10 Broadway Musicals You Can Stream at Home After ‘Merrily We Roll Along'

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There's something magical about sitting in a Broadway theater and watching magic come to life on stage. It's a special experience that requires you to be present. Though we wish we could return to the theater to relive that moment, ticket prices and location might prevent it. Sometimes, though, a show is so special that it gets professionally shot so we can experience the magic from the comfort of our own homesas many times as we'd like! Plus, no one is shushing you if you sing along!

The most recent entry into the proshot world is the 2023 Broadway revival of Merrily We Roll Along. With music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by George Furth, the classic musical tells the story of three friends — composer Franklin Shepard, lyricist Charley Kringas, and critic Mary Flynn — in reverse, tracking their journey from bitter, estranged adults in 1976 back to their hopeful, artistic youth in 1967. Starring Jonathan Groff, Daniel Radcliffe, and Lindsay Mendez, the Maria Friedman production captured the brilliance of the Tony Award-winning musical for a wider audience that was unable to snag a ticket.

As with Merrily We Roll Along, there have been countless proshots that have given home viewers the unique opportunity to catch some of the greatest musical films for permanent preservation. From original productions on the Great White Way to big-budget revivals, these proshots have welcomed a brand-new audience into the wonderful world of theater. With so many proshots capturing Broadway, the West End, and touring productions, the 10 on this list are some of the best available to stream today.

1 'Cats'

BroadwayHD

Long before the CGI disaster, Cats was one of the longest-running musicals in Broadway history. Fortunately, for fans of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, it was documented so we could fondly remember how it was originally intended. Based on T.S. Eliot's poetry collection, Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, it tells the story of a tribe of felines who gather annually for the Jellicle Ball as one cat will be reborn into a new life in the Heavenside Layer. The sung-through musical showcases each cat as they present their unique story to their leader, Old Deuteronomy, to prove they're the most deserving of them all. Filled with some of musical theater's greatest songs, namely "Memory," the proshot was preserved with the original theatrical choreography, costumes, and intimate staging.

This proshot filmed the 1997 cast at the Adelphi Theatre, featuring its cast, as well as stars from past productions. The joy among this cast was the return of Elaine Paige as Grizabella and Ken Page as Old Deuteronomy. Many theater fans have turned to this proshot as a means to cleanse their minds of the 2019 film. While that film featured wonderful vocal performances, it was a far cry from the stage iteration. Thanks to this production, the musical's original tagline, "Cats: now and forever," rings true.

2 'Come From Away'

AppleTV

One of the most endearing musicals of the 21st century was a little show that could, by the name of Come From Away. Written by Irene Sankoff and David Hein, the musical is inspired by the true story following the aftermath of 9/11, where 7,000 airline passengers happened to be stranded in Gander, Newfoundland, when the United States airspace was closed. The small town doubled its population overnight, yet fully embraced the strangers, known as "come from aways," with compassion and kindness. A wonderful musical about humanity and resilience in the face of fear and tragedy, it features a strong ensemble taking on multiple roles, portraying locals and passengers.

One reason Come From Away received the proshot treatment was the cancellation of its film adaptation, caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, this iteration came to fruition with the intent to release on the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. The award-winning musical was brought to life on Apple TV, receiving a warm welcome from theater fans and new viewers alike. One of the special elements of this proshot was that the audience included 9/11 survivors and frontline workers. For this filming, Jenn Colella returned to the role for which she received a Tony nomination. A raw, emotional musical filled with hope and optimism, the proshot captured the spirit of the musical and the individuals who made that real-life moment a celebration of community.

