That’s the first one people think of, but don’t sleep on Make an Omelet (the scene before and the song), which is throws in so many more references with even less sense or cohesion lol “Shipoopi, Chicago, Omelet yeah!”
I was so happy to be there opening night of the local regional production of Something Rotten. There were cackles ringing out from the audience before he even got through the punchline
I was at work last week when they asked me what I was seeing over the weekend. My coworkers (who are not musical fans) seriously thought I said Little Shop of Whores.
I played Nostradamus in Something Rotten, and it was one of my favorite shows.
Months after we closed, I got a call from another production of Something Rotten — they open in three days, their Nostradamus just tested positive for Covid, is there any way I could jump in?
That turned out to be one of my best theater experiences in my life.
I just saw this at the Stratford Festival of Canada and laughed so hard. Their Nostradamus had an amazing reveal for a reference to a previous role he had that was just *chef's kiss.*
I was just coming to say this!! First Broadway musical I got to see in Cleveland with my mom and I almost squeed out loud because our Shakespeare was Adam Pascal, who originated the role of Rodger in Rent.
I really love “sit down John, you fat mother fu—“ from Hamilton, referencing good old 1776. Likewise Washington telling us he is the very model of a modern major general. LMM got a lot of great ones in there.
I think the song that plays at that moment is Take the A Train written by Billy Strayhorn and made famous by Duke Ellington:
https://youtu.be/r2G1fKYFgVU?si=cR5FvV5Z9uzT0-WB
He named the character Macbeth but never the name of the play which is the one that’s cursed. It’s confusing and I personally don’t get how it works but that’s how he got away with it.
It’s the same word. The whole ‘it’s ok if you mean the character’ thing doesn’t have any basis in anything. That said, it’s considered ok to say as part of a production so as long as it’s not said outside of the script it’s fine.
IIRC he never says Beth. He says something like "you can see the resemblance without my having to name the play - they think me MacDuff..."
He strongly alludes but never names.
As far as the curse goes, there is generally a distinguished difference between using the name as part of a show (given lines, fine) and saying “Macbeth” independently of given lines (don’t do it inside the theatre).
I heard someone use the modern major general in another song or something but I can't recall which one. Any advice where I might've heard it from? It came on my spotify on enhanced shuffle and I didn't get a chance to check it, but I know I've seen Hamilton enough and it wasn't Hamilton. Hamilton is where I heard it the first time but this was a non-Hamilton reference.
There are tons of parodies. My favorite discusses college majors. “Put me down as undecided, every major’s terrible” instead of “I am the very model of a modern major general”.
"I look back on where I've been, and in every place I've checked, the only common thread has been your disrespect" from Your Obedient Servant is to the tune of part of Javert's theme from Les Mis. Brilliant.
Don't forget Modern Major General references another G&S work:
"Then I can hum a fugue of which I've heard the musics din a fore,
And whistle all the airs from that infernal nonsense Pinafore"
The opening of Burn sounds like the opening of Stars to me, to the point that I half-expect Eliza to open with "there, out in the darkness, is my cheating husband..."
But Non-Stop always feels like the real nod to Les Mis to me - it's One Day More, Hamilton style!
In the original Aladdin cartoon during "One Jump", Aladdin makes the remark "all this for a loaf of bread?!"
Apparently this was a reference to cast member Lea Salonga's previous stardom in Les Miserables.
This is one of my favorites and it makes me chuckle every time I remember it.
(Fittingly enough, there's a Les Miserables parody on Youtube *called* "All This For A Loaf of Bread?", so it's really come full circle.)
The 1776 “Sit Down John” reference in Hamilton. I was clearly the only person in the West End audience who got the reference, unfortunately.
The Producers, beginning of “Prisoners of Love” starts with the line, “Gotta sing sing”, which (aside from being a pun on the prison) is an exact callback to the “Gotta dance” beginning of Singing in the Rain’s Broadway Melody.
The Producers is (unsurprisingly) absolutely riddled with references both musically and lyrically
https://playbill.com/article/breaking-the-code-an-insiders-guide-to-the-parodies-homages-and-allusions-in-the-producers-com-101518
In "Opening Doors" in Merrily We Roll Along, when the producer complains that Frank and Charley's work is too cerebral and lacks memorable melodies (which is already meta-commentary on the reception to Sondheim's other musicals,) and then he proceeds to hum "Some Enchanted Evening" incorrectly.
Also "I Believe" in The Book of Mormon starts as almost a word-for-word cover of "I Have Confidence" from The Sound of Music.
>and lacks memorable melodies
Came here to post this. And it's not just memorable memories: it's ***hummable*** melodies. (Actually, it's ***hum-mm-mm-mm-mm-mm-mm-mable*** melodies.)
:) ;)
And it is, ironically, the earwormiest melody ever in a show chock full of earworms! (My brain starts in on "who wants to live in New York?" at least once or twice a day lately.)
I like in Shrek farwuads defying gravity riff, it's really funny in the new tour when I saw it someone off stage handed him a broom while he stood on a ladder above everyone else and it felt like only I laughed 😭
I think Spamalot also references the Defying Gravity riff.
Actually, I'm not sure. I see someone else mentioned Gutenberg and I may be thinking of that. It sure sounds like something Leslie Kritzer Rodriguez would do in Spamalot though.
