History Main / MinorCharacterMajorSong

* The Young Confederate Soldier from ''Theatre/{{Parade}}''.

** In ''Allegro'', Beulah, Joe's friend's girlfriend's friend who has a tryst with him in one scene and never appears again, gets to sing one of the score's most appealing tunes, "So Far."

* ''Series/{{Schmigadoon}}'': Lampshaded by [[GenreSavvy musical theater fan Melissa]], who notes that Countess Gabriele Van Blerkom (the [[Theatre/TheSoundOfMusic Baroness]]-esque DisposableFiance character) gets a showstopping number to herself for some reason.

** King Herod ("King Herod's Song") and Simon ("Simon Zealotes") from ''Theatre/JesusChristSuperstar''.

* Despite having the SignatureSong of the play and [[spoiler:being chosen by Old Deuteronomy at the end]], Grizabella from ''Theatre/{{Cats}}'' barely appears on-stage. She's shunned by the tribe and only appears for a few sequences.

* Juan Peron's mistress from ''Theatre/{{Evita}}'', who sings "Another Suitcase in Another Hall" and is quickly dismissed. In the film version, Evita herself sings it because, y'know... {{Music/Madonna}}.

* King Herod ("King Herod's Song") and Simon ("Simon Zealotes") from ''Theatre/JesusChristSuperstar''.

** "You Gotta Get a Gimmick" from ''Theatre/{{Gypsy}}'', lyrics by Sondheim and music by Creator/JuleStyne. Mazeppa, Electra, and Tessie Tura don't really appear again outside of their scene and song. However, [[SmallRoleBigImpact they heavily inspire Louise's act that later catapults her to fame]] as Gypsy Rose Lee, and the song is one of the more memorable in an already memorable score.

** "You Gotta Get a Gimmick" from ''Theatre/{{Gypsy}}'', lyrics by Sondheim and music by Music/JuleStyne. Mazeppa, Electra, and Tessie Tura don't really appear again outside of their scene and song. However, [[SmallRoleBigImpact they heavily inspire Louise's act that later catapults her to fame]] as Gypsy Rose Lee, and the song is one of the more memorable in an already memorable score.

** "You Gotta Get a Gimmick" from ''Theatre/{{Gypsy}}'', lyrics by Sondheim and music by Creator/JulesStyne. Mazeppa, Electra, and Tessie Tura don't really appear again outside of their scene and song. However, [[SmallRoleBigImpact they heavily inspire Louise's act that later catapults her to fame]] as Gypsy Rose Lee, and the song is one of the more memorable in an already memorable score.

** "You Gotta Get a Gimmick" from ''Theatre/{{Gypsy}}'', lyrics by Sondheim and music by Music/JulesStyne. Mazeppa, Electra, and Tessie Tura don't really appear again outside of their scene and song. However, [[MinorCharacterBigImpact they heavily inspire Louise's act that later catapults her to fame]] as Gypsy Rose Lee, and the song is one of the more memorable in an already memorable score.

* The Hermit in ''Theatre/YoungFrankenstein'' gets "Please Send Me Someone", a lament of his loneliness.

* Tamatoa the crab sings "Shiny" in ''{{WesternAnimation/Moana}}''.
* King Gator, who does the [[TropeNamer so-called]] BigLippedAlligatorMoment in ''WesternAnimation/AllDogsGoToHeaven''.

* Eddie the (Ex-)Delivery Boy from ''Film/TheRockyHorrorPictureShow''. He shows up, sings one of the most memorable songs in the movie, and is promptly murdered with a pickaxe. He has one later song (titled "Eddie", in fact), but this verse is a voiceover intended to represent other characters reading a letter he wrote.

* Music/EltonJohn's ''Pinball Wizard'', Music/EricClapton's ''Eyesight To The Blind'', and Tina Turner's ''Acid Queen'' from ''Music/{{Tommy}}''.

