Witches, survivors, gods, and more: 7 best feminist musicals and Broadway plays to watch live in person
Women want to see stories about, well, women—and that’s true whether those stories are being told in a local theater or onstage in New York City. There are countless stories of female empowerment, and thankfully, many have been written for or adapted for the stage.
One of the most prominent musicals about female empowerment is Wicked, which debuted on Broadway in 2003 and has dominated the stage ever since. Fans who can’t make it to New York City have a chance to see the show live until the end of October 2025, when its current American tour wraps up.
Wicked isn’t the only feminist show on Broadway right now, though. Here are 7 feminist musicals and plays and where you can see them in the United States.
Wicked
Wicked is one of the most popular shows on Broadway. Based on the novel of the same name by Gregory Maguire and set before Dorothy’s adventures in The Wizard of Oz, the show tells the story of Elphaba and Glinda, two young witches who form an unlikely friendship.
BUY NOW: Tickets to see Wicked on Broadway
Wicked is currently on Broadway. A touring version of the show hit the road on October 16, 2024, and will end a year later in North Carolina.
BUY NOW: Tickets for Wicked the Musical North America tour
The Color Purple
Based on the Alice Walker novel of the same name, The Color Purple follows nearly four decades in the life of Celie, a young girl in Georgia who is forced to trade one abusive home for another after her father gives her away in marriage to her husband.
BUY NOW: Tickets for The Color Purple in a city near you
Mean Girls: The Musical
Mean Girls: The Musical is based on the 2004 movie of the same name and is accompanied by a book by SNL alum and actress Tina Fey. The show’s protagonist Cady Heron is a new arrival to Chicago’s North Shore High School who makes friends with the Plastics—a group of girls who conspire to take down their de facto leader, Regina George.
BUY NOW: Tickets for Mean Girls: The Musical in a city near you
Hadestown
Set in the Great Depression era, Hadestown offers a take on the story of Orpheus and Eurydice. The musical is based on the novel by Anaïs Mitchell and narrated by Hermes and also tells the story of Hades and Persephone. After she is called back to the factory town known as Hadestown by her husband, Persephone resists his order and Hades leaves to find someone else — and stumbles right into Eurydice.
BUY NOW: Tickets for Hadestown in a city near you
Chicago
The 1920s are still very much alive in the musical Chicago, a satirical take on fame, the media, and the justice system in the United States. At the center of a story about murder and mayhem is Roxie Hart, a would-be vaudeville legend who is arrested for killing her lover.
BUY NOW: Tickets for Chicago on Broadway
Six
Six is an electric interpretation of the lives of the wives of Henry VIII that debuted on Broadway in 2017. The show is about six singers who put together a contest to settle who should be the lead singer of their band — and do so by discussing which of Henry’s wives had the worst time with him.
BUY NOW: Tickets for SIX on Broadway
& Juliet
Have you ever wondered what would have happened if Juliet hadn’t killed herself in Romeo & Juliet? Shakespeare’s classic play is reimagined as a household dispute in which the playwright and his wife are arguing about rewrites for the play. N Sync’s Joey Fatone will star in & Juliet as Lance from January 21-March 16, 2025.
BUY NOW: Tickets for & Juliet on Broadway
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