going in with high expectations after hearing a lot of good things about it. I think most people who go into this show come out thinking it's good, but don't spend a whole lot on a ticket if you don't want to.

Cabaret - 6.5/10 This one is a bit hard to specifically recommend because the two acts are so different. I was a bit bored during the first act and absolutely captivated during the second. I’d say overall it was worth the watch, but I can’t really give a hard yes or no to whether you should take your kids to go see it.

Redwood - 3/10 People on this sub are clowning on redwood pretty hard, and I can’t say they’re wrong. It’s pretty dumb. But, if you’re an Idina Menzel fan and you can get cheap tickets, you can go see her perform in a sub-par show and then laugh about how bad it was afterward.

Sunset Boulevard - 1/10 I’m sorry. I know a lot of people like this. I’m not one of them. Theres another post on this sub from a mom talking about how her teenage kids really liked it, but it was really not for me and I think it takes a specific kind of person to like it. It’s super minimalistic in the most maximalist way, and it doesn’t work for me. It’s intense, it’s a bit hard to understand, and it’s definitely a miss for me. Also it gets a bit gore-y at the end, so if you have squeamish kids you might want to either warn them or cover their eyes for the very last bit.