1. (Jonathan Larson, 1996). Rent tells the story of impoverished artists living in the East Village of New York City during the AIDS crisis circa 1990. It is narrated by filmmaker Mark Cohen, whose ex-girlfriend Maureen just left him for a woman (Joanne), and whose recovering heroin addict roommate Roger meets the dying stripper Mimi. Mark and Roger's former roommate and itinerant philosopher/hacker Collins comes to town, where he is robbed, then saved by the transvestite Angel, with whom he moves in. Meanwhile, the former fourth roommate of Mark, Roger, and Collins - Benny - has married into a wealthy family and bought the building Mark and Roger now live in, from which he wants to evict them. An adaptation of Puccini's opera La bohéme, Rent won the 1996 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and includes songs like 'La Vie Bohéme' and 'Seasons of Love'.

2. (Alain Boublil, Claude-Michel Schönberg, and Herbert Kretzmer, 1985). A partial retelling of the Victor Hugo novel of the same name, this work follows Jean Valjean, who was convicted of stealing a loaf of bread to feed his starving niece. He breaks his parole and is doggedly pursued by Inspector Javert. Several years later, the lives of Valjean, his adoptive daughter Cosette, her lover Marius and his former lover Éponine, and Javert become intertwined on the barricades of an 1832 student rebellion in Paris. The longest-running show on London's West End, it features the songs 'I Dreamed a Dream,' 'Master of the House,' 'Do You Hear the People Sing?', 'One Day More,' and 'On My Own.'

3. (Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, 1951). Anna Leonowens, a British schoolteacher, travels to Siam (now Thailand) to teach English to the King's many children and wives. Anna's western ways, the looming threat of British rule, and romance between Lun Tha and the concubine Tuptim all weigh heavily on the traditional, chauvinistic King. As the King dies, Anna kneels at his side, and the prince abolishes the practice of kowtowing. Adapted from Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon and inspired by Anna Leonowens' memoirs, it was made into an Academy Award-winning 1956 film starring Yul Brynner. Its songs include 'I Whistle a Happy Tune,' 'Getting to Know You,' and 'Shall We Dance?'.

4. (Andrew Lloyd Webber; Charles Hart & Richard Stilgoe; Richard Stilgoe & Andrew Lloyd Webber; 1986). At the Paris Opera in 1881, the mysterious Phantom lures the soprano Christine Daae to his lair ('The Music of the Night'). Christine falls in love with the opera's new patron, Raoul, so the Phantom drops a chandelier and kidnaps Christine. They kiss, but he disappears, leaving behind only his white mask. Adapted from the eponymous 1909 novel by Gaston Leroux, it is the longest-running show in Broadway history.

5. (W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, 1879). Frederic, having turned twenty-one, is released from his apprenticeship to the title pirates. Reaching shore for the first time, Frederic falls in love with Mabel, the daughter of Major-General Stanley. Frederic realizes that he was apprenticed until his twenty-first birthday, and, having been born on February 29, he must return to his apprenticeship. Mabel vows to wait for him. The Major-General and the police pursue the pirates, who surrender. The pirates are forgiven, and Mabel and Frederic reunite. As the work is actually a light opera, most of the songs are simply titled after their first lines; the most memorable ones include 'Pour, oh pour, the pirate sherry' and 'I am the very model of a modern Major-General.'

6. (Richard Rodgers; Oscar Hammerstein II; Oscar Hammerstein II; 1943). On the eve of Oklahoma's statehood, cowboy Curly McLain and sinister farmhand Judd compete for the love of Aunt Eller's niece, Laurey. Judd falls on his own knife after attacking Curly, and Curly and Laurey get married. A subplot concerns Ado Annie, who chooses cowboy Will Parker over the Persian peddler Ali Hakim. Featuring the songs 'Oh What a Beautiful Mornin'' and 'Oklahoma,' it is often considered the first modern book musical.

