The Hunchback of Notre Dame is a musical with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, based upon Walt Disney Animation Studios' 1996 film and the 1831 novel by Victor Hugo. The musical premiered in 1999 in Berlin as Der Glöckner von Notre Dame, with a book by James Lapine. It was produced by Disney Theatrical Productions, being the company's first musical to premiere outside the United States. It ran for three years, becoming one of Berlin's longest-running musicals.
The English-language version, with a revised book by Peter Parnell, had its debut at La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, California on October 28, 2014, and ran until December 7, 2014. Subsequently, the show went on to open on March 4, 2015, at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey, with more changes in the libretto. The show closed on April 5, 2015.
The musical is notably darker and thematically closer to the source material than the animated film, with composer Alan Menken and lyricist Stephen Schwartz rewriting several songs to match the original tone of the Hugo novel.
History
Background (1996–1999) In 1996, Walt Disney Animation Studios created an animated film adaptation of Victor Hugo's novel of the same name with songs by Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz.
Der Glöckner von Notre Dame (1999–2002) Berlin Theatre (now Theater am Potsdamer Platz) sought to stage The Lion King, but after those negotiations fell through Disney offered The Hunchback of Notre Dame instead. This project was a departure from the theatre's history of only importing shows that had proven to be successful on Broadway. Originally rehearsed in English, then retaught in German, the musical opened on June 5, 1999. After a successful run – 1.4 million visitors saw the musical over 1,204 performances – it closed in June 2002.
Directed and revised by Lapine, with music by Menken and Schwartz, the German translation was by Michael Kunze, choreography by Lar Lubovitch, with sets by Heidi Ettinger, costumes by Sue Blane, lighting by Rick Fisher, sound by Tony Meola and projections by Jerome Sirlin. The production cost 45 million marks to produce (approximately U.S. $25 million), much of which was subsidised by state funds. The production featured forty-two actors from six different nations. In addition to the songs from the film, nine new songs were written for this version. This was Disney's first musical to premiere outside the US, and it became one of Berlin's longest-running musicals to date.
Intermediate period (2002–2013) Der Glöckner von Notre Dame played in only one German theatre. It was not staged again in this format for many years, but adaptations of the 1996 film The Hunchback of Notre Dame could be seen in various productions around Disney theme parks and cruises.
In 2008 the lyricist, Schwartz, stated, "I think we're starting up Hunchback of Notre Dame, hopefully, next year." In a 2010 interview, the composer, Menken, confirmed that he was working on an American production that used James Lapine's book. In 2013, however, it was announced that the musical would be produced on Broadway with a new book by Peter Parnell and new songs by Menken and Schwartz. In April 2013, the first English adaptation of Der Glöckner von Notre Dame was staged by the Fine Arts Department of The King's Academy Sports & Fine Arts Center in West Palm Beach, Florida. According to The King's Academy, Walt Disney Productions selected them to adapt the work, and noted that Disney was workshopping the musical for a possible run on Broadway. Their director, David Snyder, helped Disney cast talent for the new show.
At the D23 expo, which took place on August 9–11, 2013, Josh Strickland performed the first official version of a new song written for the English language version, "Made of Stone".
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (2014–present) The Hunchback of Notre Dame had a workshop in February 2014, and its first North American production ran at La Jolla Playhouse from October 28 through December 7, 2014, directed by Scott Schwartz. The production featured Sacra-Profana, a local 32-voice chorus, appearing onstage throughout the show. The production transferred to the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey, with nearly the same cast and a New Jersey choir, the Continuo Arts Symphonic Chorus, from March 4 through April 5, 2015,
A wave of US regional theatre productions of the musical began in 2016; one theatre, Music Theatre Wichita, received a $10,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to financially support the production. In December 2017 the show was staged at the White Plains Performing Arts Center in New York State and opened to outstanding reviews. An adaptation of the musical in 2016 at the Music Circus in Sacramento, California, embraced the novel's assertion that Quasimodo had become deaf after constantly ringing bells all his life by incorporating sign language into the show. Deaf actor John McGinty was cast as Quasimodo, with a surrogate singer (one of the Notre Dame saints, played by Jim Hogan) singing Quasimodo's songs while McGinty signed. A production was staged outdoors in the amphitheater at Tuacahn Center for the Arts July 29 to October 15, 2016.
A Japanese production opened in 2016 at the Shiki Theatre Company, one of the largest theatres in Japan, in Japanese. The production released a cast album in 2017. In April 2017, a new German production based on the reworked US stagings opened at the Theater des Westens in Berlin. After closing in Berlin, the musical moved to Munich and Stuttgart. A production featured an intimate rotating cast of 18 (with no additional choir), and reduced orchestrations with the cast playing their own instruments. The production was directed by Nicholas Wainwright at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia in December 2017. The 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle staged another version with a Deaf actor signing as Quasimodo, Joshua Castille, alongside E. J. Cardona as his voice and one of the gargoyles from June 1 to June 24, 2018.
The show was performed for the first time in the UK at The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama by the Richard Burton Company in 2019, directed by Graham Gill. The National Youth Music Theatre (NYMT) staged a production in England at Manchester Cathedral in August 2021. Captivate Theatre staged the first Scottish production of the show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2023.