* Julie Brown in ''Film/EarthGirlsAreEasy'' with "Cause I'm a Blonde". (Her character in this scene is different from the one she plays in the remainder of the film, Candy Pink; had plans for a ScreenToStageAdaptation gone through at the TurnOfTheMillennium a CompositeCharacter approach would have averted this trope.)
* The dentist in ''Film/LittleShopOfHorrors''. One of those resultant from AdaptationDistillation, as in [[Theatre/LittleShopOfHorrors the stage musical]] he sang in two other songs (the same ACTOR also sang in a multitude of other songs, AndYouWereThere-style).
* ''Film/AbsoluteBeginners'' has two cases of this, owing to the stature of the performers playing the roles. Vendice is just one of several antagonists in on an evil scheme, but since he's played by Music/DavidBowie he gets the Bowie-penned song "That's Motivation" ''and'' a DisneyAcidSequence to go with it. Between that, writing/singing the TitleThemeTune for the film's credits, and simply being the biggest name in the cast, Bowie was billed ''third''! (As a bonus, while his character only sings a snatch of the old standard "Volare" in one scene, the soundtrack album includes a full performance of it.) Another minor character, Arthur (the hero's dad), gets the big number "Quiet Life" -- he's played by Ray Davies of The Kinks.
* In ''Film/TheRundown'' Ewen Bremen got his own major song when he playe his bagpipes towards the end.
* Afterglow from ''Theatre/BranNueDae'', sung by the resident hippy of the film, Annie.

* ''Film/DarlingLili'' has Crepe Suzette who appears in two scenes besides her performance of the BadGirlSong "Your Goodwill Ambassador" - which sets up the third act conflict. It's the only song in the movie not sung by Creator/JulieAndrews.
* ''Film/AnnaAndTheApocalypse'': Lisa's the least plot-relevant of the main kids, but she gets a solo to herself in the form of "It's That Time Of Year".

* In ''Allegro'', Beulah, Joe's friend's girlfriend's friend who has a tryst with him in one scene and never appears again, gets to sing one of the score's most appealing tunes, "So Far."

* In ''Theatre/{{Carousel}}'', Nettie Fowler, a secondary character with no real involvement in the plot, takes the lead in singing "June Is Bustin' Out All Over" and "You'll Never Walk Alone."

* Helen Chao from ''Literature/FlowerDrumSong'' has "Love, Look Away" which turns into a spectacular DreamBallet and also sets up a ThirdActMisunderstanding - as Mei Li finds [[NotWhatItLooksLike Ta at her house]].

* Nostradamus in "Theatre/SomethingRotten'', who leads the cast in the show's SignatureSong, "A Musical".

* In ''Theatre/TheDrowsyChaperone'', Trix the Aviatrix pops up briefly to introduce herself in the opening number and doesn't appear again until the finale, when she leads "I Do, I Do in the Sky".

** The girl who sings "Somewhere" in ''Theatre/WestSideStory'', lyrics by Sondheim and music by Creator/LeonardBernstein.

* The Proprietor from ''Theatre/{{Assassins}}''. He sings "Everybody's Got the Right" at the beginning of the show. Though he does show up at various points, as a background character, an announcer, or even the President of the United States. And in some productions, he does sing part of "Another National Anthem."
** Productions from the 2004 revival onward give one to the Housewife who leads "Something Just Broke." While the number is a CrowdSong, she is the focal point, and the song is frequently cited as one of the most memorable in the show, if only because it reminds the audience (who've spent the whole musical watching the assassins) about the grief and pain felt by everyday people after massive tragedies.

* ''{{Theatre/Company|Sondheim}}'' has Marta and "Another Hundred People". She and Joanne ("The Ladies Who Lunch") are the only characters aside from Bobby that get songs entirely to themselves, and she is significantly less important to the plot (such as it is) than Joanne. The song was included to showcase Pamela Myers in the original production.