3 'Diana'

Netflix

Prince Charles and Diana talking in Diana The Musical

Rarely do we remember Broadway flops beyond the legacy they left. And rarely do we get anything physical to remember them by, as they often don't run long enough to warrant an original cast recording. But when it came to Diana, a gift was given to the devoted cult following thanks to the filmed version of the stage musical. Written by David Bryan and Joe DiPietro, the pop-rock musical chronicles the life of Diana, Princess of Wales, from her engagement to Prince Charles at age 19 until her tragic death. Through musical numbers, filled with powerhouse vocals and vibrant choreography, the musical focused on her troubled marriage, the love triangle with Camilla Parker Bowles, intense media scrutiny, and her transformation into a global icon who defied royal expectations. And yes, there was an entire number inspired by the famous dress.

Despite an out-of-town tryout at La Jolla Playhouse in 2019, the 2020 Broadway production was critically panned. That said, it found a huge following of fans who accepted the musical for what it was. Timing was in Diana's favor, as the proshot was filmed prior to its Broadway opening in the summer of 2020, with COVID-19 safety protocols in place and no audience present. Even though Netflix released it with devoted fans tuning in, Diana was panned by film critics, earning five out of the nine Golden Raspberry Awards it was nominated for. And yes, a filmed version of a Broadway musical won Worst Picture. Those who missed the 33 performances and 16 previews had the opportunity to see the dynamic performances by Jeanna de Waal as Princess Diana, Erin Davie as Camilla Parker Bowles, and Broadway legend Judy Kaye in a scene-stealing performance as Queen Elizabeth II. The proshot captured the energetic, high-gloss production before it was doomed to fail. If there was ever a musical that was unintentionally camp, it's Diana.

Collider Exclusive · Oscar Best Picture Quiz Which Oscar Best Picture
Is Your Perfect Movie? Parasite · Everything Everywhere · Oppenheimer · Birdman · No Country

Five Oscar Best Picture winners. Five completely different visions of what cinema can be — and what it can do to you. One of them is the film that was made for the way your mind works. Ten questions will figure out which one.

🪜Parasite

🌀Everything Everywhere

☢️Oppenheimer

🐦Birdman

🪙No Country for Old Men

FIND YOUR FILM →

What kind of film experience do you actually want? The best movies don't just entertain — they leave something behind.

ASomething that pulls the rug out — that makes me think I'm watching one kind of film and then reveals I'm watching another entirely. BSomething overwhelming — funny, sad, absurd, and genuinely moving, all at once. CSomething grand and weighty — a film that makes me feel the full scale of what I'm watching. DSomething formally daring — a film that pushes what cinema can even do. ESomething lean and relentless — pure tension with no wasted frame.

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Which idea grabs you most in a film? Great films are driven by a central obsession. What's yours?

AClass, inequality, and what people are willing to do when desperation meets opportunity. BIdentity, family, and the chaos of trying to hold your life together when everything is falling apart. CGenius, moral responsibility, and the catastrophic weight of a decision you can never take back. DEgo, legacy, and the terror of becoming irrelevant while you're still alive to watch it happen. EEvil, chance, and whether moral order actually exists or if we just tell ourselves it does.

NEXT QUESTION →

How do you like your story told? Form is content. The way a story is shaped changes what it means.

AGenre-twisting — I want it to start in one lane and migrate into something completely different. BMaximalist and genre-blending — comedy, action, drama, sci-fi, all in one ride. CEpic and non-linear — cutting between timelines, building a mosaic of cause and consequence. DA single unbroken flow — I want to feel like I'm living it in real time, no cuts to safety. ESpare and precise — every scene doing exactly what it needs to do and nothing more.

NEXT QUESTION →

What makes a truly great antagonist? The opposition defines the protagonist. What kind of opposition fascinates you?

AA system — invisible, structural, and almost impossible to fight because it has no single face. BThe self — the ways we sabotage, abandon, and fail the people we love most. CHistory — the unstoppable momentum of events that no single person can stop or redirect. DThe industry — the machinery of culture that chews up talent and spits out irrelevance. EPure, implacable evil — a force so certain of itself it becomes almost philosophical.

NEXT QUESTION →

What do you want from a film's ending? The final note is the one that lingers. What do you want it to sound like?

