Musicals

The curtain rises, the lights come up, and for the next few hours, you are transported to a world where people sing through their problems. Musicals tell stories ranging from the petty to the profound through song and, as they belt out from the stage, saturate the culture, moving from theater to film to radio, inspiring uninhibited shower-singing and getting unapologetically stuck in your head. This month's challenge draws its prompts from musicals. Select the prompt you want from the list and, as always, you can use any part of the prompt—including delving deeper into the lyrics and performance of the selected songs—in crafting your fanwork.

This challenge opened in April 2025 .

Prompts

Choose your prompt from the collection below.

View Prompts

Don’t it feel like the wind is always howlin’? 
Don’t it seem like there’s never any light! 
~ Annie, Hard Knock Life

The world has gone mad today 
And good’s bad today 
And black’s white today 
And day’s night today 
~ Anything Goes, Anything Goes

Just like the earth, just like the sun 
Two worlds together are better than one 
~ Big River, Worlds Apart

I'll be standin' on the corner high, when they drag your body by 
~ Bullets Over Broadway, (I’ll Be Glad When You’re Dead) You Rascal You

A million tears for every gleam, they say 
Those lights above you think nothing of you 
It's those that love you that have to pay 
~ Bullets Over Broadway, There’s A Broken Heart For Every Light On Broadway

Kids! 
Who could guess that they would turn out that way! 
Why can't they be like we were 
Perfect in every way? 
~ Bye Bye Birdie, Kids

For the sun will rise 
And the moon will set 
And learn how to settle 
For what you get 
~ Cabaret, So What

All alone in the moonlight 
I can smile at the old days 
~ Cats, Memory

If you’d have been there 
If you’d have seen it 
I betcha you would have done the same 
~ Chicago, Cell Block Tango

And then he ran into my knife. 
He ran into my knife ten times 
~ Chicago, Cell Block Tango

I'm gonna be a celebrity 
That means somebody everyone knows 
They're gonna recognize my eyes 
My hair, my teeth, my boobs, my nose 
~ Chicago, Roxie

So I chose freedom, running around trying everything new 
But nothing impressed me at all 
I never expected it to 
~ Evita, Don’t Cry For Me Argentina

Say that you’ll hold me forever 
Say that the wind won’t change on us 
Say that we’ll stay with each other 
And it’ll always be like this

I’m gonna hold you forever 
The wind will never change on us 
As long as we stay with each other 
Then it will always be like this 
~ Hadestown, All I’ve Ever Known

Lily white and poppy red 
I trembled when he laid me out 
"You won’t feel a thing," he said, "when you go down" 
~ Hadestown, Flowers

Show the way so we can see 
Show the way the world can be 
If you can do it, so can she 
If she can do it, so can we 
Show the way! 
~ Hadestown, Wait for Me (Reprise)

I know that greatness lies in you 
But remember from here on in 
History has its 
Eyes on you 
~ Hamilton, History Has Its Eye On You

Oceans rise 
Empires fall 
It’s much harder when it’s all your call 
~ Hamilton, What Comes Next?

I imagine death so much it feels more like a memory. 
Is this where it gets me? On my feet, several feet ahead of me? 
~ Hamilton, The World Was Wide Enough

All our feelings and thought 
Expressed in ones and in oughts 
In endless spiraling chains 
~ Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Random Number Generation

But I could not recognize 
Cause you had blood on your face 
I had blood in my eyes 
~ Hedwig and The Angry Inch, The Origin of Love

Your heart knows in a moment 
You will never be alone again 
~ Hello Dolly! It Only Take A Moment

This was just a moment in the woods 
Our moment 
Shimmering and lovely and sad 
Leave the moment, just be glad 
For the moment that we had 
Every moment is of moment 
When you're in the woods… 
~ Into the Woods, Any Moment/Moments in the Woods

I've been very hopeful, so far. 
Now for the first time, I think we're going wrong. 
~ Jesus Christ Superstar, Could We Start Again Please?