* ''Theatre/{{Follies}}'' has many old-fashioned showtunes sung by minor characters who do very little else outside their one number. "Beautiful Girls" (Roscoe) and "Who's That Woman?" (Stella) are ostentatious production numbers, but "I'm Still Here" (Carlotta) may be more of a fan favorite.

* The Wolf in ''Theatre/IntoTheWoods'' sings [[LetsDuet most of]] "Hello, Little Girl", a song about how he [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything hungers]] for Little Red Riding Hood.

* Petra of ''Theatre/ALittleNightMusic'' with "The Miller's Son." She does have a relatively small part in the "A Weekend In The Country" musical sequence, but she is the only non-central character to get a song all to herself which ends up having little to no bearing on the plot. Composer Stephen Sondheim tried to do the same by giving Frid, a character with even less stage time, a tune called "Silly People," but that one ended up a CutSong instead (rumor has it the original director remarked "Who ''cares'' what Frid thinks?").

* Pirelli in ''Theatre/SweeneyToddTheDemonBarberOfFleetStreet''.

* The girl who sings "Somewhere" in ''Theatre/WestSideStory''.
** Depending on the staging, this is usually sung by someone offstage or by Tony and Maria as a duet. The "someone offstage" makes it not just a minor character but a ''non''-character, and the Tony and Maria version ... well, they're the ''leads''.
** In the recent revival and national tour, the song was sung by the actress who plays Anybodys, in costume as Anybodys, but presumably not in character as Anybodys because it isn't in character. It would still qualify, as Anybodys is a minor character.

* In Theatre/TheTwentyFifthAnnualPutnamCountySpellingBee, Mitch Mahoney is there mainly to walk out eliminated contestants, not getting as many lines as the kids nor the other adults. However, after the final guest speller is eliminated, he sings “Prayer of the Comfort Counselor”, which replaces the usual "Goodbye" melody and sends off the guest on a triumphant note.

* In ''Theatre/{{Allegro}}'', Beulah, Joe's friend's girlfriend's friend who has a tryst with him in one scene and never appears again, gets to sing one of the score's most appealing tunes, "So Far."
* In the 2016 stage production of ''WesternAnimation/{{Anastasia}}'', Count Ipolitov, a royal count who recognizes Anya as Anastasia at the train station, leads the departing passengers in singing "Stay, I Pray You," a farewell to Russia. He doesn't appear again [[spoiler:as he is dragged off the train and shot for having the wrong papers]].

* Fleet, the ship's lookout at the time of the iceberg striking the Titanic gets "No Moon" in ''Theatre/{{Titanic}}''.
* "Miss Marmelstein" from ''I Can Get It For You Wholesale''. This minor piece helped kickstart the career of Barbra Streisand.
* King Herod ("King Herod's Song") and Simon ("Simon Zealotes") from ''Theatre/JesusChristSuperstar''.
* The Foreign Woman, from Gian-Carlo Menotti's ''The Consul''. To be fair, she is onstage for more than the one aria she sings, but that aria is her only real point of significance.
* The Steersman from Wagner's "The Flying Dutchman" might qualify.