AShock and inevitability — a conclusion that recontextualises everything that came before it. BEarned emotion — I want to cry, laugh, and feel genuinely hopeful, even if the world is a mess. CDevastation and grandeur — an ending that makes me sit in silence for a few minutes after. DAmbiguity — something that leaves enough open that I'm still thinking about it days later. EBleakness — an honest refusal to pretend the world is tidier than it actually is.

NEXT QUESTION →

Which setting pulls you in most? Where a film takes place shapes everything — mood, stakes, what's even possible.

AA gleaming modern city with a hidden underside — beauty masking rot, wealth masking desperation. BA collapsing suburban life that opens onto something infinite — the multiverse of a single ordinary person. CThe corridors of power and science at a world-historical turning point — where decisions echo for decades. DThe grimy, alive chaos of New York and Hollywood — fame as both destination and trap. EVast, indifferent landscape — desert and highway where violence arrives without warning or reason.

NEXT QUESTION →

What cinematic craft impresses you most? Every great film has a signature — a technical or artistic element that makes it unmistakable.

AProduction design and mise-en-scène — every frame composed to carry meaning beneath the surface. BEditing and tonal control — the ability to move between registers without losing the audience. CScore and sound design — music that becomes inseparable from the dread and awe of what you're watching. DCinematography as performance — the camera not recording events but participating in them. ESilence and restraint — what's left unsaid and unshown doing more work than any dialogue could.

NEXT QUESTION →

What kind of main character do you root for? The protagonist is the lens. Who you choose to follow says something about you.

ASomeone smart and resourceful who makes increasingly dangerous decisions under pressure. BSomeone overwhelmed and ordinary who turns out to be capable of something extraordinary. CA brilliant, tortured figure whose gifts and flaws are inseparable from each other. DA self-destructive artist whose ego is both their superpower and their undoing. EA quiet, principled person trying to make sense of a world that has stopped making sense.

NEXT QUESTION →

How do you feel about a film that takes its time? Pace is a choice. Some films sprint; others let tension accumulate slowly, deliberately.

AI love a slow build when I know the payoff is going to be seismic — patience for a devastating reveal. BGive me relentless momentum — I want to feel breathless and emotionally spent by the end. CEpic runtime doesn't scare me — if the material demands three hours, give me three hours. DI want it to feel propulsive even when nothing is technically happening — restless energy throughout. EDeliberate and unhurried — I want dread to accumulate in the spaces between the action.

NEXT QUESTION →

What do you want to feel walking out of the cinema? The best films leave a mark. What kind of mark do you want?

AUnsettled — like I've just seen something I can't fully explain but can't stop thinking about. BMoved and energised — like the film reminded me what actually matters and gave me something to hold onto. CHumbled — like I've been in the presence of something genuinely important and overwhelming. DExhilarated — like I've just seen cinema doing something it's never quite done before. EHaunted — like a cold, quiet dread that stays with me for days.

REVEAL MY FILM →

The Academy Has Decided Your Perfect Film Is…

Your answers have pointed to one Oscar Best Picture winner above all others. This is the film that was made for the way your mind works.

Parasite

You are drawn to films that operate on multiple levels simultaneously — that begin in one genre and quietly, brilliantly migrate into another. Bong Joon-ho's Parasite is a film about class, desire, and the architecture of inequality that manages to be darkly funny, deeply suspenseful, and genuinely shocking across a single extraordinary running time. Your instinct is for cinema that hides its true intentions until the moment it's ready to reveal them. Parasite is exactly that — a film that rewards close attention and punishes assumptions, right up to its devastating final image.

Everything Everywhere All at Once

You want it all — and this film gives you all of it. The Daniels' Everything Everywhere All at Once is one of the most maximalist films ever made: action comedy, multiverse sci-fi, family drama, existential crisis, and a genuinely earned emotional core that sneaks up on you amid the chaos. You are someone who responds to ambition, who doesn't want cinema to choose between being entertaining and being meaningful. This film refuses that choice entirely. It is overwhelming by design, and its overwhelming nature is precisely the point — because the feeling of being crushed by infinite possibility is exactly what it's about.

