What Makes a Great Musical Score? Lessons from Broadway’s Greatest Shows

What Makes a Great Musical Score?

Why do some musical theatre songs stay with us for years while others fade before we even leave the theatre?

That question sparked a fascinating conversation between Forever co-creators Barry Gordon and Gary Lamb. They explore how musical theatre has evolved, what separates a good score from a great one, and why every song has a specific job to do.

Drawing on classics like Fiddler on the Roof, West Side Story, Hamilton, Hadestown, Sweeney Todd, and The Little Mermaid, Barry explains how opening numbers, “I Want” songs, character songs, and finales all work together to tell a compelling story. They also discuss an important reality of writing musicals, sometimes even great songs need to be cut if they no longer serve the story.

That same philosophy has shaped Forever’s development. Over the years, songs have been rewritten, restored, replaced, and refined as the show has grown. Every change has been made with one goal in mind: telling the strongest story possible.

As Barry says throughout the conversation, the audience ultimately tells you what works.

We’d Love Your Thoughts

What musical score do you still find yourself humming? Which opening number instantly pulls you into a show’s world?

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TRANSCRIPT:

Hi, Barry and Gary again.

Barry: So I have a question for you, and for Gary, actually.

Gary: Oh?

Barry: Yeah. When was the last time you went to a musical and left humming a tune?

Gary: I can’t remember, actually.

Barry: No?

Gary: No. I tend to hum tunes from different shows when I come out of a show. Like, it reminds me of some other tune from a different musical.

Barry: Oh, so you’re seeing something else when you come out of the show?

Gary: That’s what it seems to be. Really. Well, I don’t actually listen to the scores of new musicals before I go see them, so it’s not like they’re already in my head and then reinforced. Everything is new and exciting, but when I leave, I just don’t find myself humming the songs.

I think it comes down to not knowing the songs well enough, and maybe there just isn’t as much repetition these days.

Barry: Exactly. You hit the nail on the head.

Back in what I call my “pre-Forever” life, I was going to teach a course on the history of musical theatre.

Gary: Really?

Barry: Yeah. Instead, you and I turned it into a review called The Complete History of the American Musical in 90 Minutes or Less.

And, in fact, we’re bringing it back this September at the little theatre I’m involved with in Pasadena. If you’re nearby in September 2026, come see it. If you’re watching this later… well… you missed it.

The reason I bring it up is because the purpose of songs has changed dramatically over time.

Originally, if you go back to the 1920s, 30s, and 40s, songs existed to sell sheet music and records. Many of the biggest hits were songs introduced in musicals, but they didn’t necessarily have much to do with the story. They just had to be great songs.

Songwriters like Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, and George Gershwin knew how to write songs people wanted to hear over and over again. Those songs eventually became what we now call standards.

Then Rodgers and Hammerstein changed everything.

They believed songs shouldn’t just be dropped into a show. Songs should advance the story, reveal character, or move the plot forward.

Gary: Instead of everybody just suddenly breaking into song.

Barry: Exactly.

That’s when songs began serving specific purposes.

The opening number started setting the world of the show. It established where we are, who these people are, and why we should care.

Interestingly, not every show begins with a song.

I saw Girl From the North Country, based on Bob Dylan’s music, and it felt like forever before the first song started. It almost felt like I was watching a play.

But when you think about today’s biggest hits…

Hamilton.

Killer opening number.

Hadestown.

Great opening.

Six.

Great opening.

Even Sweeney Todd.

“Attend the tale of Sweeney Todd…”

You’re immediately pulled into the world.

Sometimes the opening number didn’t exist at first.

Take Fiddler on the Roof.

The creative team couldn’t figure out why audiences weren’t connecting with the show during out-of-town tryouts.

Someone finally asked them:

“What is the show about?”

They started describing Tevye.

“No… what is the show really about?”

Finally someone blurted out…

“Tradition!”

The response?

“Write that.”

And that’s how one of the greatest opening numbers in musical theatre history was born.

The same thing happened with A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.

Originally they opened with a love song.

Audiences weren’t laughing.

So Stephen Sondheim wrote Comedy Tonight, immediately telling audiences exactly what kind of show they were about to see.

Sometimes that’s the difference between a show working… and not working.

The same principle applies throughout the score.

Every song needs to earn its place.

Sometimes songs have to go.

Even wonderful songs.

The audience tells you when something isn’t working.

That’s why we value feedback.

That’s why we’re hoping to do a staged reading of Forever.

Family and friends love you.

An audience that doesn’t know you will tell you the truth.

They’ll tell you with applause…

With silence…

Even with a few coughs in the wrong place.

That’s how musicals get better.

We’ve gone through that process ourselves.

There was a song Bessie used to sing that simply no longer fit after we changed the story.

It was a nice song.

But it belonged in a different musical.

We replaced it.

We wrote a new song for the Reverend and James called It Hurts Too Much to Cry.

Same emotional territory…

Better fit.

Some songs we actually brought back after years of being gone.

“I Fell in Love With You Tonight.”

“Don’t Throw It Away.”

Once we rewrote parts of the show, suddenly those songs belonged again.

One of the biggest changes came with our ending.

If you know The Picture of Dorian Gray, it’s a very bleak ending.

We wanted something that left audiences thinking after the curtain came down.

That’s where A Legend Never Dies came from.

It became a cautionary tale.

Because maybe the person dies…

But the legend lives on.

That feels very true today.

People want their lives to matter after they’re gone.

They want to leave something behind.

Gary: Which brings me to another important kind of song…

The “I Want” song.

Howard Ashman made it crystal clear in The Little Mermaid.

“I want to live where the people are.”

You know exactly what Ariel wants.

You spend the rest of the show hoping she gets it.

In Forever, Dorian actually has two “I Want” songs.

The first is Rock and Roll Forever.

He doesn’t want fame.

He wants to keep making music forever.

Then Henry convinces him that rock stars don’t last.

That’s when the second “I Want” song becomes…

The wish.

The desire to keep what he loves forever.

Maybe offering his soul wasn’t the smartest idea…

But that’s Dorian Gray.

That’s the story.

So going back to the beginning…

Is it important to leave humming a tune?

Or is it more important to leave caring about the story?

Gary: I actually came into musicals from acting.

At first I thought musicals skipped over emotional moments because everyone started singing.

Then I realized…

The song is the emotional moment.

You have to approach lyrics the same way you’d approach dialogue in a play.

That’s when I fell in love with musicals.

Barry: I came from the opposite direction.

To me, musical theatre has become the ultimate art form.

It has to be a great play.

It has to have great music.

It has to have performers who can act, sing, and often dance.

That’s asking a lot.

Rodgers and Hammerstein proved musicals could tell serious stories.

That changed everything.

And writers have continued building on that ever since.

Before we wrap up…

We want to hear from you.

What do you look for in a great musical score?

What musical has excited you recently?

And…

Is there a show you loved that just didn’t have the score it deserved?

Let us know in the comments.

And if you’d like to follow the journey of Forever, visit ForeverMusical.com, join the Forever Community, and connect with us on social media.

We’d love to hear from you.

Thanks for watching.

See you next time.