Phantom makes the top 3 musicals of all time!
03 Sep 2013
JemmThree, the UK’s first 24/7, presenter-led radio station devoted to musical theatre, conducted a recent poll to find out which show their listeners think is the greatest musical of all time.
The Boublil and Schönberg musical Les Misérables came in at the top, then Wicked, by Stephen Schwartz, was voted number two followed by The Phantom of the Opera at number three.
Stephen Sondheim tied with Lloyd Webber at having nine musicals in the top 100, though Sondheim increases to 12 entries if you also include his works as a lyricist. Sondheim’s highest ranking musical was Sweeny Todd, which came in at number four in the chart.
The highest placed Rodgers and Hammerstein show was The Sound of Music, at number 10, while overall the writing team had five productions listed on the Top 100 Musicals chart.
The 1980s proved to be the most popular decade for musicals with 21 shows featured in the top 100. The noughties produced 18 entries followed by the 1970s, with 13 shows.
45 Broadway musicals appeared in the Top 100 list against 26 West End debuts.
“Reaction to the Top 100 Musicals of All Time has been incredible,” said JemmThree MD Robin Crowley.
“Listeners were fiercely discussing and arguing over the results throughout the seven hour countdown on Twitter, Facebook and the JemmThree chat room. It was great to see musical theatre such a hot topic and shows just how passionate people are about musicals,” Crowley added.
“JemmThree offers fans of stage and screen an important voice, and we’re pleased to be the UK’s first radio station dedicated 24/7 to the world of stage and screen that’s available now, online or via the JemmRadio or Tune In app.”