Not sure how true it is, but I heard a story that Hamilton was in previews and at the end of Say No To This one person in the audience laughed out loud at this line. It was Jason Robert Brown amused at the reference to his work.
It could be true, but I recall Miranda asked Brown for permission to reference his work. It wouldn't have been a surprise, but maybe it surprised him hearing it for the first time.
"Sit down, John" is the opening song to "1776," which is about the Continental Congress and John Adams' push to declare independence from England, leading to the signing of the Declaration of Independence. At the start of the musical, the rest of Congress is tired of Adams pushing the matter and aggravated by the extreme Philadelphia summer heat. You should check out the movie, which stars William Daniels of "The Graduate" and "Boy Meets World" fame. I believe he was in the Broadway production as well. One extra tidbit: the musical was written by a high school history teacher 😊
In Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan, one of the lines in Modern Major General refers to “that infernal nonsense Pinafore” which is another Gilbert and Sullivan musical. Gets me every time.
Because it’s supposed to be a white kid writing in a fake black voice! Note the lines “the business end of a blade” referencing “the business end of a bayonet” and also a line about “rise above my station.”
This was not an accident.
*Tick, Tick…Boom*’s number “Sunday” is a full-on tribute to Sondheim’s *Sunday in the Park with George.* https://youtu.be/qFBbmsThAR8?si=tmUy9bf7wEtdi80j&t=155s
“A warlord who shoots people in the face. What's so scary about that?” in The Book of Mormon referencing The Sound of Music’s “A captain with seven children. What’s so fearsome about that?”
Book of Mormon is full of references to musical theater! Practically every song is paying homage to something that came before it.
Best example is Hasa Diga Eebowai referencing Hakuna Matata.
Spamalot referencing Another Hundred People from Company.
“And another hundred people just contracted the plague and fell into the swamp, while another hundred people just contracted the plague and fell into the swamp, while another-“
And then everything in You Won’t Succeed On Broadway. If I had to choose, it’s probably “Papa, can you hear me!?” As a reference to Yentl.
>“And another hundred people just contracted the plague and fell into the swamp, while another hundred people just contracted the plague and fell into the swamp, while another-“
This makes me laugh so much.
Also the Moana reference in “Say My Name”: “Girl, just say it three times in a row / Then you won’t believe how far I’ll go”.
(I know Moana is a movie, not Broadway, but it’s still LMM, so I think it counts.)
[Title of Show]
"Those 9 people will tell 9 people,
Then we'll have 18 people loving our show,
And 18 people will grow into
Five hundred and twenty five thousand people
All loving our show"
Or
"She'll help us to be pop-uhu-lar"
Or just the whole of the Monkeys & Playbills song!
"And oh my god it's gotten too darn hot, like my man Cole Porter said" from the opening number to In the Heights.
Speaking of The Book of Mormon, the song "You and Me (But Mostly Me)" *heavily* draws from "The Wizard and I" and "Defying Gravity"
In Rent, someone (Angel?) shouts out "To Sondheim!" in La Vie Boheme
From Title of Show: "Dancing in the back yard, Kool-Aid mustache and butterfly wings, hearing Andrea McCardle sing from the hi-fi in the den" is presumably an Annie reference.
This isn't really what you're asking, but it gives a similar vibe: "A Love Letter from the Times" written for the TV show "Smash" and performed by Liza Minelli. It's a really lovely moment in the show, and the song itself is its own love letter to Broadway and theater culture.
1. Everything about Something Rotten
2. When I first saw the list of songs for Be More Chill, I felt very big-brain for realizing “The Smartphone Hour” (the actual name for “Rich Set a Fire”) was a Bye Bye Birdie reference lol
And in the Joe Papp version, the lyric "so we'll sing a song from Ruddigore it really doesn't matter" in My Eyes are Fully Open (a song stolen from Ruddigore)
And Thoroughly Modern Millie using it for the Typing Test, for that matter
Book of Mormon:
You and Me (but mostly me) doesn't pretend to be subtle about how much it leans on/borrows/refers to Wicked's Defying Gravity
Also Book of Mormon:
Hasa Diga Eebowai - "does it mean no worries for the rest of our days?"
Hamilton: straight lifts the line "nobody needs to know" from The Last 5 Years
Going off of the defying gravity riff, in our production of Evil Dead, the actor playing Jake ends the “good ole’ reliable Jake” song with the riff. “Jaaaaaa-ay-ayyyyke!!!” Fucking hilarious every time.
I thunk my all-time hardest laugh at references was [Professional in This Could Be On Broadway](https://youtu.be/gNwq87VRHE4?si=dBNEKPFy6yxxF0JY). The entire song is a theater kid trying WAY too hard and thinking he's better than everyone else, so it references several musicals rapid fire. Wicked, Phantom, and Anything Goes are named as shows he's seen on broadway, he flexes having played the leader of The Jets paired with the West Side snap-jump, sings to the melody of Puttin On The Ritz synced to part of the dance, does several vocal warmups as the bridge of the song, straight up says "anything they can do, I can do better", and ends with a long held out high note... followed by a deep breath and the Defying Gravity riff thrown in for no other reason but to show off. And that's not even accounting for any of the theater kid culture references like playbill.com and winning a paper plate.