Oppenheimer

You are drawn to cinema on a grand scale — films that understand history not as a backdrop but as a force, and that place their characters inside that force and watch what happens. Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer is a film about the terrifying gap between what we can do and what we should do, told with the full weight of one of the most consequential moments in human history behind it. You want your films to feel important without feeling self-important — to earn their ambition through sheer craft and the gravity of their subject. Oppenheimer does exactly that. It is enormous, complicated, and refuses easy comfort.

Birdman

You are drawn to films that foreground their own construction — that make the how of the filmmaking part of the what it's about. Alejandro González Iñárritu's Birdman, shot to appear as a single continuous take, is cinema examining itself through the cracked mirror of a fading actor's ego. You respond to formal daring, to the feeling that a film is doing something that probably shouldn't be possible. Michael Keaton's performance and Emmanuel Lubezki's restless camera create something genuinely unlike anything else — a film that is simultaneously about creativity, relevance, self-destruction, and the impossibility of ever truly knowing if your work means anything at all.

No Country for Old Men

You are drawn to cinema that trusts silence, that refuses to explain itself, and that treats dread as a form of meaning. The Coen Brothers' No Country for Old Men is a film about the arrival of a new kind of evil — implacable, arbitrary, and utterly indifferent to the moral frameworks we use to make sense of the world. It is one of the most formally controlled films ever made, and its controlled restraint is what makes it so terrifying. You want your films to haunt you, not comfort you. You are not interested in resolution if resolution would be dishonest. No Country for Old Men is honest in a way that most cinema never dares to be.

↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ

4 'Frozen'

Disney+

Samantha Barks as Elsa in the proshot production of 'Frozen.'

After the global success of the Disney animated classic Frozen, it was inevitable that it would be turned into a Broadway musical. Following in the footsteps of Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, and Aladdin, Disney on Broadway took the brilliance of the 2013 film and expanded on it with new songs and scenes. With a book by Jennifer Lee and music and lyrics by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, the stage musical tells the story of sisters Princess Elsa and Anna in Arendelle, as Elsa struggles to control her icy, magical powers, inadvertently triggers an eternal winter, and her sister Anna sets out to find her. With major production numbers for the hit songs "Let It Go" and "Love Is an Open Door," and new tracks including "Monster" and "Hygge," Frozen elevated the animated story through Broadway magic.

Watching the film, one might imagine how difficult it could be to translate to the stage, but Disney's ability to create magic helped catapult the story to great heights. The iconic costume change during "Let It Go" still remains one of theater's most sensational moments, proving that anything can happen on stage. For the proshot, the West End production was captured, featuring Samantha Barks as Elsa and Laura Dawkes as Anna. Through intricate camera work, viewers were granted a unique opportunity to take in details they might not have seen from the mezzanine, including every sparkling rhinestone on Elsa's iconic gown. Frozen enhanced the animated film, giving parents yet another Disney+ movie to entertain the kiddos with.

5 'Hamilton'

Disney+

Jonathan Groff as King Charles in 'Hamilton.'

No show has captured viral attention on Broadway quite like Hamilton. The sung-and-rapped-through biographical musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda tells the story of Alexander Hamilton, the American Founding Father, and his involvement in the American Revolution, tracing the political history of the early United States. Described by its author as "America then, as told by America now," Hamilton revolutionized musical theater by reshaping the way stories can be told and who they can be told by. Receiving near-universal acclaim for its off-Broadway, Broadway, West End, and touring runs, a proshot was an opportunity to expand the show's reach to a wider audience through its release on Disney+. Combining high-quality, intimate filming of the breathtaking choreography and production design, Hamilton's proshot pioneered the latest trend of filming beloved productions.

