Best 2000s Broadway Musical
The Aughts -- the years between January 1, 2000, and December 31, 2009 -- were a tumultuous period, to say the least. Still, those difficult times produced some spectacular new works of American pop culture, including in the Broadway musical genre. A slew of shows introduced during that decade became monster smashes that still play on Broadway today, and many more made significant marks in the Broadway canon. Now the Great Pop Culture Debate podcast wants to look back at that period and answer the question: what IS the Best 2000s Broadway Musical? Shows discussed: Wicked, Caroline or Change, The Producers, Mamma Mia, Spring Awakening, The Color Purple, Mary Poppins, Avenue Q, In the Heights, Aida, 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Legally Blonde: The Musical, Hairspray, Jersey Boys, Urinetown: The Musical, Next to Normal.
Join Host Eric Rezsnyak, GPCD panelists Curtis Creekmore, Gary Jackson, and Joelle Boedecker, and special guest Patreon supporter Trey Radu-Blackburn as they pull back the curtain on the Best 2000s Broadway Musical.
Want to play along at home? Download the listener bracket here and see if your picks match up with ours!
To listen to Round 1, showing how we got to the Singing 16 down from the Top 32, become a Patreon supporter of the podcast today to access the exclusive Part 1 episode.
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Round 2 Match-Ups:
Not a Patreon subscriber? Here’s a quick rundown of the decisions we made in Round 1.
Note that for the purposes of this debate, the shows must have been NEW -- not revivals -- and debuted on actual Broadway -- not Off-Broadway -- between 1/1/2000 and 12/31/2009.
Match-Up 1: Wicked (1) vs. Caroline, or Change (4)
Match-Up 2: The Producers (3) vs. Mamma Mia! (2)
Match-Up 3: Spring Awakening (1) vs. The Color Purple (4)
Match-Up 4: Mary Poppins (6) vs. Avenue Q (2)
Match-Up 5: In the Heights (1) vs. Aida (4)
Match-Up 6: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (3) vs. Legally Blonde: The Musical (2)
Match-Up 7: Hairspray (1) vs. Jersey Boys (4)
Match-Up 8: Urinetown: The Musical (3) vs. Next to Normal (2)
Looking for songs from each of these shows? Check out a playlist with our panelists’ picks for each of the nominated musicals here:
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EPISODE CREDITS
Host: Eric Rezsnyak
Panel: Curtis Creekmore, Gary Jackson, Joelle Boedecker
Special Guest: Trey Radu-Blackburn
Producer: Bob Erlenback
Editor: Jack Kwait-Blank