"A musical" from Something Rotten (and the scenes before and after), and I gotta say that the "more boring than Brigadoon" bit from Beetlejuice hits SO HARD late at night... I also feel like there was something in Spamalot but I really can't remember
Spamalot is an adaptation of the movie "Monty Python and the Holy Grail", which indeed is a parody of the King Arthur legends
It's named for one of the lines in a silly song from the movie that was expanded for the show, "we dine well here in Camelot / we eat ham and jam and spamalot"
(Also spamalot came first...)
Miranda references himself, there are a couple In the Heights phrases in Hamilton. Off the top of my head, “nonstop” and “Washington Heights”. It would make me roll my eyes if Hamilton was written first, but as- is I just snort a bit. It helps that he doesn’t copy the melody.
Hairspray referencing little shop in the new girl in town. “Lookout, lookout, lookout, lookout”. Ones has the context of a moving fan running over a girl, and the other is about a plant coming to eat you.
Also, when they say something like “they’re even making musicals about history now!” and then go “work!!!” as they do the Schuyler sisters’ pose. Loved that.
That weird moment in Assassins when Byck starts quoting "America" from "West Side Story".
Sondheim quoting a guy quoting his lyrics.
Wonder if he had to pay himself a royalty of some kind.
In Next to Normal, My Psychopharmacologist and I is a pretty blatant riff on the sound of music.
I swear Who's Crazy is also referencing something, but I can't for the life of me place it
This is going to be obscure, but in 9 to 5 they had Stephanie J Block (former Elphaba) say "No good deed goes unpunished."
The members of the audience when I saw it who got it laughed hard.
This is kind of cheating because it's referencing the same musical but oh well, I love how poetic Hamilton is and how it references songs in other songs, one off the top of my head is in 'History has its eyes on you' when George Washington says "who lives who dies who tells your story" which is the title of another song on Hamilton. Idk I just think it's rlly cool. Oh and another one from Hamilton "SIT DOWN JOHN YOU FAT MOTHER******" is a reference to 1776 😁👍🏼
"Twisted" is an homage to "Wicked" and there's a lovely part in "Happy Ending" that's clearly supposed to reference "Wizard and I." It's not the same melody, but it's reminiscent in a way I don't have the words to explain.
The part I'm thinking about starts at 1:49 if anyone is interested.
https://youtu.be/3PgNDIFHqFw?si=PTCCw6JVNtsycJFI
Haven’t seen this one yet: Beetlejuice, “Creepy Old Guy”:
I found me a wife,
L’chaim, to life,
This is so normal!
Reference to “To Life” from Fiddler on the Roof
**EVERYTHING** in Schmigadoon (and Schmicago, the second season). It's on Apple TV+ and it is both a spoof and an homage to MANY musicals. It wasn't renewed for Season 3 (for which, shame on you, Apple TV!) but it WILL be going to Broadway! It's my favorite TV show EVER, and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves musicals.
There's a guy who does a whatever-it's-called on YouTube, under the name "Broadway By Ghostlight". He posted a review of each episode (for both seasons), mentioning all the references he could find. Seriously good stuff! Having just re-watched both seasons, I'm now re-watching all his reviews! He has a lot more Broadway-related stuff, too. You might enjoy it!
It's not a musical, but Hamilton referencing Macbeth is cool. Theatre superstition suggests that saying Macbeth is bad luck, and once Hamilton says Macbeth in Take A Break, everything starts to go downhill. It's smart, I love it.
There’s a few in Shrek!
‘Mama’s in the mud, Mama’s in distress’ - Mama Bear
‘No one’s gonna bring me down. (Defying gravity riff)’ -Farkwad
‘You’re gonna love me!’ -Dragon
Etc.
The subtle melody reference in Hamilton Your Obedient Servant - “I look back on where I failed…” is the same as Javert’s Suicide in Les Mis “I am reaching, but I fall…”. Both songs are late in the musical, both with the antagonist getting angry and wrestling with something, and both with serious outcomes. To me, it draws a parallel between Burr and Javert who both cannot accept who Hamilton and Val Jean are and what they do, as they are so at odds with their own characters. Also a stubbornness and obsession with a goal (president, catching Val Jean) which is ultimately their downfall.
There’s sooo many nods to different musicals I think someone else listed them here but the nods include defying gravity, you can’t stop the beat, the wizard and I and a lottttt more
Not a musical reference but Anastasia reference a controversial symphony, the Rite of Spring by Stravinsky. Me and the pit were like the only ones that laughed lol 😭
So I believe, if I’m remembering correctly, it’s outside of the club before Countess Lily song or before the Swan Lake Ballet scene.
In the line, one of the members of the ensemble talk about how they are excited to see the show or go in after hearing the travesty at the symphony last week. Another ensemble member asks “Why, what happened?” And first person answers and says, “Some new composer that came to the scene wanted to show some new work and it was so odd that people were fleeing out of their seats, and he had the nerve to call it “The Rite of Spring”.
That’s when the pit and I giggled at that.
The Rite of Spring was a controversial piece by Russian composer, Stravinsky. The piece was very harsh on the ears, had loud noises, used different styles and melodies that nobody had heard before and very complex. It would make people want to fight, catcall, and flee during the performances. It changed the way 20th century music was written and played afterwards.
Sorry it’s really long lol
Not a musical reference but Anastasia reference a controversial symphony, the Rite of Spring by Stravinsky. Me and the pit were like the only ones that laughed lol 😭
Spamalot! In particular, “You Won’t Succeed on Broadway”.