In a sense, Hamilton had the best of both worlds' sensibility. It captured the allure of a Broadway production while employing a stellar, fully cinematic style. Though it was released in 2020, it was filmed over three performances in 2016, featuring the ensemble that made it famous. As King George proudly sings, "You'll be back." And that's exactly the case for the original Broadway cast. The Disney+ filming included much of the original cast — Miranda as Alexander Hamilton, Leslie Odom Jr. as Aaron Burr, Phillipa Soo as Eliza, Renée Elise Goldsberry as Angelica, Christopher Jackson as George Washington, Daveed Diggs as Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson, Anthony Ramos as John Laurens and Philip Hamilton, Jonathan Groff as King George III, and Ariana DeBose as the Bullet. If you were not fortunate enough to see the original production, the proshot is almost like being in the room where it happened!

6 'Newsies'

Disney+

Choreography from the proshot production of 'Newsies.'

If you were a child of the '90s, there's a good shot your millennial heart has a fondness for the classic 1992 musical, Newsies. And you likely waited your entire life for someone to transport the beloved story to the stage. Well, it finally happened in 2012 when the Paper Mill Playhouse production transferred to Broadway. With a book by Harvey Fierstein, music by Alan Menken, and lyrics by Jack Feldman, the stage adaptation tells the story of the 1899 newsboy strike in New York City. The musical follows Jack Kelly, a charismatic teenage leader of a newsie band who rallies his fellow newsboys to strike against the powerful newspaper publishers. A story of justice, solidarity, and the power of young voices, Newsies took the core of the film and expanded it into a brand-new theatrical experience.

Despite a 1,000-show run, there was always a desire to preserve the musical on film. Fortunately, in 2016, the North American touring production was given the chance to have the show filmed. Even better, many of the Broadway production's notable alumni, including Jeremy Jordan, Kara Lindsay, Ben Frankhauser, Andrew Keenan-Bolger, and Tommy Bracco, reprised their roles for this momentous occasion. After a brief theatrical release in 2017 to mark the original film's 25th anniversary, Disney+ became the new home for the proshot. Filled with new songs, storylines, and reimagined choreographed numbers, the show offered a new generation the magic Newsies originally presented.

7 'Passing Strange'

AMC+

The cast of 'Passing Strange' including Colman Domingo

For the casual theater fan, Passing Strange might not be all that familiar, but for theater aficionados, it is a musical that was far ahead of its time. Fortunately, wherever you land on the musical theater scale, Spike Lee ensured that a permanent record of the Broadway production would be present for generations to see. Written by Stew with musical orchestrations from Stew and Heidi Rodewald, the semi-autobiographical rock musical tells the story of a young Black bohemian known as "Youth" in the 1970s who leaves his middle-class, religious Los Angeles home to find "the real" in Europe. He explores identity and art through sex, drugs, and punk rock in Amsterdam and Berlin before discovering the true meaning of home. A game-changing musical originally released in 2008, the film expertly captured the brilliance of an understated gem.

Filled with an ensemble of major players from Broadway and beyond, the proshot film featured the likes of Stew, Daniel Breaker, Eisa Davis, Colman Domingo, De'Adre Aziza, and Rebecca Naomi Jones. Lee's ability to capture the electrifying production through intimate close-ups, creative camera angles, and high-quality production made the musical sensationally untouchable. Magnifying the brilliance of musical theater, the proshot originally aired as part of Great Performances on PBS. Today, it's found a home on AMC+. Passing Strange is an important and remarkable piece of theater history.

8 'She Loves Me'

BroadwayHD

Gavin Creel as Steven Kodaly and Jane Krakowski as Ilona Ritter in the Broadway production of 'She Loves Me.'