7. (Arthur Sullivan; W.S. Gilbert; 1885). The Mikado [Emperor of Japan] has made flirting a capital crime in Titipu, so the people have appointed an ineffectual executioner named Ko-Ko. Ko-Ko's ward, Yum-Yum, marries the wandering musician Nanki-Poo, and the two lovers fake their execution. The Mikado visits the town and forgives the lovers of their transgression. It includes the song 'Three Little Maids From School Are We.'

8. (Jerry Bock; Sheldon Harnick; Joseph Stein; 1964). Tevye is a lowly Jewish milkman in Tsarist Russia ('If I Were a Rich Man'), and his daughters are anxious to get married ('Matchmaker'). Tzeitel marries the tailor Motel ('Sunrise, Sunset,' 'The Bottle Dance'), Hodel gets engaged to the radical student Perchik, and Chava falls in love with a Russian named Fyedka. The families leave their village, Anatevka, after a pogrom. It is adapted from Tevye and his Daughters by Sholem Aleichem.

9. (Richard Rodgers; Oscar Hammerstein II; Howard Lindsey & Russel Crouse; 1959). Maria, a young woman studying to be a nun in Nazi-occupied Austria, becomes governess to the seven children of Captain von Trapp. She teaches the children to sing ('My Favorite Things,' 'Do-Re-Mi'), and she and the Captain fall in love and get married. After Maria and the von Trapps give a concert for the Nazis ('Edelweiss'), they escape Austria ('Climb Ev'ry Mountain'). It was adapted into an Academy Award-winning 1965 film starring Julie Andrews.

10. (Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, 1971). In the week leading up to the crucifixion, Judas grows angry with Christ's claims of divinity, and Mary Magdalene laments her romantic feelings for Christ. Judas hangs himself, and Christ, though frustrated with God, accepts his fate. Among the songs in this musical are 'I Don't Know How to Love Him,' 'Gethsemane,' and 'Trial Before Pilate.'

11. (W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, 1878). Aboard the title ship, Josephine promises her father, the captain, that she will marry Sir Joseph Porter, but Josephine secretly loves the common sailor Ralph Rackstraw, and the two plan to elope. A peddler named Buttercup reveals that she accidentally switched the captain and Ralph at birth: Ralph is of noble birth and should be captain, while the captain is nothing more than a common sailor. Ralph, now captain, marries Josephine, and the former captain marries Buttercup. Like The Pirates of Penzance, songs are named after their first lines; they include 'We sail the ocean blue,' 'I'm called Little Buttercup,' and 'Pretty daughter of mine.'

12. (Meredith Wilson nd Franklin Lacey, 1957). Swindler Harold Hill attempts to con the families of River City, Iowa by starting a boys' band. While there, he falls in love with the librarian Marian Paroo. The scheme is exposed, but the town forgives him. Notable songs include 'Trouble' (the origin of the phrase 'trouble in River City') 'Seventy-Six Trombones,' 'Shipoopi,' 'Gary, Indiana,' and 'Till There was You.'

13. (Andrew Lloyd Webber; T.S. Eliot; T.S. Eliot). The Jellicle tribe of cats roams the streets of London. They introduce the audience to various members: Rum Tum Tugger, Mungojerrie, Rumpleteazer, Mr. Mistoffelees, and Old Deuteronomy. Old Deuteronomy must choose a cat to be reborn, and he chooses the lowly Grizabella after she sings 'Memory.' It is adapted from Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot.

14. (Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler, 1979). Sweeney Todd, a barber, returns to London from Australia, where the evil Judge Turpin, who lusted after his wife, unjustly imprisoned him. Sweeney's daughter, Joanna, escapes Turpin - of whom she had been a ward during her father's incarceration - and falls in love with the sailor Anthony Hope. A vengeful Sweeney begins murdering his customers, and his neighbor, Mrs. Lovett, bakes them into meat pies. Sweeney kills the Judge but, in his fury, accidentally kills a mad beggar woman who was really his long-lost wife. Mrs. Lovett's shop boy, Tobias, grows scared and kills Sweeney. Its famously complex score includes 'The Ballad of Sweeney Todd,' 'The Worst Pies in London,' 'Johanna,' and 'God, That's Good,' but the show is nearly sung through and it is sometimes nontrivial to identify distinct songs within it.

