Get ready for a musical showdown! We're diving into the most epic confrontation songs from Broadway, where characters clash, emotions run high, and only one side can come out on top. From witty wordplay to heart-wrenching drama, these musical moments will leave you wanting more!
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00:00Cece what's going on? L'Rell what's going on? Welcome to Ms Mojo and today we're counting
00:08down our picks for the best songs from musicals staged as a confrontation between the characters.
00:13Some spoilers are included so here is your warning.
00:16That's it, the straw that breaks my back. I quit unless you take it back.
00:25Number 10. Therapy, Tick Tick Boom. I feel bad that you feel bad about me feeling bad about you
00:37feeling bad. Tick Tick Boom is the semi-autobiographical tale of writer and composer
00:42Jonathan Larson as he workshops a new musical in the lead-up to his 30th birthday. In this scene,
00:47Larson simulates a couple's therapy session through song. I was wrong to say you were wrong to
00:52say I was wrong about you being wrong when you rang to say that the ring was the wrong thing
00:56to bring if I meant what I said when I said rings bored me. In the movie, therapy is performed by
01:02Jonathan and his friend Carasa, intercut with a real argument between Jonathan and his girlfriend
01:07Susan, which inspired the song. Larson's use of repetition with the characters talking or singing
01:13over each other and plenty of passive aggression really gives us a sense of the couple's dysfunctional
01:18dynamic. There's no real winner here, but at least Jonathan got the material for a witty and
01:23entertaining musical number. Oh my god. Now it's out in the open. You're thinking about how you can turn
01:30this into a song, aren't you? Now it's off our chest.
01:38Number nine, Sue Me, Guys and Dolls. Plenty of musicals feature young love or first love,
01:44but when we first meet Nathan and Adelaide, Guys and Dolls' not quite married couple,
01:49they've already been engaged for 14 years. Their long-term relationship comes with one
01:54long-running grievance. Adelaide wants Nathan to marry her, settle down, and stop running the
01:59crap game. So Sue Me, Sue Me, what can you do me? I love you. But you gamble it here, you gamble it there, you gamble on everything
02:12all except me, and I'm sick of you keeping me up in the air till you're back in the money again.
02:15Nathan loves Adelaide, but he can't commit. Sue Me is Adelaide's breaking point, but it also feels
02:20like the same argument they've had hundreds of times before. You promised me this, you promised
02:25me that, you promised me everything under the sun, but you give me a kiss and you're grabbing your hat
02:29and you're off to the races again when I think of the time gone by, and I think of the way I try,
02:37I could honestly die. We love the juxtaposition of her fast-talking verses and his smoothly
02:44romantic responses. At the end of this number, we'd probably call Nathan the winner, but Adelaide
02:50did get her wedding in the end. Do you, Nathan Detroit, take Miss Adelaide to be your lawful
02:54wedded wife? That means he does. He's gotta say it. I do. Number eight, take that look off your face,
03:05Tell Me on a Sunday. You must be mistaken, it couldn't have been, you couldn't have seen him yesterday.
03:16This Andrew Lloyd Webber number originally comes from a one-woman show called Tell Me on a Sunday
03:21about a young British woman looking for love and adventure in the USA. Although it's technically a
03:26solo, Take That Look Off Your Face is also a confrontation song addressed to a female friend.
03:31She's rushed over to reveal the bad news that the heroine's boyfriend has been unfaithful.
03:43The twist comes with the revelation that our protagonist had prior knowledge of the affair,
03:48and the song becomes more about berating a friend who's acting like the furthest thing from one.
03:52It's not a happy song, but the girl refuses to respond like a victim and comes away from the
03:57clash as the victor.
04:00Number seven, cabinet battle number one and cabinet battle number two, Hamilton. Lin-Manuel
04:18Miranda's Hamilton is full of fantastic confrontation songs, but the most obvious examples are the
04:23memorable cabinet battles of act two. Staged as a rap battle officiated by George Washington,
04:29we get Alexander Hamilton, Secretary of the Treasury, pitted against Thomas Jefferson,
04:33Secretary of State. In the first battle, the issue is state debt and the proposal of
04:49establishing a national bank. In the second, the question is whether or not to send aid to France
04:54to support the revolutionaries. Like with much of Hamilton, Miranda takes subject matter that
05:02could be very dry and gets the audience invested through smart writing and electric performances.
05:08David Diggs is definitely a scene stealer, although technically Hamilton is the victor of the second
05:13round. So quick-witted. Alas, I admit it. I bet you were quite a lawyer. My defendants got acquitted.
05:19Well, someone ought to remind you. What? You're nothing without Washington behind you. Hamilton.