The beauty of entertainment is that some of the greatest stories are inspired by other stories. When it comes to musical theater, many of the most iconic shows were based on great stories before being turned into song-and-dance spectacles. One such masterpiece is She Loves Me, written by Joe Masteroff, Jerry Bock, and Sheldon Harnick. Based on the 1937 play Parfumerie by Miklós László, which inspired the 1940 film The Shop Around the Corner and the 1949 musical In the Good Old Summertime, the plot is best known to audiences through the 1998 romcom You've Got Mail. Now that that's out of the way, She Loves Me focuses on two bickering clerks, Amalia and Georg, who unknowingly fall in love through anonymous love letters. They soon discover that they are one another's secret pen pals, jumpstarting a charming tale of mistaken identity, workplace rivalry, and romance at its core.

The original musical debuted in 1963 and featured subsequent revivals on Broadway and in the West End, but it was the 2016 Roundabout Theatre Company revival that became the perfect production to warrant a proshot recording. The cast included Tony Award nominees Laura Benanti, Zachary Levi, Jane Krakowski, and the late Gavin Creel. She Loves Me magically captures the allure of classic musical theater through its stellar performances, breathtaking set pieces, and the perfect musicality that warms our hearts as if we're sitting in the orchestra. The revival lives happily on BroadwayHD with an array of other incredible proshots documenting theater history.

9 'Shrek the Musical'

BroadwayHD

Brian D'Arcy James as Shrek, Daniel Breaker as Donkey, and Sutton Foster as Princess Fiona in 'Shrek the Musical.'

Disney had the stronghold on animated features for the longest time until DreamWorks arrived with Shrek in 2001. Disney then dominated the musical theater world until Shrek came to Broadway in a delightfully upbeat musical production. With music by Jeanine Tesori and book and lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire, the beloved animated classic is given the musical-theater treatment as the ogre Shrek goes on a quest to reclaim his swamp from fairy-tale creatures. Upon rescuing Princess Fiona from the villainous Lord Farquaad, Shrek ultimately finds friendship, love, and self-acceptance along the way. Tackling the prominent themes from the film and infusing musical theater tropes, an entirely fresh score, and production numbers beyond compare, Shrek the Musical gave us all a reason to let our freak flags fly!

Though the show underwent many changes during its various iterations on its road to Broadway, the proshot preserved the musical's vibrancy, rivaling the animated feature as the definitive version. Riding high during the Broadway trend of turning movies into stage musicals, Shrek the Musical was one of the stronger entries at the time. The edited version of the musical featured Brian d'Arcy James as Shrek, Sutton Foster as Princess Fiona, Daniel Breaker as Donkey, Christopher Sieber as Lord Farquaad, and John Tartaglia as Pinocchio. If you adore the movie, Shrek the Musical is faithful yet new, charming a new audience to the universal story.

10 'Waitress'

HBO Max

Charity Angel Dawson as Becky, Sara Bareilles as Jenna, and Caitlin Houlahan as Dawn in 'Waitress the Musical.'

It's true: anything can be turned into a musical. Some source material may seem harder to adapt, but when you have the perfect recipe, a delicious dish will be served. Such is the case for the 2007 film Waitress. With a book by Jessie Nelson and music and lyrics by Sara Bareilles, the musical tells the story of Jenna Hunterson, a talented pie-maker and waitress stuck in a small town, an unhappy marriage, and an unexpected pregnancy. The show follows her journey to find independence, friendship, and the courage to change her life through a baking contest. A sweet, sassy, and passionate musical that had a wonderful run on Broadway was given the proshot treatment, featuring Bareilles returning to the role for prosperity.

Filmed during its 2021 return to the Great White Way, the musical gave viewers the opportunity to see the brilliantly nuanced performances that were pervaded by warmth and humor. Joining the singer-songwriter included Charity Angél Dawson, Caitlin Houlahn, Drew Gehling, and Christopher Fitzgerald. While there are certainly recordings of Bareilles tackling the standout 11 o'clock number "She Used to Be Mine," the film captured the full brilliance of her performance. Originally premiering at the Tribeca Film Festival, Waitress: The Musical, HBO Max now serves up this delightful dish 24/7.