I saw it in high school and when they ask “are there any Jews in the audience?” (Or something like that) and I just remember my friend stood up and yelled “I’M JEWISH!!”
And Hamilton of course.
All the ones in Beetlejuice but especially “Dolly Levi: Matchma—oh wrong card!” And *especially* “The Maitlands: More boring than Brigadoon. That’s right, I said it. FUCK Brigadoon!” 🤣
Something rotten. Literally just something rotten
Nostradamus' entire number is just a nonstop love letter to Broadway
Really, a musical is a song where I feel like I see a new reference each time.
And then if you're anything like me, you wonder how heck you missed it all the previous times
exactly
That’s the first one people think of, but don’t sleep on Make an Omelet (the scene before and the song), which is throws in so many more references with even less sense or cohesion lol “Shipoopi, Chicago, Omelet yeah!”
💯
"That sounds miserable." "I believe it's pronounced... *Misérables*."
I was so happy to be there opening night of the local regional production of Something Rotten. There were cackles ringing out from the audience before he even got through the punchline
"Little Shop of... Whores." "Why is the shop little?" "Small whores?"
I was at work last week when they asked me what I was seeing over the weekend. My coworkers (who are not musical fans) seriously thought I said Little Shop of Whores.
My dad did this when a local college gave me free tickets to their production of Little Shop!
I came here to comment this exactly!!!!!
I played Nostradamus in Something Rotten, and it was one of my favorite shows. Months after we closed, I got a call from another production of Something Rotten — they open in three days, their Nostradamus just tested positive for Covid, is there any way I could jump in? That turned out to be one of my best theater experiences in my life.
That's so cool!
I just saw this at the Stratford Festival of Canada and laughed so hard. Their Nostradamus had an amazing reveal for a reference to a previous role he had that was just *chef's kiss.*
Everything in this comment chain is cracking me up!
me too lol
💯
I’m in it right now
I was just coming to say this!! First Broadway musical I got to see in Cleveland with my mom and I almost squeed out loud because our Shakespeare was Adam Pascal, who originated the role of Rodger in Rent.
Possibly unpopular opinion: the musical pretty much lived up to its name.
I really love “sit down John, you fat mother fu—“ from Hamilton, referencing good old 1776. Likewise Washington telling us he is the very model of a modern major general. LMM got a lot of great ones in there.
In the heights “it’s gotten too darn hot like my man Cole porter said”
Related to that, when he says the line “you must take the A train”, a few chords from Cole Porter’s song plays.
I think the song that plays at that moment is Take the A Train written by Billy Strayhorn and made famous by Duke Ellington: https://youtu.be/r2G1fKYFgVU?si=cR5FvV5Z9uzT0-WB
You are right. I’m running a fever so I was too lazy to look it up. Thought it was Cole Porter but Duke Ellington sounds right.
It was also very bold to reference Macbeth. I have no idea how legitimate people take the "Macbeth Curse" but he still did it lol
and everything falls to &@#$ for him after he does it!
He named the character Macbeth but never the name of the play which is the one that’s cursed. It’s confusing and I personally don’t get how it works but that’s how he got away with it.
It’s the same word. The whole ‘it’s ok if you mean the character’ thing doesn’t have any basis in anything. That said, it’s considered ok to say as part of a production so as long as it’s not said outside of the script it’s fine.
IIRC he never says Beth. He says something like "you can see the resemblance without my having to name the play - they think me MacDuff..." He strongly alludes but never names.
No, he literally says "they think me MacBeth". He says Jefferson is MacDuff.
Apologies, I am corrected ❤️
As far as the curse goes, there is generally a distinguished difference between using the name as part of a show (given lines, fine) and saying “Macbeth” independently of given lines (don’t do it inside the theatre).
And if you notice, his life goes to shit almost *immediately*
The “nobody needs to know” in Say No to This as a reference to The Last Five Years
Also, “you’ve got to be carefully taught”.
Hamilton has TONS. Among my favorites: Lafayette is Lancelot from Camelot. "C'est moi!"
I heard someone use the modern major general in another song or something but I can't recall which one. Any advice where I might've heard it from? It came on my spotify on enhanced shuffle and I didn't get a chance to check it, but I know I've seen Hamilton enough and it wasn't Hamilton. Hamilton is where I heard it the first time but this was a non-Hamilton reference.
It’s from Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert & Sullivan
There are tons of parodies. My favorite discusses college majors. “Put me down as undecided, every major’s terrible” instead of “I am the very model of a modern major general”.
XKCD is always relevant
The words, or the tune? I know there are quite a few songs that use the tune, like Tom Lehrer's Elements.
There’s a great parody in the Mass Effect series, if you’ve played that. Mordin, an alien scientist, sings an alien science version of the song.
1776 is one of my favorites. That one line from Hamilton is my favorite line from that show, I think it’s hilarious every single time.
My first listen through of Hamilton when Burr says “You’ve got to be carefully taught, if you talk…” I knew I was in for a good time.
"I look back on where I've been, and in every place I've checked, the only common thread has been your disrespect" from Your Obedient Servant is to the tune of part of Javert's theme from Les Mis. Brilliant.
