NYC: SIX the Musical on Broadway

SIX turns the six wives of Henry VIII into a pop concert, giving each queen the microphone and a chance to tell her own story. Instead of letting the famous king dominate the evening, the queens compete to decide whose marriage was worst. The result is brisk, funny, and built around big musical numbers.

I like the 80-minute running time and the fact that there is no intermission. I also like the all-female cast and band, called the Ladies in Waiting, which keeps the show focused on the queens. The main consideration is its concert format: if you want a traditional Broadway plot with long scenes and detailed costumes, SIX may feel more like a high-energy music event than a standard book musical.

Key points to know before booking

• Six queens take center stage: The wives of Henry VIII reclaim their names, voices, and personal stories.
• Modern pop drives the show: Five hundred years of royal heartbreak gets reshaped into contemporary, star-style performances.
• The Ladies in Waiting are all female: The band performs live alongside the cast.
• The show lasts 80 minutes: There is no intermission, so you get a compact Broadway outing.
• Admission is included: Transportation, food, and drinks are separate.
• Age guidance matters: The show is recommended for ages 10 and up, and children under 4 are not admitted.

Why SIX feels different from a standard Broadway musical

The clever idea behind SIX is simple: Henry VIII is not the main character. His six wives are.

Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anna of Cleves, Katherine Howard, and Catherine Parr are usually reduced to a famous rhyme about marriage and mortality. Here, each woman gets a musical identity and a chance to push back against that shorthand. You are not watching a king’s biography with six supporting figures. You are watching those six figures fight to control the story.

That setup gives the show a clear shape. The queens face off in a friendly but competitive contest, each arguing that her marriage was the most painful. The competition is funny, but it also points to a serious problem: history often remembers these women only in relation to Henry VIII.

SIX answers that problem through pop music rather than long speeches. The approach is fast and direct. You get a sequence of performances, each with its own personality, instead of a large number of scenes and side plots. I find that makes the show easy to follow, even if you know little about Tudor history.

The opening concert: six queens, one challenge

The show begins with the queens presenting themselves as performers, not museum figures. They are framed as a group of modern stars, then separated by personality, sound, and attitude.

The central question is clear from the start: which queen suffered the most in marriage to Henry VIII? That question gives the concert its structure, allowing each woman to make her case through a featured number.

You should expect the production to move quickly. There is no long historical setup, and the 80-minute length leaves little room for detours. This is useful if you want a Broadway show that fits neatly into an evening of sightseeing, dinner, or another New York activity.

The tradeoff is that the format does not offer much time for quiet reflection between numbers. The show wants to keep its concert energy moving. If you prefer a traditional musical with several acts, extended dialogue, and a large story arc, you may find SIX more streamlined than expected.

Six solo spotlights and six different points of view

The heart of the evening is the run of queen-focused performances. Each wife steps forward to reclaim her version of events. The queens are not presented as identical members of a chorus. Their differences drive the entertainment.

The show uses modern pop-diva styles as a starting point. That choice gives each number a strong identity and makes the historical material feel immediate. You do not need to know the details of Tudor politics to understand the basic point of each performance: these women want to be remembered as complete people, not as entries in a list.

The musical contest also creates a useful tension. At first, the queens compete to prove that one story is worse than the others. As the evening develops, that competition raises a larger question about how women are often asked to measure their pain against one another.

I like this balance. SIX is clearly designed to entertain, with catchy songs and sharp character contrasts, but it also gives you something to think about after the applause. The show does not turn into a history lecture. It uses the past as material for a pointed modern performance.

The Ladies in Waiting add more than background music

The all-female band, the Ladies in Waiting, is an important part of the production. The musicians are not simply hidden behind the action as support staff. They are part of the show’s pop-concert identity.

That matters because the queens and musicians together create the sense of a touring music act. The band reinforces the show’s central idea of women controlling the stage and telling the story themselves.

You should not expect a quiet orchestral score in the style of a classic Broadway production. SIX is built around contemporary pop energy, strong vocal performances, and a concert setup. The sound is a major reason to choose this show.

The Broadway cast album, SIX: LIVE ON OPENING NIGHT, reached number one on the Billboard cast album charts and has been streamed more than 100 million times worldwide. Those figures help explain the show’s reach, but the practical point is simpler: the music is meant to work as music, not only as background for dialogue.

