Musicals and Netflix: they’re a perfect duet! The streaming platform is home to a surprisingly large number of musical movies from traditional song-and-dance flicks to music documentaries and even a few TV comedies that lovingly skewer the genre even as they mine it for material. As diverse as these options are, they all have one thing in common: a heartfelt belief in the incredible storytelling power of music. If you’re looking for the kind of entertainment you can sing along to, you’ve definitely come to the right place. We’ve rounded up a selection of the best musical movies and TV shows on Netflix, so whether you’re looking to rewatch an old favorite or discover something new (check out all the titles coming to Netflix in May here), you’re sure to find something to watch tonight!
– Additional reporting by Haley Lyndes
Related: 40 Feel-Good Musicals You Can Watch on Disney+ Right Now
Cadillac Records
Starring Adrien Brody, Beyoncé, and a whole bunch of other good-looking people, this fun historical flick takes place in 1950s Chicago. It tells a story of sex, blues, and American musical legends such as Muddy Waters, Leonard Chess, Little Walter, Howlin’ Wolf, Etta James, and Chuck Berry.
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
A young boy named Charlie finds a golden ticket hidden inside his candy bar wrapper, and it leads him to Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. With lots of songs and dancing, Charlie discovers all the magic that Wonka’s candy land holds.
When it’s available: May 1
Popeye
After a storm wrecks his ship, Popeye (played by Robin Williams), finds himself in the town of Sweethaven. Meeting a number of fascinating people, he winds up adopting an abandoned baby and befriending sweet Olive, who gets kidnapped, forcing Popeye to search for her.
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Inventor Caractacus Potts turns a grand prix car into a magical time machine that takes himself and his family to a mystical kingdom in a far-out land.
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
For proof that not all musicals are jazz hands and sparkles, look no further than this gothic horror Sondheim adaptation. After being released from prison on a wrongful conviction, a vengeful barber sets out to exact bloody revenge on those who harmed him and his family, with a little help from his gleefully violent landlady.
Watch Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street on Netflix.
Emo: The Musical
Ethan is an emo kid who hates everything. Trinity is the perfect Christian girl that he can’t help falling for. They shouldn’t work together, but Ethan isn’t going to let the laws of high school keep them apart.
Country Strong
Country singer Kelly (Gwyneth Paltrow) goes on a revival tour to win back her career. The singer takes Beau, a new romantic interest and emerging country artist, on the road with her. However, life on tour ends up being more challenging than they thought.
Corpse Bride
Victor Van Dort accidentally proposes to a dead bride instead of his flesh-and-blood love in Tim Burton’s 2005 musical dark comedy Corpse Bride.
Purple Rain
Prince stars in this rock musical drama as a Minneapolis-based musician whose career – and tumultuous relationship with a seductive singer – is threatened by a rising new star.
Burlesque
What happens when Cher and Christina Aguilera (who play a theater proprietor and a small-town girl with a big dream) team up to revive a musical burlesque club back to its former glory? Some extremely sexy dance numbers, of course.
Tarzan
Tarzan is an orphan who is raised by gorillas in the jungle. One day he runs into Jane, who’s on an expedition, and the two fall in love. As happy as Tarzan is with Jane, he has to make a choice: does he stay in the wild, or does he join civilization?
Miss Americana
Offering a mix of onstage and backstage footage and intimate interviews, this documentary gives viewers an inside look at the life of pop star Taylor Swift, beyond her Reputation tour. She covers everything from struggles with disordered eating to her mom’s cancer diagnosis and her journey to finding her voice. It’s a must-watch for T-Swift fans.
Mary Poppins Returns
Decades after she arrived to help heal the Banks family, the magical nanny makes a reappearance in their lives. This time, she’s come in the aftermath of Michael Banks’s wife’s death, leaving him and his children in dire straits – but it’s nothing Mary Poppins can’t help fix.
Shrek the Musical
Did you know that your favorite fairy-tale-skewering ogre has his own Broadway musical? The stage adaptation of Shrek, starring Younger‘s Sutton Foster as Princess Fiona, brings a quirky new twist to the fairytale parody.
Opening Night
A former Broadway star falls to new lows as a harried production manager on a new musical about one-hit wonders. As he struggles to keep his head above water, he has to deal with all the colorful personalities in the cast and crew.
Glee
Before it was a cultural phenomenon, Glee was just a quirky, dark comedy about a band of misfits in small-town Ohio who form a glee club under the guidance of a hopelessly idealistic teacher.
Galavant
With music by Disney maestro Alan Menken, Galavant is a tongue-in-cheek parody of the fairy tale genre. Sir Galavant fails to rescue his lady love from an evil king and gets out of shape, but he’s called back into action by a foreign princess who needs his help against the king.
Jersey Boys
Based on the true story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, this bio-musical follows four working-class men from New Jersey as they form a musical group. Rotating perspectives from all four members of the group take us through decades of music, friendship, fighting, and more.
Gaga: Five Foot Two
Lady Gaga‘s entry into the behind-the-scenes documentary genre follows much more than her music career. Filmmakers shadow Lady Gaga as she deals with a breakup, a medical crisis, and prepping to release new music and perform at the Super Bowl.
The Get Down
In the 1970s, a group of determined Bronx teenagers set out to chase down their hip-hop dreams, no matter what it takes.
Bathtubs Over Broadway
When a late-night comedy writer dives into a world of hilariously off-the-wall, little-known musicals, his hobby turns into some very fun research in this documentary.
The Sapphires
A trio of musically gifted Aboriginal Australian sisters find their music career taking off when a promoter books them to perform for American troops during the Vietnam War.
Homecoming: A Film by Beyoncé
This documentary shines a spotlight on the entire creative process behind Queen Bey’s 2018 Coachella performance, bringing her creative work to new light.
Springsteen on Broadway
Bruce Springsteen’s 2018 Broadway residency is captured on film, with his unique storytelling and performances of his hit songs.
The Dirt
Based on the real memoirs of the members of Mötley Cruë, this rock biopic follows the band in the early days of their music career, packed with – quite literally – sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll.
Taylor Swift: Reputation Stadium Tour
If you couldn’t snag tickets to Swift’s record-setting Reputation Tour, you’ve got another chance to watch it, with Netflix’s filming of the stadium tour.
The Music of Silence
Based on the real life of Andrea Bocelli, this biopic follows a blind young man with a remarkable voice who navigates his way to the top of the opera world.