The Greatest Showman
Music that renders the moment when those once cast aside declare their pride as a pop anthem in a synth-pop arrangement
At a glance 🔭💭
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The makers ⏳🌊
- ComposerBenj Pasek
The lyricist-composer who, with Justin Paul, wrote every song in the film.
- ComposerJustin Paul
Benj Pasek's longtime partner, with whom he also created "Dear Evan Hansen."
- DirectorMichael Gracey
A first-time feature director who had been shaping this story for years.
- Lead roleHugh Jackman
Played P.T. Barnum, performing his own singing and dancing.
- Lead roleKeala Settle
As Lettie Lutz, she sang "This Is Me."
- Lead roleZendaya
She played the trapeze artist Anne Wheeler.
I. Those who dreamed of the circus
(Background) The film was a project the director Michael Gracey had been developing for many years. Taking as his subject the life of the real-life showman P.T. Barnum, he set out to carry the circus into a modern musical idiom. Hugh Jackman, who plays the lead, is said to have taken an interest in the project years in advance, and it was a long road before the production finally came together. (Composers) The music was written by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, a lyricist-composer team long active together on Broadway and the writers of the score for the musical Dear Evan Hansen. In La La Land, which this series covered earlier, the two also wrote lyrics alongside the composer Justin Hurwitz, so the three works can be said to have shaped, together, the musical-theater language of a generation. (Choice) Though the story is set in 19th-century America, the pair passed over the customary sound of the period piece in favor of modern pop arrangements. Putting synths (electronic keyboards) and percussion front and center was a choice that announced through the music, before anything else, that the film is not a historical re-creation but a work about the feelings of today: pride and belonging.
II. Into the tent
(Opening) The film begins backstage and launches straight into an enormous opening number. Lights, roars, and the movements of the troupe pour out all at once, drawing the audience into the circus tent. (Invitation) Rather than explain the story, the song throws sensation at us first. It is a way of making us feel in the body, before anything else, the emotional temper of the story to come: the tension between dazzle and exclusion. (Contrast) The screen then shifts into flashback, and Barnum appears as an impoverished boy. Set against the glittering opening, this quiet introduction is where we learn why he came to dream of the stage.
The ensemble number that opens the film, hurling the whole sensation of the circus at us.
- The short, repeating rhythmic figure (rhythmic motif) of the introduction returns again and again until the show is over, becoming a marker for the circus itself.
- A mix of instruments, handclaps, and stomping feet carries the din of the stage straight onto the recording.
- The way many voices pile up in layers in the chorus previews the theme of the whole film: different kinds of people gathering on a single stage.
- The song has spread so widely that it is often used at awards ceremonies and as a stadium anthem.
III. Gathering the scattered
(Dream) Scenes follow of the promise between young Barnum and Charity, and of the two growing up, marrying, and starting a family. The song in this passage paints, without fuss, the hopes they held even in poverty. (Recruitment) After failing in business time and again, Barnum seeks out people pushed to society's margins - a bearded lady, a giant, a performer with dwarfism, and others - and gathers them onto the stage. The music of this gathering leads with excitement and anticipation. (Formation) The song for the moment the outcasts first take the stage expresses the energy of coming together. For them, the circus is portrayed not as a mere spectacle but as the first place where they can show who they are.
A song about young Barnum's hopes that carries on into his adult life.
- The melody, laid over a gentle piano accompaniment, captures the innocent hopes of young Barnum just as they are.
- In the latter part of the song, the adult Barnum and Charity sing together, and the same melody becomes a bridge spanning the passage of time.
- Beginning in a low register and gradually widening its range, the song's structure traces in music the way a dream grows.
- Because it was written new for the film, with no original Broadway production behind it, ballad and cover versions were later recorded separately by many singers.
The song for the moment the outcasts first take the stage and come together.
- An arrangement that pushes percussion and brass to the front conveys the giddy energy of performers stepping onstage for the first time.
- The chorus, repeated like a short chant, is built for everyone to sing along.
- In the scenes paired with choreography, you can hear the beat of the music leading the actors' movements directly.
IV. Other worlds, other voices
(Enlisting) Building on his success, Barnum brings in Phillip Carlyle, a playwright from the upper class. Their sparring match in a bar unfolds in song, portraying the moment two men from different worlds join hands. (Temptation) A thirst for social climbing leads Barnum to bring over Jenny Lind, a famous European singer. The song she sings folds a classical vocal style into a pop ballad, expressing a longing that can never be filled. (Love) Meanwhile, feelings that strain to cross the divide of class begin to bloom between Phillip and the acrobat Anne Wheeler. Their duet, sung on the trapeze, works out the distance and conflict between them through choreography and song at once.
The duet in the bar scene where Barnum draws Phillip Carlyle in.
- Set in a bar, the duet unfolds as a conversation in song between two men who belong to different worlds.
- Jazzy rhythms and frequent leaps in pitch heighten the tension of a scene in which temptation and persuasion trade back and forth.
- The passage where footwork using stage props locks together with the singing is the most talked-about part of the song's choreography.
The song Jenny Lind sings onstage, portraying a longing that can never be filled.
- Beginning in a classical vocal style and expanding into a pop ballad, the song moves between two genres to voice the character's double position.
- The passage in the chorus where the notes climb higher and grow louder (crescendo) gives sound to a longing that can never be filled.
- In the film, the actor who sings the song onscreen and the singer who actually recorded it are different people, a fact that drew much attention when the film was released.
- It became widely known through numerous performances on awards-show stages as well.
A duet in which Phillip and Anne confirm their feelings for each other high on the trapeze.
