
So, you’re writing a musical. Congratulations! Now you just need three things: a story, songs, and songs that tell the story. Sound intimidating? Worry not: We’ve got tips, tricks, and a full breakdown of the building blocks you need to start Sondheim-ing with the best of them.
Several fundamental, universal components to songwriting are helpful for your musical theater song, because they’re helpful to any song. However, you can (and likely should) experiment with these building blocks to communicate what you need to about your characters, world, and plot.
Verse
The verse generally opens a song and is revisited after the song’s thesis statement. This is your most explicitly exploratory portion, a section for storytelling, reflection, and reckoning. While the lyrics of the verse will rarely be directly reprised, it can still be helpful to include immediately identifiable motifs—lyrical or musical—for your audience to grab hold of.
Chorus or tagline
The chorus is the big, bold declaration of your song: the moment when you tell your audience, as directly as possible, what they should be gathering from this experience. Listen to “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’ ” from “Oklahoma!” or “Kiss the Girl” from “The Little Mermaid”—these musical moments are understandable, simply stated, catchy, and, yes, quite often the literal title of the song.
A tagline is another way to communicate your song’s grand thesis statement in less time than a chorus. Instead, it takes the spot of one line of your verse and is repeated every time you return to that part of the verse. Think of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” or the line “Who could ask for anything more?” in “I Got Rhythm.”
Bridge
We’ve heard verses and choruses aplenty. But now, your song could use a different perspective. Here’s where a bridge is handy.
This section should feel musically different and lyrically express a new point of view on the same subject. Whether that POV is a musing on an opposition (e.g., the chorus is happy, so the bridge is sad) or going deeper into something already established (e.g., the chorus is about a happy puppy and the bridge is specifically about puppy food) is up to you, but a tangible difference is the name of this game.
Additionally, think about the genre of your tunes. There’s a rich history of musical theater to pull inspiration from: the jazz-tinged world of Cole Porter, the classicism of Rodgers and Hammerstein, the sensitive experiments of Stephen Sondheim, the pop-rock bombast of Andrew Lloyd Webber, the sugary yearning of Stephen Schwartz, the heartfelt soaring of Pasek and Paul, and so, so much more.
There are also so many contemporary musicals that take their cue from songs outside of the theater space, with the hip-hop musical “Hamilton” being a massively successful example. Plus, the au courant trend of jukebox musicals has trained audiences to appreciate top 40 pop-writing in the context of a musical. In other words, the musical sky’s the limit!
Musical theater songs have jobs to do, and these kinds of pragmatic touchstones are invaluable to assist the writing phase.
Opening number
Just like it sounds, this kind of song opens the entire show. From a musical, tonal perspective, the vibe is up to you, but lyrically, these songs often show us the status quo of the world before the protagonist causes everything to change.
“I want, I wish”
Your protagonist will likely sing this song early in the show. It’s time for them to name the thing that will (or they think will) give them fulfillment. Something in this status quo world is missing; in this song, you’ll tell us all what it is and why it matters.
Philosophy
A character, often your antagonist, has a set of beliefs that dictate how they live. And if the world would just shut up and listen to these beliefs, everything would go a lot smoother! Here, the world can shut up and listen to this character’s beliefs, via song.
Advice
Think of this as a targeted, constructive philosophy song from one character to another: “I can help you if you follow these rules!”
Seduction
A targeted, less-constructive philosophy song from one character at another. “You can help me if you just do this little thing….”
Love
Isn’t it nice when people fall in love with each other? It’s a core human experience and, often, a core experience of a musical. Sing about it, baby!
Metaphor
If you put a seed into the ground and feed it properly, a plant will grow.
That is a literal description of a process, yet I’m willing to bet it evokes something bigger than itself—having a child, building a relationship, living a life, etc.
This is the simple math of a metaphor song: The lyrics are about something literal that figuratively describes something else.
“Things have changed”
Something huge has happened to a character. Perhaps they’ve gotten what they wanted or realized they never needed it. The story must stop as this character musically reckons with their new world. You’ll often slot this song in the middle or right at the end.
These are just some of the types of songs at your disposal—and do feel free to combine, subvert, and experiment with any other needs of your story not listed here.
“Rock Island” from “The Music Man”
This opening number tells us all about the status quo of protagonist Harold Hill and his world, a world of conning, traveling salesmen, and go-go-go energy, damn the consequences.
“Waving Through a Window” from “Dear Evan Hansen”
In this “I want” song, Evan Hansen (Ben Platt) imagines himself stuck behind a see-through pane of glass, observing but unable to interact. Everyone around him seems to have this whole “living life” thing figured out, and he wants this feeling of connection, desperately.
“Why” from “tick, tick… BOOM”
Jonathan Larson (Andrew Garfield) sings about the pragmatic joy of making musical theater in this particularly metatextual, particularly beautiful philosophy song.
“Turn It Off” from “The Book of Mormon”
This is an especially ironic, bitterly satirical advice song all about the helpfulness of deep repression.
“Say No to This” from “Hamilton”
Here, Alexander Hamilton (Lin-Manuel Miranda) reckons with the seductive powers of infidelity. How, indeed, can he say no to this?
“Almost Like Being in Love” from “Brigadoon”
Why are these characters so profoundly happy and light? It must be some reason other than love, even though it feels like it. This can’t be a love song… right?
“My Friends” from “Sweeney Todd”
That demon barber of Fleet Street (Josh Groban) sings about his razor blades as though they’re friends, collaborators, or even lovers. That’s a metaphor, baby!
“Defying Gravity” from “Wicked”
In this first-act closer, things have changed indeed for Elphaba (Idina Menzel), who’s more than ready to fly.