The best shows to see in NYC this winter

Bloomberg — The current season has been particularly rich in comedies and musicals that have hit the New York stage. There are jukebox musicals featuring hits from pop genius Max Martin and rock legend Neil Diamond. There are powerful straight forward games that wisely tackle issues like race and crime, and plenty of megastars in jaw-dropping starring roles. It’s a wonderful time to go to the theater.

The most popular show in town is a short-lived revival of Stephen Sondheim’s musical Merrily We Roll Along at the New York Theater Workshop, starring Jonathan Groff, Lindsay Mendez and Daniel Radcliffe. The original 1981 musical ran for only 16 performances before closing. The plot, a bitter success story and unraveling friendships told in reverse, can be hard to swallow. However, the music is so adored that producers continue to perform it.

If you can’t get tickets on the scalper, there are many other interesting options. Below you’ll find our 10 favorite shows, reviewed by Bloomberg Pursuits contributors.

The Phantom of the Opera

Where: Majestic Theater

Until April 16th

In September, it was announced that Andrew Lloyd Webber’s enchanting play, Broadway’s longest-running musical, would conclude in February. The excitement generated by the show sent ticket sales soaring and the season was extended until April 16. The show is as lavish and romantic as ever, and now that it’s on its last legs, the audience is excited. Don’t miss your chance to see it before it’s gone.

Some like it hot

Where: Shubert Theater

Until September 2023

The 1959 film starred Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis, dressed as women, as a musical couple on the run from a mobster, and Marilyn Monroe as a sultry ingénue. It might feel like an outdated story to do a remake. But in the hands of Tony Award-winning screenwriters Matthew Lopez and Amber Ruffi and songwriting duo Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (Hairspray), the story has heart, hilarity and plenty of energy. The performers tap dance and sing their hearts out in a light-hearted game that will appeal to a wide variety of audiences.

Kimberly Akimbo

Where: Booth Theater

Until April 2023

Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright David Lindsay-Abaire (Rabbit Hole) teams up with Tony Award-winning composer Jeanine Tesori (Fun Home) to tell the story of Kim, a charming teenager suffering from a disease that makes her look like a 72-year-old woman. Played by Tony Award winner Victoria Clark, Kim will win your heart and the story will surprise and delight you.

Topdog/Loser

Where: John Golden Theater

Until January 15th

Suzan-Lori Parks’ Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece receives a powerful revival from stars Corey Hawkins and Yahya-Abdul Mateen II as troubled brothers and roommates who struggle with poverty, heartbreak and each other. Only a few representations of this powerful work remain. Don’t miss the opportunity to see an important piece of theater history.

Quite a noise

Where: Broadhurst Theatre

Until September 2023

You might think you’re not a fan of Neil Diamond, but you’re wrong. After seeing this energetic retelling of the singer’s life, starring Broadway mainstays Will Swensen and Robyn Hurder alongside a spectacular dance ensemble, hits like Coming to America and Sweet Caroline will hang in your head for days. Hurder, a veteran of shows like Moulin Rouge and Grease, takes the cake.

Funny Girl

Where: August Wilson Theater

Until May 2023

If you’ve been living under a rock, you might not know that a revival of Barbra Streisand’s Funny Girl, starring Beanie Feldstein, was brought to Broadway earlier this year to a lukewarm reception. Over the summer, Feldstein left the project and Glee star Lea Michele came on board. Michele, a true star, elevates the entire production (whose cast now includes the talented Tovah Feldshuh) with megawatt voice and magnetic appeal. Being in the audience for this show is truly an electric experience.

&Juliet

Where: Stephen Sondheim Theater

Until May 2023

Songwriter and producer Max Martin has been behind an astonishing number of amazing pop songs over the past three decades, sung by stars like Britney Spears, the Backstreet Boys, Katie Perry and Pink. More than two dozen appear in this jukebox musical, which reimagine Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet story if Juliet survived and walked away. He’s goofy, deceptive, wacky, and downright hilarious. A talented cast and beautiful arrangements make the audience dance in the aisles.

There is no Mo

Where: Belasco Theater

Until February 26th

This is one of those shows that are hard to explain, but so exciting and unique that you have to experience it to understand it. The premise is a highly problematic hypothesis: “What if the US government offered black Americans one-way plane tickets to Africa?” Buckle up, because the following cartoons from playwright Jordan E. Cooper are equal parts shocking, hilarious, and probing.

Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish

Where: New World Stages

Until January 1st

This National Yiddish Folksbiene Theater production of the most-performed English-language musical translates Sheldon Harnick’s texts and Joseph Stein’s book into Yiddish, the language spoken by Jews living in a Russian shtetl in 1905. Directed by actor Joel Grey, the performances of the actors are as raw and strong as the dialect.

Ohio State Homicides

Where: James Earl Jones Theater

Until February 12, 2023

In her first performance at the newly renamed James Earl Jones Theatre, Tony Award winner Audra McDonald plays a famous writer who returns to her college campus to reflect on the traumatic events that befell her as a student. This touching mystery is the first play by 91-year-old playwright Adrienne Kennedy to hit Broadway, which is reason enough to buy a ticket for its limited run. Plus, it’s never nice to miss an opportunity to see Audra on stage.