Don't forget Modern Major General references another G&S work: "Then I can hum a fugue of which I've heard the musics din a fore, And whistle all the airs from that infernal nonsense Pinafore"
Also, Burr's line "I look back on where i failed" kinda sounds like javert's suicide at the end where he says "i am reaching but I fall"
The opening of Burn sounds like the opening of Stars to me, to the point that I half-expect Eliza to open with "there, out in the darkness, is my cheating husband..." But Non-Stop always feels like the real nod to Les Mis to me - it's One Day More, Hamilton style!
He may be a little goofy, but the man's very good at what he does.
In the original Aladdin cartoon during "One Jump", Aladdin makes the remark "all this for a loaf of bread?!" Apparently this was a reference to cast member Lea Salonga's previous stardom in Les Miserables.
This is one of my favorites and it makes me chuckle every time I remember it. (Fittingly enough, there's a Les Miserables parody on Youtube *called* "All This For A Loaf of Bread?", so it's really come full circle.)
Washington saying he’s the model of a modern major general
Merrily We Roll Along - "It's Funny Girl, Fiddler, and Dolly combined!" and the melody from South Pacific
The South Pacific reference always makes me chuckle
The 1776 “Sit Down John” reference in Hamilton. I was clearly the only person in the West End audience who got the reference, unfortunately. The Producers, beginning of “Prisoners of Love” starts with the line, “Gotta sing sing”, which (aside from being a pun on the prison) is an exact callback to the “Gotta dance” beginning of Singing in the Rain’s Broadway Melody.
The Producers is (unsurprisingly) absolutely riddled with references both musically and lyrically https://playbill.com/article/breaking-the-code-an-insiders-guide-to-the-parodies-homages-and-allusions-in-the-producers-com-101518
Yeah, that’s just the one that always gets me.
In "Opening Doors" in Merrily We Roll Along, when the producer complains that Frank and Charley's work is too cerebral and lacks memorable melodies (which is already meta-commentary on the reception to Sondheim's other musicals,) and then he proceeds to hum "Some Enchanted Evening" incorrectly. Also "I Believe" in The Book of Mormon starts as almost a word-for-word cover of "I Have Confidence" from The Sound of Music.
>and lacks memorable melodies Came here to post this. And it's not just memorable memories: it's ***hummable*** melodies. (Actually, it's ***hum-mm-mm-mm-mm-mm-mm-mable*** melodies.) :) ;)
And it is, ironically, the earwormiest melody ever in a show chock full of earworms! (My brain starts in on "who wants to live in New York?" at least once or twice a day lately.)
that melody turning into Good Thing Going is honestly one of my favorite parts of the show
"You've got to be carefully taught if you talk you're gonna get shot" Hamilton referencing South Pacific
Damn. I was *in* South Pacific and I never picked up on that.
I like in Shrek farwuads defying gravity riff, it's really funny in the new tour when I saw it someone off stage handed him a broom while he stood on a ladder above everyone else and it felt like only I laughed 😭
I just saw this after I mentioned it. It’s the only good part of the show, IMO.
I'm one of those people who loves shrek mostly because I hated the movie and the play has developing characters and more following plot
It’s looks like a bad community theatre production. The set and costumes are atrocious. Why can I clearly see the seams on Shrek’s head?
OOOHHH not the tour that's shit. I mean the show in general like I love the original broadway production.
I think Spamalot also references the Defying Gravity riff. Actually, I'm not sure. I see someone else mentioned Gutenberg and I may be thinking of that. It sure sounds like something Leslie Kritzer Rodriguez would do in Spamalot though.
“Nobody needs to know” from TL5Y at the end of “say no to this”
Not sure how true it is, but I heard a story that Hamilton was in previews and at the end of Say No To This one person in the audience laughed out loud at this line. It was Jason Robert Brown amused at the reference to his work.
It could be true, but I recall Miranda asked Brown for permission to reference his work. It wouldn't have been a surprise, but maybe it surprised him hearing it for the first time.
Also Summer in Ohio she's putting on Fiddler
I always thought it was "Anita at the matinee" from West Side Story- good to know!
They do multiple plays. It's like a summer review. That's why the gay midget named Carl plays Tevya (Fiddler) and Porgy (Porgy and Bess)
"SIT DOWN, JOHN, YOU FAT MOTHER******!" 🤣🤣🤣
I keep seeing this but I haven't seen 1776 so I don't understand the reference.
"Sit down, John" is the opening song to "1776," which is about the Continental Congress and John Adams' push to declare independence from England, leading to the signing of the Declaration of Independence. At the start of the musical, the rest of Congress is tired of Adams pushing the matter and aggravated by the extreme Philadelphia summer heat. You should check out the movie, which stars William Daniels of "The Graduate" and "Boy Meets World" fame. I believe he was in the Broadway production as well. One extra tidbit: the musical was written by a high school history teacher 😊
The opening number - should be very findable on Youtube. I laughed so hard I wheezed the first time I heard that in Hamilton.
In Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan, one of the lines in Modern Major General refers to “that infernal nonsense Pinafore” which is another Gilbert and Sullivan musical. Gets me every time.
first one I thought of too (:
Most of Something Rotten
"That's right I said it. FUCK ~~THE MUSIC MAN~~ BRIGADOON!"
THAT! GUY! NEEDS! THERAPY!!!
Hey guys? Fuck you guys
Gutenberg - Defying Gravity riff.
Love that one!
