TOP 10 TUESDAY - Most Emotional Musical Moments

Following the jollity of the festive period often comes the misery of January, so what better way to commemorate this, let's take a look at some of the songs/scenes from musicals that always bring me to tears. Oh, and expect spoilers aplenty, so if you want a rundown of my choices without the text, they can be found on my instagram page (linked below):

10. MISS SAIGON - "I Still Believe"

Eva Noblezada in Miss Saigon on broadway

Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil's follow up to "Les Miserables" more than proves their affinity for tragic storytelling, with this tale of love and loss, based on Puccini's opera Madama Butterfly, set around the time of the closing stages of the Vietnam war. Following a rousingly hopeful love duet between primary protagonists Kim and Chris, ending in them running off arm in arm, we then experience a jump forward in time by three years, to a time when the couple have been separated by the brutal nature of the war.

Kim sings about her hope that the love of her life will return for her, however the moment it is revealed that Chris has subsequently married another woman, by means of wife Ellen taking the lead in the second verse, our hearts immediately break for the young Vietnamese woman who so longs for the man she loves, as we as an audience know the prospect of her and Chris rekindling their love is slim to none. There were other choices in this show, such as "I'd Give My Life For You" and "Movie In My Mind", however the top spot is taken by this achingly tragic duet.

9. WAITRESS - "She Used To Be Mine"

Sara Bareilles in Waitress on broadway

Perhaps one of the best known and certainly most covered eleven o'clock numbers in modern musical theatre, this simple, yet heart-shattering ballad shows us protagonist Jenna at her very lowest point mentally, with her abusive husband having discovered the money she had been saving aside in secret to enter a pie contest and start a new life with her baby, seemingly putting to an end any hopes of escaping her toxic relationship.

Sara Bareilles has both written and starred in this modern musical theatre classic, and "She Used To Be Mine" is by far the best known, most heart-on-sleeve number in the show, with a gorgeous gradual build musically, and some wonderfully poetic lyrical content that have us fully engrossed, and feeling a great deal of hurt for her character.

8. YOUR LIE IN APRIL - Kaori's final confession

Mia Kobayashi and Zheng Xi Yong in Your Lie In April in the west end

The entire of this Frank Wildhorn musical is an emotional journey, and there are some wonderfully sweet, charming relationships built through the course of the show, though perhaps none more endearing than that between violinist Kaori and pianist Kosei, as they express themselves both through their verbal exchanges and through music. Kaori, however, has a cruel illness to deal with, and whilst she makes every effort to combat this, the risky, experimental surgery she opts to have ends up taking her life.

The scene where Kosei carries a sick Kaori up to the roof of the hospital to watch the snow fall is a particularly genuine moment, however the way in which Kaori's death is presented is truly heartbreaking, as Kaori leaves a letter for Kosei, confessing to him that from the beginning she loved him, and wanted to get close to him, so she lied to him, and asks him to forgive her. This coupled with Zheng Xi's riveting, astounding rendition of Rachmaninov's G minor prelude, and I kid you not, I was still on the verge of tears on the tube over half an hour later.

7. ORDINARY DAYS - "I'll Be Here"

The cast of Ordinary Days off-broadway

The events of 9/11 affected thousands of lives, and the individual stories, fictional or not, truly highlight the devastating effect these attacks had on so many people. This devastatingly sad number tells the story of couple Claire and John, who meet in endearingly sweet circumstances, via a meet-cute in central Manhattan on an icy day, with the song's title being the constant, and we are taken through first date, through growing their relationship, and John asking her to marry him.

We are instantly drawn in by their relationship, and are with them all the way, right until the moment Claire notices the smoke and hears the sirens, then subsequently, and heartbreakingly, the final voicemail left for her upon her return home by her late husband. John is apologetic, and expresses his wish for her to move on following his untimely death, with a final chorus of "I'll Be Here" really hitting it home on the emotional front; this is a song that I don't think I have listened to once without becoming a blubbering mess.

6. OPERATION MINCEMEAT - "Dear Bill" / "Finale"

The cast of Operation Mincemeat in the west end

Best known as a silly, pythonian comedic romp, with laughs galore throughout, Operation Mincemeat is also the host to a couple of absolutely beautiful, and notably poignant moments, and these are so effective that for me one can't give one top billing over the other. Though the whole idea of the real life MI5 operation is, as Montagu states, "borderline psychopathic", lending itself to wonderful comedy, there are also real life people and relationships portrayed in a wonderfully sincere manner.

