Top 10 Best Broadway Revenge Songs
Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the Top 10 Best Broadway Revenge Songs. For this list, we’ll be looking at the fiercest, most satisfying, and most iconic show tunes about characters getting even. Did these revenge anthems have you singing (and plotting) along? Tell us your faves in the comments.
#10: “World Burn”
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“Mean Girls”
Revenge seems to be on everyone’s mind at this high school. The “Mean Girls” musical literally has a song called “Revenge Party” in it. But its most destructive and barnburning act of revenge belongs to Regina George. In “World Burn,” she decides to light the match on the precarious high school social structure she once had firmly pinned under her pink Louboutin. She delights in her villainy as she spreads the secrets and insults she and her clique of baddies have inscribed in their fabled Burn Book. Who doesn’t love a good villain song? Especially when the villain is this fabulous.
#9: “Rose’s Turn”
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“Gypsy”
Mama Rose may be the stage mother from hell, but she’s the role every Broadway actress would love to play. Her climactic number, “Rose’s Turn,” is a big reason why. The song finds Rose admitting that she pushed her own show business dreams on her children, and is embittered to find she’s ended up alone because of it. Instead of expressing regret, she can only see all that she sacrificed. It’s as much a battle cry as it is a breakdown and, ultimately, her determination to chase her own dreams rings hollow. The best thing about the song might be that every performer can find a unique way to carry it out.
#8: “Dance: Ten, Looks: Three”
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“A Chorus Line”
The show finds a group of dancers fighting to get into the chorus line of a major Broadway show. One dancer, Val, describes how her lack of certain physical attributes kept her from getting work despite her talent. Her solution was a series of cosmetic procedures, and it did just the trick. It might not work for other people, but Val seems to be doing just fine. After all, she’s found the secret to success in show business. If you can’t beat them, give them what they want. It’s not exactly the empowering message of loving yourself for who you are, but “A Chorus Line” isn’t exactly the most empowering musical around.
#7: “Pirate Jenny”
“The Threepenny Opera”
First performed in the original German production, this Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht song made its way to English via composer and librettist Marc Blitzstein. “Pirate Jenny” is the violent fantasy of a working class maid, who imagines what might happen if pirates sailed into shore. Why revenge, of course. She imagines in brutal and straightforward detail what it would feel like to take her vengeance on those who exploit her. The song has been covered by the likes of Nina Simone, Marianne Faithfull, Judy Collins, and The Dresden Dolls. However, its original performer, Lotte Lenya, is said to have sung the definitive version.
#6: “Your Obedient Servant”
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“Hamilton”
After years of avoiding controversy and toeing the line of respectability, Aaron Burr finds himself once again the object of Alexander Hamilton’s scorn. This time, though, Burr has had enough. The song sees the vice president surrendering to his baser instincts, and challenging his longtime rival to a duel that will have tragic consequences. The fact that the song is told mostly in letters doesn’t cheapen its impact. Hamilton doubles down on his insults, leaving the less witty and less savvy Burr with no other way of defending his pride but violence. Knowing how it ends only makes it more thrilling to watch.
#5: “So Much Better”
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“Legally Blonde”
A musical’s first act closer should leave the audience clamoring for more, but it’s a wonder Elle Woods’ victory over her ex-boyfriend doesn’t burn the theater down every night. “So Much Better”depicts the show’s lovable and constantly underestimated law student landing her dream internship. She takes the opportunity to rub it in her ex’s face and celebrate her own independence. But, even as she takes jabs at him, the overarching feeling is hope for her future and a new burst of confidence. Like the show it comes from, it’s sweet with a little spice, and as hilarious as it is inspiring.
#4: “Get Out and Stay Out”
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“9 to 5”
The three leads of this workplace revenge musical comedy learn a lot over the course of the show. Mainly, they learn how to be independent working women who can hold down a job and hold their sexist boss hostage in his home. In this rousing penultimate number, Judy is able to tell the ex-husband who left her how much better her life is without him. “Get Out and Stay Out” is a departure from the show’s more laugh-a-minute numbers. It allows the least outspoken of the three leads to have a glorious moment of revelation.
#3: “Could I Leave You?”
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“Follies”
Phyllis is really having a rough time in “Follies.” The former chorus girl has swallowed so much of her own bitter resentment over the years that when her husband asks for a divorce, she actually seems ambivalent. But as the song builds, she tears through a list of her gripes, her compromises, and her innermost desires with biting sarcasm and devastating clarity. The realization she comes to is that she may want out of their marriage even more than him, yet she will stay. She’s so elegant, though, that it makes feeling trapped in a marriage look almost unbearably chic.
#2: “Cell Block Tango”
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“Chicago”
A less remorseful group of killers you’ll never see. Led by the cabaret star and alleged murderer Velma Kelly, the six merry murderesses of the Cook County Jail sing, dance, and stage weirdly sexy recreations of their alleged crimes. But, as they keep telling us, their - again - alleged victims really had it coming. Bob Fosse’s timeless staging and Kander and Ebb’s hilariously dark score make this fun revenge song an all-time classic. It remains an old standby for everyone, from Broadway ensembles to high school theater departments. Apparently, everyone loves a good justifiable homicide number.
Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
“So Long Dearie,” “Hello, Dolly!”
Dolly Tells Horace Exactly Where He Can Go“Witch’s Rap,” “Into the Woods”
Don’t Touch Her Greens“Just You Wait,” “My Fair Lady”
Eliza Imagines All the Ways She Could Make Henry Higgins’ Life Miserable“Revolting Children,” “Matilda”
The Title Really Says It All“All I Ask Of You (Reprise),” “The Phantom of the Opera”
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“Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”
This thrilling and terrifying first act song finds the London barber hellbent on avenging the loss of his family. His solution? Declaring war on the whole human race, good, bad, rich, and poor alike. As the piemaker Mrs. Lovett looks on in horror, Sweeney wrestles with his grief and rage. The music follows his lead, slowing and speeding up as his warring emotions fight for dominance. Given the events of the rest of the play, it’s safe to say the rage wins out. “Epiphany” is a heartstopping solo, and it feels like we’re watching the man surrender himself completely to his quest for vengeance.