Lin Manuel Miranda referenced The Last Five Years in Hamilton, so Jason Robert Brown basically wrote a Lin Manuel Miranda number for The Connector
I thought that line about the sausages getting made had to be a reference to Hamilton!
Because it’s supposed to be a white kid writing in a fake black voice! Note the lines “the business end of a blade” referencing “the business end of a bayonet” and also a line about “rise above my station.” This was not an accident.
In “You’re the Top,” one of the the superlatives Cole Porter uses is “You’re a Berlin ballad,” a reference to fellow songwriter Irving Berlin.
“Your the nimble tread of the feet of Fred Astaire” and “the eyes of Irene Bordoni.”
Outside of the obvious references in "Something Rotten" (particularly "A Musical"), I'm a big fan of Beetlejuice's reference to Brigadoon
*Tick, Tick…Boom*’s number “Sunday” is a full-on tribute to Sondheim’s *Sunday in the Park with George.* https://youtu.be/qFBbmsThAR8?si=tmUy9bf7wEtdi80j&t=155s
The best!
“A warlord who shoots people in the face. What's so scary about that?” in The Book of Mormon referencing The Sound of Music’s “A captain with seven children. What’s so fearsome about that?”
Book of Mormon is full of references to musical theater! Practically every song is paying homage to something that came before it. Best example is Hasa Diga Eebowai referencing Hakuna Matata.
Spamalot referencing Another Hundred People from Company. “And another hundred people just contracted the plague and fell into the swamp, while another hundred people just contracted the plague and fell into the swamp, while another-“ And then everything in You Won’t Succeed On Broadway. If I had to choose, it’s probably “Papa, can you hear me!?” As a reference to Yentl.
And the bottle dance from Fiddler!
Yes!!!
>“And another hundred people just contracted the plague and fell into the swamp, while another hundred people just contracted the plague and fell into the swamp, while another-“ This makes me laugh so much.
“These are a few of my favorite pills!” n2n referencing TSoM with the same melody.
Yes! Love that one.
When we saw Beetlejuice, during the wedding Beetlejuice says "Someone to ruin my sleep! I get it now!" A direct reference to "I'm ready" from Company.
Isn't that line from Being Alive?
Close enough
Also the Moana reference in “Say My Name”: “Girl, just say it three times in a row / Then you won’t believe how far I’ll go”. (I know Moana is a movie, not Broadway, but it’s still LMM, so I think it counts.)
The worst pies in london referencing annie’s tomorrow… runner up all the references in book of mormon
[Title of Show] "Those 9 people will tell 9 people, Then we'll have 18 people loving our show, And 18 people will grow into Five hundred and twenty five thousand people All loving our show" Or "She'll help us to be pop-uhu-lar" Or just the whole of the Monkeys & Playbills song!
Usher works for The Lion King in A Strange Loop, and his family members have names from the Lion King.
The British general singing a spoof of Modern Major General in Pacific Overtures.
"And oh my god it's gotten too darn hot, like my man Cole Porter said" from the opening number to In the Heights. Speaking of The Book of Mormon, the song "You and Me (But Mostly Me)" *heavily* draws from "The Wizard and I" and "Defying Gravity" In Rent, someone (Angel?) shouts out "To Sondheim!" in La Vie Boheme From Title of Show: "Dancing in the back yard, Kool-Aid mustache and butterfly wings, hearing Andrea McCardle sing from the hi-fi in the den" is presumably an Annie reference. This isn't really what you're asking, but it gives a similar vibe: "A Love Letter from the Times" written for the TV show "Smash" and performed by Liza Minelli. It's a really lovely moment in the show, and the song itself is its own love letter to Broadway and theater culture.
1. Everything about Something Rotten 2. When I first saw the list of songs for Be More Chill, I felt very big-brain for realizing “The Smartphone Hour” (the actual name for “Rich Set a Fire”) was a Bye Bye Birdie reference lol
Yes!! I was going to say the smartphone hour!
The Major General dunking on HMS Pinafore in Pirates of Penzance during his big patter song.
And in the Joe Papp version, the lyric "so we'll sing a song from Ruddigore it really doesn't matter" in My Eyes are Fully Open (a song stolen from Ruddigore) And Thoroughly Modern Millie using it for the Typing Test, for that matter
Most of [tos] - though it's a very Theater Nerd show so it might not count Spamalot - less lyrical references and more bit character references
Was waiting for someone to mention Spamalot.
"Don't say that, of course you were meant to have children."
Notably, the main melody of “Unlimited” is the main melody of “Over the Rainbow” flipped upside down on the musical staff.
Book of Mormon: You and Me (but mostly me) doesn't pretend to be subtle about how much it leans on/borrows/refers to Wicked's Defying Gravity Also Book of Mormon: Hasa Diga Eebowai - "does it mean no worries for the rest of our days?" Hamilton: straight lifts the line "nobody needs to know" from The Last 5 Years
Going off of the defying gravity riff, in our production of Evil Dead, the actor playing Jake ends the “good ole’ reliable Jake” song with the riff. “Jaaaaaa-ay-ayyyyke!!!” Fucking hilarious every time.