If you already enjoy modern pop, you will likely connect with the show’s main appeal quickly. If your Broadway tastes lean toward traditional musical theater, give yourself a realistic expectation. This is a pop concert with a theatrical story, not a conventional musical with pop songs added to it.

The finale turns competition into a shared celebration

The competition between the queens gives SIX its early momentum, but the larger payoff comes from seeing the women push beyond the contest. The show’s theme is not simply that one marriage was worse than another.

The stronger message is that each queen deserves her own identity. Their lives should not be ranked only by what happened to them as Henry VIII’s wives. The final stretch brings that idea into the show’s larger celebration of female agency.

That tone explains the production’s description as a celebration of 21st-century girl power. The phrase may sound broad, but it fits the show’s approach. SIX takes a familiar male-centered story and hands the microphone to the women who were pushed to the edges of it.

You will get the most from the finale if you pay attention to that change in emphasis. The show starts as a contest. It ends with a stronger sense of shared purpose.

Timing, age guidance, and practical planning

The complete performance lasts 80 minutes with no intermission. That is one of its best practical features. You do not need to plan around a break, and you can keep your schedule moving afterward.

The short length does not mean the experience is minor. It means the show is concentrated. You get the queens, the music, the contest, and the central message without a long evening commitment.

The production is recommended for ages 10 and up. Children under 4 will not be admitted. For families, the age guidance is worth taking seriously because the material deals with marriage, heartbreak, and the difficult personal history of Henry VIII’s wives.

Food and drinks are available for purchase, but they are not included with admission. Transportation is also not included, so you will need to make your own way to the Broadway theater. Since no transportation service is part of the experience, this works best as one piece of a self-planned New York day or night.

Is the ticket good value?

No ticket price is provided here, so I cannot judge SIX against a specific dollar amount. I can still explain what you are paying for.

Your admission buys a complete Broadway performance with a professional cast, an all-female live band, original music, and a compact 80-minute format. The show has also received major industry recognition, including the 2022 Tony Award for Best Original Score and the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical.

The value is strongest if you want a focused evening built around music and performance. The short running time can be a plus in New York, where a full day of sightseeing may leave you tired. You get a polished theatrical event without committing to a three-hour production.

The value is less obvious if you judge a ticket by length alone or expect elaborate historical drama. SIX does not try to cover every detail of Tudor England. It gives you a lively, selective version of the queens’ stories through pop performance.

I would compare the price with your other Broadway options, but I would not dismiss the show because it is only 80 minutes. Its format is part of the design, not a sign that the production is unfinished.

Who should see SIX on Broadway?

I would point you toward SIX if you enjoy pop music, strong solo performances, and shows with a clear modern point of view. It is also a good choice if you want to introduce someone to Broadway without asking them to sit through a long, complicated plot.

History fans may enjoy the fresh angle, especially if you are tired of seeing Tudor women treated as footnotes. You will not receive a full lesson in the period, but you will see the six queens presented as distinct people with their own claims to recognition.

Families with children ages 10 and up can consider it, provided the child is comfortable with the show’s mature historical themes and pop-concert energy. Children under 4 are not admitted.

I would be more cautious if you want a traditional musical comedy, a large ensemble story, or a detailed recreation of Tudor life. SIX is more focused and stylized. Its power comes from the performances and songs, not from realistic sets or a sprawling plot.

Should you book SIX?

Book it if you want a short, music-first Broadway show with six central performers and an all-female band. The 80-minute running time is easy to fit into a busy New York schedule, and the show gives familiar Tudor history a fresh point of view.

Skip it if you are seeking a conventional historical musical with long scenes and extensive storytelling. SIX works best when you accept its format: a pop concert, a queen-by-queen contest, and a sharp argument for remembering these women on their own terms.

FAQ

Where does SIX take place?

SIX takes place on Broadway in New York, New York, United States.

How long is the show?

The performance lasts 80 minutes.

Does SIX have an intermission?

No. SIX is performed without an intermission.

What is included with the experience?

Admission to the Broadway performance is included.

Are transportation, food, and drinks included?

No. Transportation, food, and drinks are not included. Food and drinks are available for purchase.

What age is SIX recommended for?

The show is recommended for ages 10 and up.

Can children under 4 attend?

No. Children under the age of 4 will not be admitted.

Who performs with the queens?

The female cast is backed by an all-female band called the Ladies in Waiting.