Not everyone can sit through nearly 2 hours of what seems like endless song and dance, watching routine after routine all while trying to follow along with the storyline — others though, can appreciate the beauty and art that musicals have to offer. Those of you who are the latter, this list of the 9  most popular Broadway musicals of all time is for you.

1. The Phantom of the Opera

Opened on Broadway January 26, 1988. Featured its 10,000th performance in 2012.

The Phantom of the Opera was written by Richard Stilgoe and Andrew Lloyd Webber, who also wrote the music. The lyrics were by Charles Hart. The Phantom of the Opera is based on the French novel by Gaston Leroux, its central plot revolves around a soprano by the name of Christine Daaé, who becomes the obsession of a mysterious, disfigured musical genius living in the subterranean labyrinth beneath the Paris Opera House.The musical opened in London’s West End in 1986, and on Broadway in 1988. It won the 1986 Olivier Award and the 1988 Tony Award for Best Musical and it is the longest running show in Broadway history.

2. Cats

Opened on Broadway in 1982 at the Winter Garden Theatre, ran for 18 years.

Cats is a sung-through British musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber and produced by Cameron Mackintosh. It is based on Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot, the musical tells the story of a tribe of cats called the Jellicles and the night they make what is known as “the Jellicle choice” and decide which cat will ascend to the Heaviside Layer and come back to a new life. Cats first opened in the West End in 1981 and then on Broadway in 1982, it was directed by Trevor Nunn and choreographed by Gillian Lynne. It won multiple awards, including Best Musical at the Laurence Olivier Awards and the Tony Awards. The London production ran for 21 years and the Broadway production ran for 18 years.

3. Chicago

Opened on Broadway in 1975 46th Street Theatre, ran for 936 performances until 1977.

Chicago is an American musical set in Jazz Age Chicago, the music is by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb, and the book is also by Ebb and Bob Fosse The musical is based on a 1926 play of Chicago by reporter Maurine Dallas Watkins, which was about actual criminals and crimes she reported on. The story follows corruption in the administration of criminal justice and the concept of the “celebrity criminal”. Bob Fosse choreographed the original production, and his style is strongly identified with the show. The Broadway revival holds the record as the longest-running musical revival and the longest-running American musical in Broadway history. It is the second longest-running show in Broadway history, behind The Phantom of the Opera.g

4. The Lion King

Debuted on July 8, 1997 in Minneapolis, Minnesota at the Orpheum Theatre. Opened on Broadway at the New Amsterdam Theater on October 15, 1997 and is the third longest-running show in broadway history.

The Lion King is based on the 1994 Disney animated feature film of The Lion King, it has music by Elton John and lyrics by Tim Rice, the musical score created by Hans Zimmer with choral arrangements by Lebo M. and was directed by Julie Taymor. It has grossed more than $1 billion, making it the highest grossing Broadway production of all time. The musical also earned 6 Tony Awards, one for Best Musical and Best Direction of a Musical, making director Julie Taymor the first woman to earn such an honor.

5. Les Misérables

First premiered at the Broadway Theatre on March 12, 1987

Les Misérables is a sung-through musical based on the 1862 novel, Les Misérables by French poet and novelist Victor Hugo. It premiered in Paris in 1980, and has music by Claude-Michel Schönberg and French lyrics by Alain Boublil and Jean-Marc Natel, an English libretto with English lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer. The London production has run continuously since October 1985, making it the longest-running musical in the West End and the second longest-running musical in the world. It follows the story of Jean Valjean, a French peasant, and his quest for redemption after serving nineteen years in jail for having stolen a loaf of bread for his sister’s starving child. Valjean ends up breaking his parole and starts a new life after a bishop inspires him by an act of mercy, but he is tracked down by a police inspector named Javert. Along the way, Valjean and other characters are swept into a revolutionary period in France, where a group of young idealists make their last stand at a street barricade.

6. A Chorus Line

Opened at the Shubert Theatre on Broadway July 25, 1975.

A Chorus Line is a musical with music by Marvin Hamlisch, lyrics by Edward Kleban and a book by James Kirkwood Jr. and Nicholas Dante. It tells the story of seventeen Broadway dancers auditioning for spots on a chorus line, the musical is set on the stage of a Broadway theatre during an audition for a musical. A Chorus Line shows the viewer the personalities of the performers and the choreographer as they describe the events that have shaped their lives and their decisions to become dancers.

7. Beauty and the Beast

Beauty and the Beast premiered on Broadway on April 18, 1994.

Beauty and the Beast is a musical with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice, and book by Linda Woolverton. Adapted from Disney’s animated film, “Beauty and the Best.” It had been based on the classic French fairy tale by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont. Beauty and the Beast tells the story of a prince who has been magically transformed into an unsightly creature as punishment for his selfish ways. To revert into his human form, the Beast must first learn to love a young woman whom he has imprisoned in his enchanted castle before it is too late.

8. Mamma Mia!

The musical opened on Broadway at the Winter Garden Theatre on October 18, 2001, after beginning previews on October 5.

Mamma Mia! is a jukebox musical written by British playwright Catherine Johnson, based on the songs of ABBA composed by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, former members of the band. The name of the musical comes from the bands chart topping song, Mamma Mia
The musical includes such hits as “Super Trouper”, “Lay All Your Love on Me”, “Dancing Queen”, “Knowing Me, Knowing You”, “Take a Chance on Me”, “Thank You for the Music”, “Money, Money, Money”, “The Winner Takes It All”, “Voulez-Vous”, “SOS” and the title track.

9. Rent

Opened at the Nederlander Theatre on April 29, 1996.

Rent is a rock musical with music, lyrics, and book by Jonathan Larson, it is based on Giacomo Puccini’s opera La Bohème. It tells the story of a group of young artists struggling to survive and create a life in New York City’s East Village in the days of Bohemian Alphabet City, under the shadow of HIV/AIDS. Rent gained critical acclaim and won several awards. The Broadway production closed on September 7, 2008 after a 12-year run of 5,123 performances. In 2005, it was adapted into a motion picture featuring most of the original cast members.