11 o'clock number

11 o'clock number is a theatre term for a big, show-stopping song that occurs late in the second act of a two-act musical, in which a major character, often the protagonist, comes to an important realization. It was so named because in the days when musical performances would start at 8:30 p.m., this song would occur around 11:00 p.m.^[1] Examples include "Rose's Turn" from Gypsy, "Cabaret" from Cabaret, "Memory" from Cats, and "What I Did for Love" from A Chorus Line^[2]

Among the theatre community, there is some debate as to the characteristics of an 11 o'clock number. It often signifies a moment of revelation or change of heart of a lead character, although there are exceptions to this.^[3] The 11 o'clock number is also differentiated from the finale in that it is not the final number in the show, but even this is not considered a requirement by some commenters.^[4] Broadway producer Jack Viertel defines an 11 o'clock number as "a final star turn".^[5]

Origins

In the 1930's, The average start time of a Broadway production was 8:30, Hence the Musical revue titled Life Begins at 8:40. During this time, the song would have the song happen just when it turned 11 o'clock. In the 1970's however, New York City got more dangerous and people didn't want to stay out late in fear of their safety. As a result, The Shubert Organization pushed all of their show times to 7:30.^[6] David Merrick used this to his advantage by pushing his showtimes to 8:00, Attracting anyone who didn't get tickets to shows at 7:30. By 1975, everyone else made their showtimes 8:00.^[7] This didn't denture Merrick from pushing the show time for 42nd street, at the St. James Theatre, to 8:15, to get anyone who was turned away at the Majestic Theatre, playing The Phantom of the Opera. Going so far to have "a group of toe-tapping men and women will go through the theater district wearing sandwich boards that proclaim: ''David Merrick is holding the curtain for YOU!''".^[8] Eventually, Showtimes would shift earlier to 7:00, which is the current standard time. The term sticked throughout all of the years, even when it became outdated.

Notable 11 o'clock numbers

• "Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat" from Guys and Dolls^[3]
• "Memory" from Cats^[9]
• “No Good Deed” from Wicked
• "Revolting Children" from Matilda The Musical
• "Rose's Turn" from Gypsy
• "Cabaret" from Cabaret
• "What I Did for Love" from A Chorus Line
• "She Used to Be Mine" from Waitress
• "The Ladies Who Lunch" from Company
• "Being Alive" from Company
• "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face" from My Fair Lady
• “42nd Street” from 42nd Street
• "Brotherhood of Man" from How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying^[10]
• "Gimme Gimme" from Thoroughly Modern Millie^[4]
• "Another National Anthem" from Assassins^[11]
• "Confrontation" from Jekyll & Hyde^[12]
• "The American Dream" from Miss Saigon
• "So Long Dearie" from Hello, Dolly!
• "Goodbye" from Catch Me If You Can
• "I'm Here" from The Color Purple^[13]
• “The Boy Falls from the Sky” from Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
• “The Power of Love” from Back to the Future: The Musical
• "Always Starting Over" from If/Then.^[14]
• "If He Walked Into My Life" from Mame
• "Get out and Stay out" from 9 to 5
• "When words Fail" from Dear Even Hansen
• "It all Fades away" from The Bridges of Madison County
• "Back to Before" from Ragtime
• "Work the Wound" from Passing Strange