Take the poll below to choose your favorite Broadway Showstopper of the Broadway 2025-2026 season.
This is a category created for the Dorian Theater Awards, which just announced the nominations for its fourth annual awards. It’s a great idea: These musical numbers or standout scenes are often what we most remember (let’s face it, sometimes the only thing we remember) from a show.
The theater critics who are the nominators for the Dorian Theater Awards have chosen five showstoppers from the 2025-2026 season, all five of them musical numbers, three of them from “CATS: The Jellicle Ball.” But what if you haven’t seen “CATS”? Or what if the best show-stopping moment for you was in a straight play? The poll below takes that into account. I have added a second poll question with five moments from the season’s plays. And I have added an “Other” entry for both questions, so that you can write in your own favorite. You can choose from the list of some 50 below, but if you do so, use the exact same wording as exists on the list. If you want to elaborate, you can do so in the comments section at the bottom of the page.
If a write-in vote starts getting huge numbers, I’ll try to add it to the ballot for this poll (although it won’t be considered for the Dorian Awards)
The Broadway Showstoppers
Art – Yvan’s Monologue (James Corden)
The Balusters: Alan’s meltdown about being a straight, white man target (Michael Esper)
The Balusters: The fight over the baluster (Richard Thomas, company)
Beaches – “Real Woman” (Jessica Vosk)
Beaches – Wind Beneath My Wings (Jessica Vosk)
Cats: The Jellicle Ball – “Gus the Theatre Cat” (Junior LaBeija)
Cats: The Jellicle Ball – “Memory” (“Tempress” Chasity Moore)
Cats: The Jellicle Ball – “Skimbleshanks The Railway Cat” (Emma Sofia)
Cats: The Jellicle Ball – “Songs of the Jellicles and the Jellicle Ball” (company)
Chess – “Anthem” (Nicholas Christopher)
Chess – “Endgame” (company)
Chess – “Nobody’s Side” (Lea Michele)
Chess – “One Night in Bangkok” (Aaron Tveit)
Chess – “Someone Else’s Story” (Lea Michele)
Death of a Salesman – “Attention Must Be Paid” scene (Laurie Metcalf)
Dog Day Afternoon: The “Attica! Attica!” chant (Jon Bernthal)
Joe Turner’s Come and Gone: Bynum’s “Shiny Man” Monologue (Ruben Santiago-Hudson)
Joe Turner’s Come and Gone: Herald Loomis’ moment of spiritual release (Joshua Boone)
Liberation: The nude consciousness-raising scene that opens Act II. (company)
Little Bear Ridge Road: When the couch turns into a hospice bed. (Laurie Metcalf)
The Lost Boys – “Have to Have You” (Ali Louis Bourzgui, Maria Wirries, and company)
The Lost Boys – “If We Make it Through the Night” (company)
The Lost Boys – “Now, Forever” (LJ Benet and Maria Wirries)
The Lost Boys – “Superpower” (Benjamin Pajark)
The Lost Boys – “Wild” (Shoshana Bean)
Marjorie Prime: Final scene (company)
Oedipus: When the countdown clock hits 00:00. (company)
Punch: Jacob’s first meeting with the parents of the boy he killed (Will Harrison, Victoria Clark, Sam Robards)
The Queen of Versailles – “Champagne Wishes and Caviar Dreams” (Kristin Chenoweth)
The Queen of Versailles – “This Time Next Year” (Kristin Chenoweth)
Ragtime – “Back to Before” (Caissie Levy)
Ragtime – “Prologue: Ragtime” (company)
|Ragtime – “Make Them Hear You” (Joshua Henry)
Ragtime – “New Music” (company)
Ragtime – “Til We Reach That Day” (Allison Blackwell and company)
Ragtime – “The Wheels of a Dream” (Joshua Henry and Nichelle Lewis)
The Rocky Horror Show – “Sweet Transvestite” (Luke Evans)
The Rocky Horror Show – “I’m Going Home” (Luke Evans)
The Rocky Horror Show – “Touch-A-Touch-A-Touch Me” (Stephanie Hsu)
Schmigadoon! – “Corn Puddin’” (McKenzie Kurtz and ensemble)
Schmigadoon! – “Tribulation” (Ana Gasteyer)
Schmigadoon! – “You Can’t Tame Me” (Max Clayton)
Titanique – “All By Mystelf” (Deborah Cox)
Titanique – “River Deep, Mountain High” (Layton Williams)
Titanique – “Tell Him” (Deborah Cox and Melissa Barrera)
Two Strangers – “The Hangover Duet” (Sam Tutty and Christiana Pitts)
Two Strangers – “New York” (Sam Tutty)