15. Frederick Loewe; Alan Jay Lerner; Alan Jay Lerner; 1956). As part of a bet with his friend Colonel Pickering, phonetics professor Henry Higgins transforms cockney flower girl Eliza Doolittle into a proper lady. After Eliza falls for Freddy Eynsforth-Hill, Higgins realizes he is in love with Eliza. Eliza returns to Higgins' home in the final scene. It is adapted from George Bernard Shaw's play Pygmalion.

16. (Irving Berlin, Herbert Fields, and Dorothy Fields, 1946). Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show comes to town, and performer Frank Butler challenges anyone to a shooting contest. Annie Oakley wins the contest and joins the show. She and Frank fall in love, but Frank quits out of jealousy that Annie is a better shooter than he is. The title role was originated by Ethel Merman, and songs in the show include 'There's No Business Like Show Business,' 'Doin' What Comes Natur'lly,' and 'Anything You Can Do.'

17. (Frank Loesser, Jo Swerling, and Abe Burrows, 1950). Nathan Detroit runs an underground craps game but needs a location. To make enough money to use the Biltmore garage for his game, he bets notorious gambler Sky Masterson that Sky can't convince a girl of Nathan's choice to go to Havana with him for dinner; Nathan chooses the righteous missionary Sarah Brown. Sky wins the bet but ends up having to bring a dozen sinning gamblers to a revival meeting. As Nathan attends the meeting, his long-suffering fiancé Adelaide, a nightclub dancer, is increasingly frustrated that their fourteen-year engagement has not led to marriage. At the meeting, Sky bets a large amount of money against the gamblers' souls, winning, and eventually convincing Sarah to marry him and Nathan to marry Adelaide. Adapted from short stories by Damon Runyon, the musical includes songs like 'A Bushel and a Peck,' 'Luck Be a Lady,' and 'Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat.'

18. (Leonard Bernstein; Stephen Sondheim; Arthur Laurents; 1957). Riff and Bernardo lead two rival gangs: the blue-collar Jets and the Sharks from Puerto Rico. Tony, a former Jet, falls in love with the Bernardo's sister Maria and vows to stop the fighting, but he kills Bernardo after Bernardo kills Riff in a 'rumble.' Maria's suitor Chino shoots Tony, and the two gangs come together. Notable songs include 'America,' 'Tonight,' 'Somewhere,' 'I Feel Pretty,' and 'Gee, Officer Krupke.' Adapted from Romeo and Juliet, it was made into an Academy Award-winning 1961 film starring Natalie Wood.

19. (Andrew Lloyd Webber; Tim Rice; Tim Rice; 1978). Che Guevara narrates the life story of Eva Peron, a singer and film actress who marries Juan Peron. Juan is elected President of Argentina, and Eva's charity work makes her immensely popular among her people ('Don't Cry for Me Argentina') before her death from cancer. It was made into a 1996 film starring Madonna and Antonio Banderas.

20. (Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II, and Joshua Logan, 1949). During the Pacific Theater of World War II, Ellie, a U.S. Navy nurse, has fallen in love with Emile, a French plantation owner. Emile helps Lt. Cable carry out an espionage mission against the Japanese. The mission is successful, and Emile and Nellie reunite. Featuring the songs 'Some Enchanted Evening,' 'There is Nothing Like a Dame,' and 'I'm Gonna Wash that Man Right Outta My Hair,' it is adapted from James Michener's Tales of the South Pacific.

21. (Fred Kander; John Ebb; Jon Masteroff; 1966). Cabaret is set in the seedy Kit-Kat Club in Weimar Berlin, where the risqué Master of Ceremonies presides over the action ('Wilkommen'). The British lounge singer Sally Bowles falls in love with the American writer Cliff Bradshaw, but the two break up as the Nazis come to power. Adapted into an Academy Award-winning 1972 film starring Liza Minelli and Joel Grey, it is based on Christopher Isherwood's Goodbye to Berlin.