"Dear Bill" is perhaps the most famously touching, powerful number in the show, as secretary Hester Leggatt writes a love letter to "Bill", expressing this from the heart, and from her own experiences, as evidenced by her accidentally using the name "Tom" in place of Bill, a moment which has every member of the audience in bits. The other particularly moving scene is right at the end, where the whole company pay tribute to the real life "man who never was" Glyndwr Michael, in a moment that, in a show that makes us laugh a great deal, manages to end with everyone in tears.

5. COME FROM AWAY - "Something's Missing"

Jenn Collela and the cast of Come From Away on broadway

In another show about one of the biggest tragedies of modern times, you are pretty much guaranteed that there will be tears at some point or other, and whilst much of the show is very emotionally charged, it's the scene when everyone has returned to their normal lives, reality as begun to hit, and the come from aways deal with the fallout from the previous five days.

There is a discernible build, both musically and emotionally, and it's beautifully executed, so that we, the audience, feel everything along with these characters, but the fact that it's all based on real events is perhaps what makes it such a devastating sequence. The real stinger is Hannah calling Beulah to inform her that, in the end, her son ended up perishing in the events, and it's no understatement to say there wasn't a dry eye in the house.

4. HADESTOWN - "If It's True" / "Epic III"

Andre De Shields and Reeve Carney in Hadestown on broadway

Another musical with a plethora of hard hitting moments, with particularly stirring scenes including "Flowers" sung by Eurydice, and the famous tragic ending scene "Road To Hell (reprise)" where Orpheus turns around, sending Eurydice back to the underworld. I have chosen, however, two scenes that very much prove the climax of Orpheus' songwriting journey, and they both compliment each other fabulously in terms of Orpheus' overriding character arc, as they exemplify the show's themes of love, hope and community.

The former scene, "If It's True" is a moment when Orpheus is absolutely at rock bottom, on the verge of giving up, until we hear the spell put upon the workers beginning to break, joining him in song and giving him a sliver of hope; the latter, "Epic III", is the real culmination of what has come before, as we hear the final draft of Orpheus' song, and experience the power that music can have on so many, which is a massively moving, and truly breathtaking moment in the show.

3. NATASHA, PIERRE & THE GREAT COMET OF 1812 - The final 15 minutes

The cast of Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812 at Donmar Warehouse

There is some sublime character development and relationship building in this Dave Malloy penned musical, but perhaps some of the most emphatic is Natasha's reaction to Anatole's deceit, the eventual appearance of her former betrothed Andrey in an intense exchange with Pierre about the pair's collapsed romance, and the final scene between the two titular figures.

The simplicity, sincerity and vulnerability on display between Natasha and Pierre in that final scene in particular is just wonderful, and you fully feel the emotion of the scene, especially as it is so heavily impacted by the events that unfurled prior. Both find comfort in each other's friendship, and the final number that succeeds this gorgeous exchange, building to a rousing full ensemble number about the Great Comet, gave me chills aplenty, and equal measure of emotional response.

2. THE OUTSIDERS - "Stay Gold"

Sky Lakota-Lynch and Brody Grant in The Outsiders on broadway

This in and of itself is rather a beautiful song, however the context of this eleven o'clock number is what really hits so hard emotionally, as it takes the form of a letter written by a dying Johnny Cade following his heroic rescue of a group of kids from a burning building, sustaining life threatening injuries in the process but ensuring he ended his short life a real hero.

It is a beautiful, gut wrenching piece of music that speaks volumes about Johnny's character, as well as the strength of his bond with best friend Ponyboy Curtis, to whom the letter, and song, are addressed. I knew I loved this before seeing the show, a simple, beautiful song with a solitary guitar accompaniment (later joined by piano), but I wasn't prepared for how profoundly I would be affected by it once I discovered its context, and the moment I realised what was happening, I was gone.

1. NEXT TO NORMAL - Most of act two

Caissie Levy in Next To Normal in the west end

The top spot of this list had to go to the most emotionally raw, visceral piece of theatre seen on either side of the Atlantic in recent years. Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey's Tony and Pulitzer winning musical "Next To Normal" has perhaps the most intense, profound, yet real and human narrative, very much focussed on the characters, their personal struggles, internal turmoil and relationships

Act two in particular is a huge emotional journey, following Diana's coming to terms with the effects of her electroconvulsive therapy, and how it affected her memory, as well as his this adversely affects daughter Natalie, expressed exquisitely by Kitt's stunning score. From remembering her son's death as an infant, to Natalie expressing her own worries about turning out like her mother, and Diana's decision to leave the family home for her own good, this show had me crying myself dry.

Which musical moments always have you reaching for the tissues? Let me know below, or on my instagram page.