Broadway was put into a pause during the pandemic. NYC was dead for months. But, while the theaters collected dust, playwrights all around the country hunkered down in their little writing rooms, creating sensations well worth hundreds of dollars to see in person—or for free if you get your rich Park Slope friends to illegally record a show for you. Anyway, now that Broadway’s back, these new masterpieces are out, presented in theaters all across Broadway.

Here are some of the Radish’s favorites:

• Guillotine by Kuroda Yoshito Kuroda Yoshito makes his playwright debut with Guillotine, a story of the French Revolution from the perspective of a peasant.

  But this tale puts a funky fresh spin on the French Revolution, having it take place during the 1960s! Experience Marie Antoinette telling the people to “let them eat shrimp cocktails,” or listen to the heartbreaking stories from the main character, Émile Leroy, perfectly complemented by electric guitars, keyboards, and the off-key singing of tie-dye hippies!

• Stuffed in the Locker by William Shakespeare William Shakespeare returns to the stage with Stuffed in the Locker, a story of a socially awkward high schooler on the road to discovering themself through a life-changing event that we won’t spoil!

  Now, the musical is being sued by the playwrights of Dear Evan Hansen, Be More Chill, and Heathers for being too similar, but even if you’ve seen this exact premise a million times, we totally recommend seeing it again. It even features Hugh Jackman!

• Underdog, Abovedog by Lin-Manuel Miranda Lin-Manuel Miranda returns, again, to Broadway with Underdog, Abovedog, a story set in New York City, again, about a nobody who rises to prominence with hard work and dedication, again. Featuring Anthony Ramos, again, these songs will get stuck in everyone’s heads, again, to the point of almost being annoying, again. But hey, if we can’t talk about Bruno, and if we shouldn’t throw away our shot, and we really wanna see how far we’ll go, this musical offers the inspiration we all need in our lives.

• Electric! by Tonies Tony Tonies Tony, inventor of the Tony Awards, makes his debut on Broadway with Electric! Look, the story may be bland, but it stands out in its music. Rather than your typical showtunes, Electric! breaks expectations with all of its music in esoteric hyperpop, experimental hip-hop, and noise.

  What a thrilling, creative artistic experience! No one’s ever seen a musical that leaves the idea of showtunes behind! I mean, except for Hamilton, of course. Or Jesus Christ Superstar. Or Mamma Mia. You know what, next musical please.

• Don’t Get Me Started by Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, seen as one of the greatest playwrights to exist, writes the final musical of his life, Don’t Get Me Started. Don’t Get Me Started really is something.

  We’re not sure what the plot is. All we can remember are the flashing lights, high pitched screams, and, if we remember correctly, anthropomorphic cats being tossed at the audience.

  Don’t Get Me Started is unforgettable in the weirdest way possible, but we definitely grew as people by the end of the show. Go see it. Or don’t. To be fair, we don’t even remember where the theater for this show is!