Top 10 Greatest Male Broadway Duets

MsMojo

It takes two to duet. Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the best musical theater duets between men.

Transcript

00:00Welcome to Ms. Mojo and today we're counting down our picks for the best musical theater duets between

00:12men. Some of these songs reveal plot points from their respective shows so here is a spoiler alert.

00:17Tell them, tell them the truth, tell them boy, tell them how it happened, how the end doesn't mean that it's over.

00:26Number 10. No More. Tick tick boom. This semi-autobiographical musical is about composer

00:31Jonathan Larson's attempts to become a Broadway composer. His fictional counterpart's ongoing

00:36tension between making a living as an artist and making a living at all is summed up perfectly in

00:42No More. No more faulty wiring, no more crooked floors, no more spitting out my ultra bright on

00:51top of dirty dishes in the one and only scene. John's friend Michael left the arts to pursue a more

01:00traditional career and his material life has become much better as a result. The two essentially clown

01:05their way through the song. Though played for laughs, the reality behind it is also pretty

01:19profound. John has to choose his art over living well, which is especially hard when an easier life

01:25seems just within reach. Number 9. I Am The One Reprise. Next to Normal.

01:48We love an emotionally devastating reprise. Throughout Next to Normal, Dan is unable to

01:52relate to his wife's mental health struggles. After losing their son years ago, Diana has become

01:57undone by the grief to the point that she hallucinates their son's spirit. Dan has simply

02:02ignored his grief for too long. Reprising the song he sang to his wife at the end of the first act,

02:13Dan is reduced to tears as he finally confronts their son's death. In the end,

02:17left only with his thoughts, he sees his son for the first time.

02:30Number 8. What You Own, Rent. Near the end of this beloved and tear-jerking musical,

02:42Roger and Mark have to decide what really matters to them. The song lays bare their

02:46disillusionment at living in an uncaring and dispassionate world, concerned only with

02:50materialism, status and money. But this soon turns into something else. What You Own isn't just a

03:07list of complaints, it's two people on the edge of complete hopelessness fighting to find meaning

03:12in what they've lost. Instead, they come away with a new resolve to honor the people they love

03:16through the power of community and art. Number 7. What Would I Do, Falsettos.

03:42Marvin and Whizzer's love story is not without its ups and downs. By the end,

03:52they've found their way back to each other, only for Whizzer to pass away due to an unnamed illness

03:57that's presumably HIV-AIDS. Left alone, Marvin ponders what his life would have been like

04:02without Whizzer. But they get one last chance to sing together when Whizzer's spirit appears

04:18on stage. As much as they lament the future they've been robbed of, they decide together

04:23that if they had to do it over, the pain and the heartache would all be worth it.

04:37Number 6. Pretty Women, Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Mixing beautiful music

04:43with thrilling suspense, this duet sees the barber, Sweeney Todd, and Judge Turpin,

04:47the unsuspecting target of his revenge, singing the praises of beautiful women.

04:58The judge has no reason to think they're not on the same page here. All the while,

05:02Todd scrapes ever closer to his mortal enemy's jugular.

05:18The song fakes us out several times, only to tease the coming death even more. As the music

05:25crescendos, we can tell Todd is savoring the moment. The tension builds as they whip themselves

05:30into a musical frenzy. What happens next? Well, we wouldn't want to give it away.

05:44Number 5. The Confrontation, Les Miserables.

06:03Victor Hugo's original novel and the blockbusting musical is about redemption and oppression.

06:08There's no room for Jean Valjean's redemption in the eyes of Inspector Javert,

06:12who has an unwavering faith in an unfair system.

06:26This intense confrontation occurs when Javert finally finds Valjean some ten years after he

06:31fled from justice. As the two talk, or rather sing, past each other, they engage in combat,

06:37and we hear Javert's side of this pursuit. He has seen the worst of human nature,

06:41and believes Valjean's moral transformation is a sham. When done well, it's incredibly explosive.

06:47When played for laughs, it's also incredibly funny and melodramatic.

07:05Number 4. Dear Theodosia, Hamilton.

07:08Placed near the end of the first act, this gentle number is a markedly peaceful moment

07:13in the midst of Hamilton's drama. Composer Lin-Manuel Miranda described it as, quote,

07:17a calm in the storm. For all their political differences, this is the moment Alexander

07:34Hamilton and Aaron Burr are on the same page. Although they don't know it, both become new

07:39fathers in Dear Theodosia, and make promises to their children that lays bare their shared mission.

07:54Though they have different approaches, they want to make America a place where

07:58their children can live happy and prosperous lives. It highlights the tragedy of what will come.

08:04Number 3. Agony, Into The Woods. Stephen Sondheim's famous musical puts an irreverent

08:19and heartbreaking spin on classic fairy tales. One of its greatest and most hilarious moments

08:24is Agony, a duet between two handsome princes desperate to prove they're suffering more to

08:29connect with their respective princesses. The lyrics make them look completely ridiculous and

08:47conceited. They ask themselves what woman could resist a man as charming, handsome,

08:52kind, and humble as they are. As they wax poetic about how unfair it is that they should have to

09:05win these women over, they don't just make us laugh. They also make us wonder how the heroines

09:10of our favorite fairy tales could live happily ever after with these fools.

09:14Agony, that can cut like a knife. I must have her to wife.

09:33Number 2. You and Me, But Mostly Me. The Book of Mormon.

09:45Written and composed by the creators of South Park and Robert Lopez, this irreverent musical

09:50follows Elder Price, a Mormon who starts out as a self-involved missionary. He's scored a

09:55challenging mission to Uganda. His pal Elder Cunningham will also be there. So concerned with

10:00blowing God's mind with how good he's about to spread the word, Price immediately treats Cunningham

10:05like his sidekick in their mission. It's a great comic set piece. You and Me, But Mostly Me lets

10:18its actors play off of each other with ease. Price's grinning narcissism and Cunningham's

10:23panting desire to hang out with him are baked beautifully into the song.

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10:50Number 1. Lily's Eyes, The Secret Garden. Telling the classic story of Mary, a young English girl

10:56sent to live with her mysterious and haunted uncle Archibald, The Secret Garden has a sweeping

11:01and romantic score. Mary's resemblance to her long-dead aunt Lily presents a problem.

11:16Arguably its most famous number, Lily's Eyes sees Archibald and his envious brother Neville

11:21mourning over Lily, who Neville was also in love with. Mary's resemblance brings out their

11:26longing for her. Their tortured memories awaken something different in both of them.

11:38Not only emotionally resonant, the song's climactic harmonies make it a sumptuous and

11:43intense number. Did your favorite duet make the list? Tell us in the comments.

11:56Do you agree with our picks? Check out this other recent clip from Ms. Mojo,

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