OSMaD staged the first production of the show in Australia, at the Geoffrey McComas Theatre in Victoria in 2023. Matthew Tomlin (Quasimodo), Ninna Aguirre (Esmeralda), Tom Liszukiewicz (Phoebus), Zachary Brown (Claude Frollo) and Pasquale Bartalotta (Clopin) led the cast, and there was an on-stage choir of 32.
A concert production of the show was mounted in London's West End in August 2025 with three performances at the Prince Edward Theatre directed by Jonathan O’Boyle and featuring Zachary James as Frollo, Ben Joyce as Quasimodo, Christine Allado as Esmeralda, Dex Lee as Phoebus De Martin, and London Voices providing the choir vocals.Gumushan, Tanyel. "Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame reveals full West End concert casting", WhatsOnStage, August 1, 2025
Plot Act I Many years ago, Claude Frollo and his brother Jehan were taken in by Notre Dame after being orphaned. Jehan grew to be mischievous, while Frollo remained pious. After Jehan was caught with a gypsy woman, he was expelled from Notre Dame. Frollo eventually became the archdeacon of the cathedral. One day, Frollo received a letter from Jehan, and the two met in secret. On his deathbed, Jehan gave Frollo his deformed baby before dying. As Frollo prepared to kill the child, he suddenly felt as though he was being tested by God. Instead, he chose to save the child, naming him Quasimodo, meaning "half-formed," and raising him in Notre Dame. As the story progresses, an actor steps forward and assumes the role of Quasimodo, with minor face paint applied to represent his deformity, while the company asks: "What makes a monster, and what makes a man?" ("The Bells of Notre Dame").
In the present day (in the year 1482), Quasimodo is now a young man, made partially deaf by a lifetime of ringing Notre Dame's bells. He talks to Notre Dame's statues of saints and gargoyles about his desire to go to the Feast of Fools. Frollo arrives and asks him who he is speaking to, reminding him that the stone statues cannot talk. They recite the biblical story of the Flight into Egypt, after which Frollo complains about Paris's gypsies and the Feast of Fools ("Sanctuary Part I"). Quasimodo offers to protect him outside; Frollo declines, warning him that he would be shunned if he were to go out in public ("Sanctuary Part II"). Quasimodo sings to himself, yearning to spend one day outside Notre Dame ("Out There").
In the streets of Paris, the Feast of Fools begins, led by Clopin, the gypsy king ("Topsy Turvy Part I"). Meanwhile, Captain Phoebus, the new head of Notre Dame's Cathedral Guard, arrives in Paris from the front lines. Frollo welcomes him, telling him they must rid the city of gypsies ("Rest and Recreation"). Clopin introduces Esmeralda, a gypsy dancer ("Rhythm of the Tambourine")—Quasimodo, Frollo, and Phoebus are all entranced by her. After that, Clopin holds a contest to crown the King of Fools, the ugliest person in Paris. Encouraged by Esmeralda, Quasimodo enters, immediately winning the contest ("Topsy Turvy Part II") before being humiliated by the crowd. Esmeralda rescues Quasimodo with a magic trick before Frollo intervenes. He scolds Quasimodo; the two return to Notre Dame, followed by Esmeralda ("Sanctuary Part III").
Frollo finds Esmeralda, confronting her; after a brief argument, he relents, allowing her to stay. Esmeralda prays to God to help the less fortunate ("God Help the Outcasts"). Phoebus finds Esmeralda; they argue, Phoebus telling her not to fight unwinnable battles, to which she retorts that she cannot help it.
Esmeralda heads to the bell tower, finding Quasimodo there. The two quickly befriend each other ("Top of the World"), Quasimodo ringing the bells of Notre Dame for her. Frollo runs up to the tower, angry at Quasimodo for ringing the bells at the wrong time. He is shocked by Esmeralda's presence, thinking she had left. He offers her shelter so he may save her soul, but she rejects his offer, saying that she sees the way Frollo looks at her. This infuriates Frollo, who orders Phoebus to escort her from Notre Dame and arrest her if she sets foot in it again. Frollo warns Quasimodo that Esmeralda is a dangerous person sent from Hell and to ignore any lustful feelings he may feel towards her. Yet, having developed such feelings for Esmeralda himself, Frollo roams the streets nightly, one night discovering Esmeralda, Clopin and multiple other gypsies partying with Phoebus; Frollo is unable to look away as Esmeralda dances and kisses Phoebus ("Tavern Song (Thai Mol Piyas)"). Meanwhile, in the bell tower, Quasimodo reflects on seeing couples in love from his tower and how he never thought himself worthy of love until meeting Esmeralda ("Heaven's Light").
Frollo prays, begging the Virgin Mary to save him by either condemning Esmeralda to Hell or giving her to him ("Hellfire"). The next day, he approaches Louis XI asking for special powers to stop a 'gypsy witch' to protect Paris, which he is granted. With his new powers, he instigates a citywide manhunt for Esmeralda which leads him to a brothel known for hiding gypsies. When the brothel's owner claims ignorance, Frollo orders Phoebus to burn the brothel down, an order which Phoebus defies. As Frollo orders Phoebus's arrest, Esmeralda appears; a fight breaks loose. Amidst the commotion, Frollo stabs Phoebus and frames Esmeralda for it; she uses a magic trick to escape. Frollo continues the hunt, while Quasimodo grows increasingly worried about Esmeralda's whereabouts ("Esmeralda").
Act II