There's one less place at our table 
There's one more tear in my eye 
~ Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, One More Angel in Heaven

One more day before the storm! 
~ Les Miserables, One Day More

Red - the blood of angry men! 
Black - the dark of ages past! 
Red - a world about to dawn! 
Black - the night that ends at last! 
~ Les Miserables, Red & Black

Oh my friends, my friends, don't ask me 
What your sacrifice was for 
Empty chairs at empty tables 
Where my friend will sing no more 
~ Les Miserables, Empty Chairs at Empty Tables

On my own, 
Pretending he's beside me. 
All alone, 
I walk with him 'til morning 
~ Les Miserables, On My Own

There were wonderful roses 
They tell me 
In sweet fragrant meadows of dawn, and dew 
~ The Music Man, Till There Was You

Boy, ain't nature fascinating 
When youse gotta walk 
~ Newsies, Carrying The Banner

I've gotta crow! 
I'm just the cleverest fellow 
'Twas ever my fortune to know 
~ Peter Pan, I’ve Got To Crow

Softly, deftly 
Music shall caress you 
Hear it, feel it 
Secretly possess you 
~ Phantom of the Opera, Music of the Night

Twisted every way, what answer can I give 
Am I to risk my life to win the chance to live 
Can I betray the man who once inspired my voice 
Do I become his prey, do I have any choice? 
~ Phantom of the Opera, Twisted Every Way

Masquerade! Paper faces on parade 
Masquerade! Hide your face so the world will never find you 
~ Phantom of the Opera, Masquerade/Why So Silent?

No more talk of darkness 
Forget these wide-eyed fears 
I'm here, nothing can harm you 
My words will warm and calm you 
Let me be your freedom, 
Let daylight dry your tears 
I'm here with you, beside you 
To guard you and to guide you 
~ Phantom of the Opera, All I Ask of You

We did everything wrong! 
Where did we go right? 
~ The Producers, Where Did We Go Right?

Take me for what I am 
Who I was meant to be 
And if you give a damn 
Take me baby 
Or leave me 
~ Rent, Take Me Or Leave Me

In the truths that she learned 
Or in times that he cried 
In bridges he burned 
Or the way that she died 
~ Rent, Seasons of Love

Last night I had a dream. I found myself in a desert called Cyberland. 
It was hot. My canteen had sprung a leak and I was thirsty. 
Out of the abyss walked a cow—Elsie. 
I asked if she had anything to drink. 
She said, "I'm forbidden to produce milk. 
In Cyberland, we only drink Diet Coke." 
~ Rent, Over the Moon

I'll never see him grow 
But I hope my son will know 
He'll never be alone 
~ Six, Heart of Stone

Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes 
Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes 
Silver white winters that melt into springs 
~ The Sound of Music, My Favorite Things

Burn the bridge, bet the store 
Baby's coming home no more 
Not for the life of me 
~ Thoroughly Modern Millie, Not For The Life Of Me

And Goodness knows 
The Wicked's lives are lonely 
Goodness knows 
The Wicked die alone 
~ Wicked, No One Mourns the Wicked

When I see depressing creatures 
With unprepossessing features 
I remind them on their own behalf 
To think of 
Celebrated heads of state or 
Specially great communicators 
Did they have brains or knowledge? 
Don't make me laugh! 
They were popular! Please— 
It's all about popular! 
~ Wicked, Popular

So if you care to find me 
Look to the western sky! 
As someone told me lately: 
"Ev'ryone deserves the chance to fly!" 
And if I'm flying solo 
At least I'm flying free 
~ Wicked, Defying Gravity

Somewhere over the rainbow, blue birds fly 
Birds fly over the rainbow 
Why then, oh why can't I? 
~ The Wizard of Oz, Over The Rainbow

I'd be friends with the sparrows ... and the boy who shoots the arrows 
~ The Wizard of Oz, If I Only Had A Heart