05:24Daddy's calling. Number six, anything you can do, Annie Get Your Gun. I can do anything better than
05:31you. Oh, you can. Yes, I can. Oh, you can. Yes, I can. Oh, you can. Yes, I can. Yes, I can. Annie
05:37Get Your Gun is a 1946 stage musical, very loosely based on the life of American folk heroine Annie
05:43Oakley. The show is brought to life by Irving Berlin's fabulous songs, the most famous of which
05:48is Anything You Can Do. This habitually male and female duet sees Annie and her rival Frank Butler
05:54argue playfully about their respective skills, each trying to outdo the other. I can shoot up
05:59cartridges with a single cartridge. I can get a sparrow with a bow and arrow. I can live on bread
06:06and cheese. And only on that? Yes. So can a rat. It's become a staple for musical theater performers and
06:12has been tackled by everybody from Bing Crosby to Shirley Bassey. It's a catchy tune and the lyrics
06:18are whip smart and very funny. Our heroine usually comes out on top, but of course neither party can
06:24claim perfection. I can jump a hurdle. I can wear a girdle. I can knit a sweater. I can feel it better.
06:30I can do most anything. Can you make a pie? Neither can I. Number five, It's All Over, Dreamgirls. Effie
06:39White's big Dreamgirls solo is of course iconic, but let's hear some love for It's All Over,
06:44the confrontation number that sets up that scene. Turn my back and find myself out on the line.
06:50You could have warned me but that would have been too kind. Effie's been missing practice in causing
06:56drama for reasons that are completely understandable. However, the band is getting
07:01tired of her diva act. In an abrupt turnaround from their earlier assurances that we are family,
07:06Effie's nearest and dearest stab her in the back and kick her out of the band.
07:10And now you're telling me it's all over. And now we're telling you it's all over.
07:22As you'd expect, she doesn't go quietly. It's an ensemble song where everyone gets their moment
07:27and the overall effect is really powerful. Effie may be the loser, but she lets us know she's going
07:33to come back fighting. Number four, A Boy Like That, I Have a Love, West Side Story.
07:49A boy like that would kill your brother. Forget that boy and find another. One of your own kind,
07:56stick to your own kind. West Side Story is a musical that thrives on confrontation,
08:02rival gangs dance off in the street, racial tensions simmer, and star-crossed lovers fight
08:07to be together. In one of the show's most famous numbers, the Sharks and their girls argue back
08:12and forth about the pros and cons of their new life in America. However, the most dramatic of
08:16the conflict numbers is the duet between Maria and Anita. A boy who kills cannot love. A boy who
08:24has no heart. And he's the boy who gets your love and gets your heart. Very smart, Maria,
08:31very smart. Anita discovers Maria and Tony together after hearing the news that Tony has
08:38murdered her beloved Bernardo. Grieving and furious, Anita faces Maria, who stands her
08:43ground and refuses to give Tony up. A Boy Like That gives way to I Have a Love, where Maria
08:49manages to persuade Anita that love is more important than hate. Your love is your love.
09:10Number three, What Is This Feeling? Wicked. What Is This Feeling? is a tension-driven duet that
09:15explores the first impressions the future Wicked Witch of the West and the Good Witch of the South
09:19have of each other. It's the start of a relationship that will grow into something
09:36much deeper than schoolyard rivalry. At the end of Act 1, we witness a more dramatic and
09:41serious confrontation. What Is This Feeling? is just the beginning, but what a beginning it is.
10:00The movie adaptation really does this number justice, with playful staging and fabulous
10:04chemistry between the witches. We love them both, but it's good to see the downtrodden
10:08Elphaba get the upper hand at the end there.
10:22Number two, Take Me or Leave Me, Rent. One of the great musical theater duets for women,
10:28Take Me or Leave Me is an argument song between girlfriends Maureen and Joanne.
10:32The lyrics are inspired by an aria of the opera La Boheme, on which the musical Rent is based.
10:39Maureen is a self-proclaimed free spirit, while Joanne is a rule follower. Their clashing
10:57personalities are a constant cause of friction in their relationship. However, Take Me or Leave Me
11:02is also really joyful, as the characters are confident in who they are and aren't shy about
11:07expressing it. Maureen may appear to be the bigger personality, but Joanne's no pushover.
11:16By the end of the song, it's clear that they've both met their match.
11:20Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
11:24Confrontation, Jekyll and Hyde. Winner, Jekyll. One actor, two roles, one very conflicted man.
11:50I Can Do Without You, Calamity Jane. A tie, Bill and Calam are giving enemies to lovers.
12:09I Don't Dance, High School Musical 2. Winner, Ryan, who gets Chad to dance in the end.
12:20You Will Not Touch Him, Miss Saigon. Winner, Kim, for obvious reasons.
12:41Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now, Hairspray. Winner, the daughters, who get their way in the end.
12:50Don't Go, Please. Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now.
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13:13Confrontation, Les Miserables. Set in 19th century France, Les Mis is the story of escaped con,
13:32Javert Jean, who is pursued throughout the years by the relentless Inspector Javert.
13:36They face off numerous times in the musical, but the most notable number is literally called
13:41the confrontation. The stakes are high as Valjean can't let himself be taken before
14:01fulfilling his promise to Fantine to take care of her child. We also learn new things about both
14:06We also learn new things about both characters, including a snippet of Javert's backstory that
14:12gives us insight into his tortured psyche. It's a tense scene, but Valjean eventually wins the day,
14:30slipping through Javert's clutches once again. Which musical confrontation is your favorite,
14:35and which side are you on? Let us know in the comments.
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