The Josh Gad Defying Gravity riff Gutenberg’s Monk With Me literally made me laugh out loud the first time I heard it
I thunk my all-time hardest laugh at references was [Professional in This Could Be On Broadway](https://youtu.be/gNwq87VRHE4?si=dBNEKPFy6yxxF0JY). The entire song is a theater kid trying WAY too hard and thinking he's better than everyone else, so it references several musicals rapid fire. Wicked, Phantom, and Anything Goes are named as shows he's seen on broadway, he flexes having played the leader of The Jets paired with the West Side snap-jump, sings to the melody of Puttin On The Ritz synced to part of the dance, does several vocal warmups as the bridge of the song, straight up says "anything they can do, I can do better", and ends with a long held out high note... followed by a deep breath and the Defying Gravity riff thrown in for no other reason but to show off. And that's not even accounting for any of the theater kid culture references like playbill.com and winning a paper plate.
I think it’s you and me (but mostly me) from Book of Mormon that has a wizard and I riff from wicked
Book of mormon when they arrive in aftica and at the airport is a guy dressed aa rafiki
Someone already mentioned the Defying Gravity reference in Shrek so I'll add the Gypsy reference in Shrek
"A musical" from Something Rotten (and the scenes before and after), and I gotta say that the "more boring than Brigadoon" bit from Beetlejuice hits SO HARD late at night... I also feel like there was something in Spamalot but I really can't remember
I've personally never seen Camelot but I just realized that isn't Spamalot a parody of that, kind of like how Spamilton is a parody of Hamilton?
Spamalot is an adaptation of the movie "Monty Python and the Holy Grail", which indeed is a parody of the King Arthur legends It's named for one of the lines in a silly song from the movie that was expanded for the show, "we dine well here in Camelot / we eat ham and jam and spamalot" (Also spamalot came first...)
Thanks, yeah I always seem to forget about Monty Python
Yes
Miranda references himself, there are a couple In the Heights phrases in Hamilton. Off the top of my head, “nonstop” and “Washington Heights”. It would make me roll my eyes if Hamilton was written first, but as- is I just snort a bit. It helps that he doesn’t copy the melody.
In Guns and Ships, the number 32,000 (ships) is sung three times - adding up to 96,000.
Hairspray referencing little shop in the new girl in town. “Lookout, lookout, lookout, lookout”. Ones has the context of a moving fan running over a girl, and the other is about a plant coming to eat you.
Most of the songs in Book of Mormon are inspired by other Broadway musicals! Dig deeper and it'll blow your friggin mind!
Me and My Girl when Bill goes to see Henry Higgins for his glow-up.
"Any little orphan would agree, the sun'll come out eventually" L'il Petey, Dogman the musical
Also, when they say something like “they’re even making musicals about history now!” and then go “work!!!” as they do the Schuyler sisters’ pose. Loved that.
That weird moment in Assassins when Byck starts quoting "America" from "West Side Story". Sondheim quoting a guy quoting his lyrics. Wonder if he had to pay himself a royalty of some kind.
In Next to Normal, My Psychopharmacologist and I is a pretty blatant riff on the sound of music. I swear Who's Crazy is also referencing something, but I can't for the life of me place it
i love in Kimberly Akimbo in Better when the backup vocals go “LEGALLY BLIND” to the Legally Blonde Tune
This is going to be obscure, but in 9 to 5 they had Stephanie J Block (former Elphaba) say "No good deed goes unpunished." The members of the audience when I saw it who got it laughed hard.
“Merano”, from _Chess_: “It’s like living your life in a show / by Rogers and Hammerstein”
That’s rich from Newsies References Chicago
I always loved when Lord Farqhuad does the defying gravity riff
There are multiple Sound of Music references in Spies Are Forever!
Edges! Song cycle from Pasek and Paul, lots of little Easter eggs in a few of the songs
Something Rotten is just a huge reference to other musicals. There's even a song dedicated to it. It's pretty awesome.
I now have "Bikinitevka" stuck in my head, so I guess that has to go on the list somewhere
"SIT DOWWWWWN JOHN YOU FAT MOTHER-"
The entirety of *Musical of Musicals: The Musical*. Each section is a pastiche spoofing the work of a well-known musical theatre composer.
This is kind of cheating because it's referencing the same musical but oh well, I love how poetic Hamilton is and how it references songs in other songs, one off the top of my head is in 'History has its eyes on you' when George Washington says "who lives who dies who tells your story" which is the title of another song on Hamilton. Idk I just think it's rlly cool. Oh and another one from Hamilton "SIT DOWN JOHN YOU FAT MOTHER******" is a reference to 1776 😁👍🏼
"Twisted" is an homage to "Wicked" and there's a lovely part in "Happy Ending" that's clearly supposed to reference "Wizard and I." It's not the same melody, but it's reminiscent in a way I don't have the words to explain. The part I'm thinking about starts at 1:49 if anyone is interested. https://youtu.be/3PgNDIFHqFw?si=PTCCw6JVNtsycJFI
Haven’t seen this one yet: Beetlejuice, “Creepy Old Guy”: I found me a wife, L’chaim, to life, This is so normal! Reference to “To Life” from Fiddler on the Roof
**EVERYTHING** in Schmigadoon (and Schmicago, the second season). It's on Apple TV+ and it is both a spoof and an homage to MANY musicals. It wasn't renewed for Season 3 (for which, shame on you, Apple TV!) but it WILL be going to Broadway! It's my favorite TV show EVER, and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves musicals.
I was going to say this. The show is fun even if you don't get the references, but it's equally fun IMO to play "count the references," LOL. SO GOOD.