- Sung on the trapeze, the duet (duet) locks song and acrobatics together, letting the distance between the two show in their bodies as well.
- Short melodic fragments, traded back and forth, gradually overlap, letting us hear two different positions slowly converge into one.
- The obstacles of social rank and the world's gaze seep directly into the tone of the chorus lyrics.
V. Declaring themselves
(Rebellion) When Barnum begins to distance himself from his troupe in order to enter high society, the performers pushed from the stage find their own voice. This song is the moment they first proudly declare their existence. (Structure) Beginning cautiously in a low register, the song swells explosively in the chorus, built so that long-suppressed emotion bursts out all at once. (Reception) Widely discussed beyond the film itself and performed many times on awards-show stages, the song is singled out by critics and audiences alike as the film's signature number. (Crisis) Past its climax, the drama turns toward crisis. Over images of Barnum on the verge of losing everything flows music of urgent rhythm.
The film's climactic number, in which the sidelined performers declare their own existence.
- Opening in a low, restrained register and swelling explosively in the chorus, the song's structure is a musical design for the moment when pent-up emotion breaks loose.
- A short, forceful hook (a brief, repeated melodic phrase) runs through the entire song, designed to linger in memory long after the film ends.
- It won the Golden Globe for Best Original Song, was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song, and is regarded as the film's signature number.
- Sung by actress Keala Settle, the song drew buzz even before the film's release through an audition-style performance video, heightening anticipation for the film.
VI. A song to begin again
(Return) After the crisis, Barnum looks back on what he truly should have protected. The music here strips away its lavish arrangements, leaving only voice and simple accompaniment. (Reconciliation) The final scenes, in which he returns to his troupe and his family, close by gathering together the thematic melodies that had earlier scattered. A song carrying the resolve to start anew brings the drama to a close. (Afterglow) The opening theme, played once more at the end, lets us hear how the circus has changed in meaning, from dazzling spectacle into a symbol of belonging.
The song that closes the film as the community reunites after the crisis.
- Fragments of several thematic melodies heard earlier return intermingled, drawing the scattered story back together.
- An arrangement that foregrounds hand claps and stomping feet feels less like lavish stage instrumentation and more like a song sung by people gathered together.
- As the song builds and more and more voices join in, its structure lets us hear the size of the reunited community.
Lesser-known stories
Jenny Lind's singing voice was recorded not by actress Rebecca Ferguson but by singer Loren Allred. Ferguson lip-synced during filming, and the actual vocals were added in post-production. The practice is not unusual in movie musicals, but once it became widely known after the release, it became a talking point among audiences. The real Jenny Lind's American tour of the 1850s was in fact organized by the real Barnum, and because relatively detailed records of its ticket sales and box-office receipts survive, it serves as source material for research on the 19th-century performance industry. The romance the film depicts between the two, however, is an invention without historical basis; their actual relationship is said to have been strictly a business one. “This Is Me” is known to have been sung from the workshop stage onward, before the film was even greenlit. The filmmakers reportedly played it as a demonstration to win over the studio and investors, and in the finished film it remained the song at the drama's emotional center. The film's own early box office was not especially remarkable, but the soundtrack steadily gained listeners after the release and stayed on various album charts for a long time. It is often cited as a rare case of an audience gathered belatedly through word of mouth.
Glossary notes 📚🔎
Hook
(Meaning) The English word hook literally means a hook, a curved barb. The name comes from the idea of a short melody that catches in the ear like a fishhook and won't let go. (In film and musical theater music) It refers to the most memorable short phrase or melody in a song. When a friend hums a line of a song during break at school and you find yourself singing along, that is the power of a hook. The first line of the chorus of “This Is Me” plays exactly this role. (Elsewhere) In everyday use it can also mean anything that grabs attention. That is why the opening sentence of an ad or a presentation is sometimes called a hook.
Anthem
(In film and musical theater music) An anthem is a powerful, unifying song built for many people to sing together. Think of the cheer a whole class shouts out together on a school sports day. Songs like “This Is Me,” in which those once marginalized declare their pride, are often called anthems. (Elsewhere) The word originally referred to national anthems or sacred choral music, but in today's popular music it is more widely used for a song that unites the hearts of a particular group.
Bridge
(Meaning) As the word itself suggests, the name comes from a bridge: a passage that connects one part of a song to another. (In film and musical theater music) It refers to the passage between choruses that briefly shifts the mood. It is like reading a storybook that moves for a moment to a different scene before returning to the main plot. In “This Is Me,” the passage that sinks low just before erupting back into the chorus is the bridge.
Crescendo
(Meaning) Italian for 'growing gradually louder.' (In film and musical theater music) A term for sound that grows gradually louder. It feels like a tug-of-war, as the pulling grows stronger and the shouts grow louder. The passage in “Never Enough” where the chorus repeats several times, swelling each time, is a classic example. (Elsewhere) In everyday speech, too, the build of something toward its climax is sometimes likened to a crescendo.
Synth-pop
(Meaning) Pop music made with synthesizers (electronic keyboards). (In film and musical theater music) A pop style that puts electronic keyboards and electronic drums front and center. That this film, set in the 19th century, chose a sound close to synth-pop instead of period-drama orchestral writing was a deliberate choice to tell its story through sensibilities familiar to today's audiences.
Duet
(Meaning) The word ijungchang (二重唱) means 'song in two layers' and refers to a song two people sing together. The English duet likewise comes from a Latin word meaning two. (In film and musical theater music) A song that two characters trade back and forth or sing together, often used to show their relationship or conflict through music. Like a three-legged race run in pairs, the very process of two voices drifting apart or falling into step becomes the story. “The Other Side” and “Rewrite the Stars” are the film's signature duets.