* Steve, from ''Theatre/PaintYourWagon'', who sings "They Call The Wind Maria."
* The Young Confederate Soldier from ''Theatre/{{Parade}}''.
* In ''Theatre/{{Hamilton}}'', King George III has nothing to ''do'' plot-wise [[note]]aside from mysteriously showing up in "The Reynolds Pamphlet"[[/note]], but he does get to sing three major songs (all to the same tune).
** Maria Reynolds has "Say No to This" which is a big number, also crosses over with SmallRoleBigImpact as it's a huge turning point in the story.
* The girl who sings "Somewhere" in ''Theatre/WestSideStory''.
** Depending on the staging, this is usually sung by someone offstage or by Tony and Maria as a duet. The "someone offstage" makes it not just a minor character but a ''non''-character, and the Tony and Maria version ... well, they're the ''leads''.
** In the recent revival and national tour, the song was sung by the actress who plays Anybodys, in costume as Anybodys, but presumably not in character as Anybodys because it isn't in character. It would still qualify, as Anybodys is a minor character.
* Gigi from ''Theatre/MissSaigon'' who sings "Movie In My Mind" with Kim early in the show, makes one more appearance during Kim and Chris' wedding and then [[WhatHappenedToTheMouse disappears]] from the narrative during the timeskip to after the fall of Saigon.
* The Street Singer from ''Theatre/TheThreepennyOpera'', who sings "Mack the Knife."
* The Proprietor from ''Theatre/{{Assassins}}''. He sings "Everybody's Got the Right" at the beginning of the show. Though he does show up at various points, as a background character, an announcer, or even the President of the United States. And in some productions, he does sing part of "Another National Anthem."
** Productions from the 2004 revival onward give one to the Housewife who leads "Something Just Broke." While the number is a CrowdSong, she is the focal point, and the song is frequently cited as one of the most memorable in the show, if only because it reminds the audience (who've spent the whole musical watching the assassins) about the grief and pain felt by everyday people after massive tragedies.
* Juan Peron's mistress from ''Theatre/{{Evita}}'', who sings "Another Suitcase in Another Hall" and is quickly dismissed. In the film version, Evita herself sings it because, y'know... {{Music/Madonna}}.
* Pirelli in ''Theatre/SweeneyToddTheDemonBarberOfFleetStreet''.
* ''Theatre/KissMeKate'': The two gangsters who sing "Brush Up Your Shakespeare."

* [[SmallRoleBigImpact Joe]] in ''Theatre/ShowBoat''. It helps that he has one of the best Broadway songs ''ever written'', "Ol' Man River."
* Petra of ''Theatre/ALittleNightMusic'' with "The Miller's Son." She does have a relatively small part in the "A Weekend In The Country" musical sequence, but she is the only non-central character to get a song all to herself which ends up having little to no bearing on the plot. Composer Stephen Sondheim tried to do the same by giving Frid, a character with even less stage time, a tune called "Silly People," but that one ended up a CutSong instead (rumor has it the original director remarked "Who ''cares'' what Frid thinks?").
* Martha from ''Theatre/SpringAwakening'' is a minor character whose only major song is "The Dark I Know Well," a duet with Ilse about their physically [[spoiler: and sexually]] {{Abusive Parent}}s. The actresses frequently [[TearJerker get thanked by fans who were also abuse victims]].
* Pan in ''Theatre/BatBoyTheMusical'' qualifies with "Children Children". He shows up randomly and sings a song that is memorable for not fitting in with any of the rest of the show; particularly due to a bunch of animals that proceed to have an 'interspecies orgy' during said song. He is also never named.
* Vanderdendur in the Final Revised Version of ''Theatre/{{Candide}}'' is only in one scene (and is mentioned as having been killed, off-stage, in another), and yet he gets the show's big spectacular VillainSong. Averted in earlier versions of the show, where the Governor gets to sing it.
* Helen Chao from ''Literature/FlowerDrumSong'' has "Love, Look Away" which turns into a spectacular DreamBallet and also sets up a ThirdActMisunderstanding - as Mei Li finds [[NotWhatItLooksLike Ta at her house]].
* Theatre/{{Pippin}}'s grandmother Berthe is in only one scene, but in that scene she sings "No Time At All", an extremely catchy tune she turns into an AudienceParticipationSong.
* ''Theatre/TheBookOfMormon'' uses Mafala Hatimbi to introduce the missionaries (and the audience) to Uganda and their philosophy of life through the song "Hasa Diga Eebowai" [[spoiler: which ends up meaning "Fuck you, God".]] The rest of the show then shifts its focus to Mafala's daughter, Nabulungi, and he becomes a background character.

