00:00that's a broadway workout right there all told during friend like me our sensors tracked nearly
00:06900 steps welcome to ms mojo and today we're counting down our
00:11picks for the musicals that ask a lot more of their performers than your average show
00:16while it's a monumentally moving production this seminal broadway classic is also very
00:40demanding les mis requires a lot from everyone the ensemble has to maintain their voices while
00:46cycling through an endless series of strong emotions throughout the entire production
00:50the crew meanwhile needs to make its various transitions feel seamless there are costume
00:54swaps scenery changes and a huge score to get through with a show this epic the audience isn't
01:00off the hook either you know no matter how noble eventually mrs you just get sick and tired of
01:05hearing that score night after night shut up work it out between its long ballads epic romance
01:16heartbreaking deaths and roughly three hour runtime it can be taxing even if you're just
01:21sitting in the dark watching it in the darkness the trees are full of starlight
01:30and all i see is him and me forever and forever number nine a chorus line
01:45no this lauded musical about a group of dancers desperate to book a chorus part was once the
01:52longest running show on broadway the thing about a chorus line is that its themes demand a high
01:57level of conformity in its group numbers at a certain point the dancers and the show aren't
02:02really meant to stand out
02:16the movements must be a near perfect match fortunately there are enough
02:20solos that some of the performers manage to get a few breaks in
02:32it was fun i was happy i would love to but those are often some of the most emotionally
02:41wrenching parts of the story then it's back to dancing number eight spider-man turn off the dark
02:58tonight ahead of its official opening night in june 2011 the insanely expensive spider-man musical
03:04was already raising eyebrows more controversial than its unconventional source material was
03:09its highly involved and often dangerous choreography turn off the dark is a full-out
03:14spectacle but your strength will be a vision beyond visibility and the gift i've woven for you
03:24will give you new eyes to see every night its team was expected to make gravity defying
03:31high wire stunts look effortless it takes a lot of core strength to do aerial work as intricate
03:37as this and the original broadway production became notorious for the amount of injuries
03:41its ensemble sustained i'd have a bunch of um you know screws in my back right now
03:48but the moment i'm gonna as aggressively as i can go through my physical therapy
03:52and the moment i feel like i'm good i'm back in the show i can't wait after a while it probably
03:58took a lot of effort just to work up the courage to step out on stage number seven newsies
04:15even marketing images for newsies showcase performers in mid-air so you know this is a
04:20high octane production this crowd pleaser about a group of newspaper boys trying to unionize
04:25probably has one of the fittest ensembles ever to hit a broadway stage
04:36but this cast doesn't just have to dance they spend almost the entire time twirling
04:41jumping and racing up and down fire escapes while maintaining crystal clear diction
04:57and they have to do all that while often still keeping their hats on the amount of money these
05:01newsies spend on gym memberships alone could probably fund a whole other show number six
05:07anything goes
05:23cole porter's seafaring comedy is one of the few holdovers from the early days of musical theater
05:27it's been revised a lot since then one thing that hasn't changed much since its premiere is how
05:33difficult it is to do it justice full of breezy songs and fancy footwork the trick to selling the
05:38production is making it look easy of course it's anything but the title number alone is a nightmare
05:53the actress playing rino sweeney has to honor each and every one of porter's fast-paced lyrics
05:58all while holding her own with a chorus of tap dancers there's a lot of sweat behind all that
06:02smiling number five cats
06:14it may have a reputation as one of the more confusing and borderline nonsensical broadway
06:18mega hits but there's a reason cats is so beloved since its premiere audiences have been dazzled by
06:23the show's agile and furry footed ensemble the creative team behind the original west end
06:28production knew that the dancing was essential in making it work
06:41so it was designed as a massive showcase for artists who could master all sorts of styles
06:46and perform the steps in a way that also mimics the distinct way a cat moves
06:50no one said being jellicle was easy
06:59for jellicle cats number four the lion king
07:15disney's tony winning adaptation of the 1994 animated classic is one of the biggest musicals
07:21ever in almost every way not only is it the most financially successful production in broadway
07:26history it also has an incredibly large creative team it takes 50 performers and about 100 crew to
07:33make a performance happen every night throughout its ensemble must sing and act while donning huge
07:39masks and costumes how many puppets are in the actual performance so in in the actual show is
07:46232 the choreography by itself would be challenging but many of its ensemble members
07:54must also give life to on-stage animals in the form of intricate puppets this illusion requires
07:59superhuman precision flexibility and dexterity they live in you they live in me they're watching
08:13go number three hairspray
08:33considering how peppy and positive the dance crazy tracy turnblad is for the entire story
08:38hairspray has got to be one of the hardest productions to carry given that it's about
08:42a teen dance show you can bet that the grooving is a major high point here and there's a whole
08:47lot of it in fact it's almost wall-to-wall upbeat songs it's got 60s novelty dances galore and big
09:05hair that look like they weigh a ton then after hours of all that the cast is on hand for one of
09:11the most breathless most energizing finales ever it is not for the weak
09:25number two starlight express
09:33are you real yes or no there are a few reasons this andrew lloyd weber extravaganza is not as
09:42well known as some of his other efforts this story of anthropomorphic trains falling in
09:47love and facing extinction by the modern diesel engine is a musical romance and light show all
09:52in one it's most famous and challenging requirement of its cast is that they must all
10:04perform in roller skates to top it all off it also features costumes that are bulky and heavy
10:10to lug around with some productions featuring garments that can weigh anywhere between 35 and
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10:39west side story
10:51the original conceit behind this musical was to blend the timeless love story of romeo and juliet
10:56with a modern sensibility jerome robbins's west side story choreography skewed towards ballet
11:02employing jazzier movements for the more dangerous scenes between its rival gangs
11:10yes hey yes
11:16through the years it's been updated and reinterpreted to make way for different
11:20styles of dance but it's always a show where movement is integral to the storytelling
11:32so
11:37its legendary choreography combined with its runtime and the tragic love story at its center
11:42makes west side story an endurance test for its cast which of these shows looks
11:46like the biggest workout tell us in the comments
11:50we did
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