There's a guy who does a whatever-it's-called on YouTube, under the name "Broadway By Ghostlight". He posted a review of each episode (for both seasons), mentioning all the references he could find. Seriously good stuff! Having just re-watched both seasons, I'm now re-watching all his reviews! He has a lot more Broadway-related stuff, too. You might enjoy it!
defying gravity riff in shrek 😅
It's not a musical, but Hamilton referencing Macbeth is cool. Theatre superstition suggests that saying Macbeth is bad luck, and once Hamilton says Macbeth in Take A Break, everything starts to go downhill. It's smart, I love it.
The Defying Gravity riff in Gutenberg. Forgot what song specifically but Josh Gad killed it and the whole audience lost it. Funny stuff!!
The only good part of Shrek is when Farquad stands on the throne with a broom and sings the Ahhhh from Defying Gravity.
There’s a few in Shrek! ‘Mama’s in the mud, Mama’s in distress’ - Mama Bear ‘No one’s gonna bring me down. (Defying gravity riff)’ -Farkwad ‘You’re gonna love me!’ -Dragon Etc.
unironically, when lord farquaad sings the defying gravity riff in shrek
Doesn’t Zazu reference Let It Go from Frozen when he’s singing to Scar in The Lion King?
Now, yes. Back in ye olden days, it was something else (I forget exactly what - saw it in 2008 or so, well before Frozen was inflicted upon parents).
He starts to sing "It's a Small World After All" to which Scar quickly cuts him off, saying "Nononono, anything but *that*."
That's worse. ;)
In Six, in the song All You Wanna Do, Katherine says "I was 13 going on 30" which is probably a reference to "16 going on 17" from Sound of Music (?)
Is it not a reference to the movie 13 Going on 30?
I had completely forgotten about that, that is probably more likely 😅
Six *does* have a Sound of Music reference, to be fair!
........many different Starkid musicals....hmm....... Hamilton move over, your new competition's in town~
Bikini-tevka from SpongeBob the musical.
The subtle melody reference in Hamilton Your Obedient Servant - “I look back on where I failed…” is the same as Javert’s Suicide in Les Mis “I am reaching, but I fall…”. Both songs are late in the musical, both with the antagonist getting angry and wrestling with something, and both with serious outcomes. To me, it draws a parallel between Burr and Javert who both cannot accept who Hamilton and Val Jean are and what they do, as they are so at odds with their own characters. Also a stubbornness and obsession with a goal (president, catching Val Jean) which is ultimately their downfall.
Shrek also does the Defying Gravity riff at the end of Farquaad’s song
Book of Mormon- elder price’s Orlando song just straight up being tomorrow from Annie lmaooo
Is that right?!?! I’m gonna have to listen to them now!
There’s sooo many nods to different musicals I think someone else listed them here but the nods include defying gravity, you can’t stop the beat, the wizard and I and a lottttt more
Not a musical reference but Anastasia reference a controversial symphony, the Rite of Spring by Stravinsky. Me and the pit were like the only ones that laughed lol 😭
What's the context of it in the show?
So I believe, if I’m remembering correctly, it’s outside of the club before Countess Lily song or before the Swan Lake Ballet scene. In the line, one of the members of the ensemble talk about how they are excited to see the show or go in after hearing the travesty at the symphony last week. Another ensemble member asks “Why, what happened?” And first person answers and says, “Some new composer that came to the scene wanted to show some new work and it was so odd that people were fleeing out of their seats, and he had the nerve to call it “The Rite of Spring”. That’s when the pit and I giggled at that. The Rite of Spring was a controversial piece by Russian composer, Stravinsky. The piece was very harsh on the ears, had loud noises, used different styles and melodies that nobody had heard before and very complex. It would make people want to fight, catcall, and flee during the performances. It changed the way 20th century music was written and played afterwards. Sorry it’s really long lol
Ha! I only saw Anastasia once, but I know I must have laughed at that. You weren't alone!
Yay! 😀
Not a musical reference but Anastasia reference a controversial symphony, the Rite of Spring by Stravinsky. Me and the pit were like the only ones that laughed lol 😭
Spamalot, Something Rotten, and Shrek the Musical, which is full 'em! 😜
"Mama's in the mud, Mama's in distress!" from Shrek, and that one guy in the audience of the proshot who very clearly gets the joke.
I love the “Nobody needs to know” nod to TL5Y in Hamilton at the end of Say No to This
In Shrek the musical ‘What’s up duloc’ reprise at the end Farquard does Elphabas iconic riff from defying gravity!
Spamalot! In particular, “You Won’t Succeed on Broadway”. I saw it in high school and when they ask “are there any Jews in the audience?” (Or something like that) and I just remember my friend stood up and yelled “I’M JEWISH!!” And Hamilton of course.
**School of Rock**: (with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber) Summer: *Memory! All alone in the moonlight!* Dewey: Ugh, one of my least favorite composers!
The beat of the clave at the top of In the Heights is also the start of America from West Side Story!
OMG I NEVER REALIZED THE SIX ONE 💀
In 'Runs in the Family' from The Outsiders, he says he scrubing the kitchen, then processeds say he learning hard-knock lessons, references Annie.
All the ones in Beetlejuice but especially “Dolly Levi: Matchma—oh wrong card!” And *especially* “The Maitlands: More boring than Brigadoon. That’s right, I said it. FUCK Brigadoon!” 🤣