* ''Theatre/ManOfLaMancha'' has one of its most beautiful songs, "To Each His Dulcinea", sung by the priest; he's presented as a mute inmate of an insane asylum during the ShowWithinAShow portions, until he is the second inmate to take up the Finale reprise at the end..

* In ''Theatre/{{Allegro}}'', Beulah, Joe's friend's girlfriend's friend who has a tryst with him in one scene and never appears again, gets to sing one of the score's most appealing tunes, "So Far."
* In ''Theatre/{{Carousel}}'', Nettie Fowler, a secondary character with no real involvement in the plot, takes the lead in singing "June Is Bustin' Out All Over" and "You'll Never Walk Alone."
* ''Theatre/{{Follies}}'' has many old-fashioned showtunes sung by minor characters who do very little else outside their one number. "Beautiful Girls" (Roscoe) and "Who's That Woman?" (Stella) are ostentatious production numbers, but "I'm Still Here" (Carlotta) may be more of a fan favorite.

* ''Theatre/LilAbner'' assigns Marryin' Sam singing duties out of proportion to his part in the plot, including the incredibly catchy "Jubilation T. Cornpone". (With both this and the previous example, when the play was adapted into a film, Stubby Kaye got this as his moment to shine, and seized it with both hands.)
* ''Theatre/PorgyAndBess'' all but begins with Clara singing "Summertime" to her baby. Despite being the first character to appear, even her dramatic exit at the end of the second act (and the chorus mourning her at the start of the third) doesn't elevate her role to much importance.

* "Moon-Faced, Starry-Eyed" from ''Theatre/StreetScene'', a highly catchy song-and-jitterbug number, is sung by a drunken young couple who make only one other very brief appearance.
* In the 2016 stage production of ''WesternAnimation/{{Anastasia}}'', Count Ipolitov, a royal count who recognizes Anya as Anastasia at the train station, leads the departing passengers in singing "Stay, I Pray You," a farewell to Russia. He doesn't appear again [[spoiler:as he is dragged off the train and shot for having the wrong papers]].
* Mr. and Mrs. Bucket in ''Theatre/CharlieAndTheChocolateFactory'' have "If Your Mother Were Here", a quiet ParentalLoveSong that bridges the four brats finding their Golden Tickets and Charlie (who is in the midst of a HeroicBSOD) finding his. Elsewhere they have minor singing parts in two huge production numbers, being stuck in the shadow of Charlie's wacky grandparents in Act One and absent for most of Act Two. Nevertheless, "If Your Mother Were Here" is a fan favorite that's received praise even from people who don't like the show.
** The 2017 Broadway production made this song fit this trope even better by turning it into a solo sung by Mrs. Bucket, "If Your Father Were Here", with the premise that [[spoiler: Charlie's father is dead]].
* In ''Theatre/{{Finale}}'', the character of Lucy Everett (whose name is AllThereInTheManual) sings the song "Congratulations!", one of the biggest production numbers in the show. However, the character only makes two more minor appearances, and other than that never appears again.

* In ''Theatre/InTheHeights'', Piragua Guy is present throughout the show but doesn't really interact with any of the other characters in any significant way. That all being said, he gets ''two'' solo songs: "Piragua" and "Piragua - Reprise".
* Martha from ''Theatre/{{Heathers}}'' gets to sing "Kindergarten Boyfriend", a solo song where she [[spoiler: mourns the death of her long-time crush and then attempts suicide.]] It's the only song she gets all to herself and, despite what the song title might make you think, [[TearJerker is extremely heartbreaking to listen to.]]
** Kurt and Ram's father's get "Dead Gay Son", a showstopper at the beginning of Act 2 and Mrs. Fleming gets to rock out in "Shine A Light".
* {{Downplayed}} in ''Theatre/BeMoreChill'': plenty of people who have never listened to the show have at the very least heard of "Michael in the Bathroom". While Michael gets a decent amount of stage time, his big solo song is one of the reasons many people were introduced to the show in the first place.
* Saint Aphrodisias- who is barely mentioned throughout the musical at all up until this number- gets 'Flight into Egypt' in the stage version of ''Theatre/TheHunchbackOfNotreDame'', though Quasimodo does end up taking over the end part of the song [[spoiler: once he's realised that Esmeralda's talisman is a map leading to the Court of Miracles]].
* Hugo in the musical adaptation of ''Literature/TuckEverlasting'' gets 'Hugo's First Case Pt. 1' and 'Hugo's First Case Pt. 2' to himself, but arguably the song that embodies this trope most is 'You Can't Trust a Man', a duet between him and his father (who's even more of a minor character than he is).

* The HIV/AIDS support group in Theatre/{{Rent}} only features in a few scenes, but they get the chilling 'Will I?', a song where they attempt to come to terms with their inevitable death and what they will leave behind.
* Although ''Glory Days'' only has four characters total, Skip gets the least focus- and to make up for this he gets 'Generation Apathy', a cynical solo number about how oblivious and self-centered today's society is.
* ''Theatre/EvilDeadTheMusical'' has the very self-aware "Bit Part Demon", where a lowly mook laments that he only exists to be forgettable cannon fodder for the hero. And right when he starts to think that maybe getting a whole song to himself means that he's less expendable, Ash shoots him.
* In ''The Band's Visit'' Telephone Guy, a character who doesn't even have a name and whose role consists entirely of standing near a payphone WAITING for a call from his girlfriend, has one of the show's most powerful songs, "Answer Me".
* In Theatre/TheTwentyFifthAnnualPutnamCountySpellingBee, Mitch Mahoney is there mainly to walk out eliminated contestants, not getting as many lines as the kids nor the other adults. However, after the final guest speller is eliminated, he sings “Prayer of the Comfort Counselor”, which replaces the usual "Goodbye" melody and sends off the guest on a triumphant note.

* Despite having the SignatureSong of the play and [[spoiler:being chosen by Old Deuteronomy at the end]], Grizabella from ''Theatre/{{Cats}}'' barely appears on-stage. She's shunned by the tribe and only appears for a few sequences.
* In ''Theatre/HMSPinafore'', The Boatswain has practically no other role but to sing the solo for "He Is An Englishman", and join in the trio for "A British Tar"-- two of the best songs in the show.
* ''Gutenberg! The Musical!'' technically has all the songs sung by Bud and Doug, the only two characters. But in-universe, they wrote the song "Biscuits" to be given to the extremely minor characters of Young Monk and Bootblack. They admit it's because they're hoping a big production number would entice a famous actor to play Young Monk. (They always suggest someone who has recently died, as they've been too busy writing and haven't seen the news. John Candy in the original production.)
* Osiris from ''Theatre/JasperInDeadland''. He only appears for roughly 20 seconds in the song "Living Dead".
* Nostradamus in "Theatre/SomethingRotten'', who leads the cast in the show's SignatureSong, "A Musical".

* "Phantom of the Bwahpera" in ''VideoGame/MarioPlusRabbidsKingdomBattle'' is mostly about harassing Mario.

** The opening number "The Candy Man" may be about Willy Wonka but is sung by Bill, the candy shop owner who later sells the Wonka Bar with the last Golden Ticket to Charlie. Director Mel Stuart had to convince songwriters Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse '''not''' to use StuntCasting for the minor role by way of showing off the song because he knew it would be too distracting for audiences.

* ''Film/CatchMeIfYouCan'': "Fly, Fly Away", sung by Brenda Strong, Frank Abagnale Jr's love interest. The fact that this is just a major song [[UpToEleven is the understatement of the year]], because this song is [[EpicRocking pretty much the hit of the show.]]

* Disrupto, a minor toy character from ''Series/TheNoddyShop'' who appears in two episodes, has a musical number called "Gimme, Gimme, Gimme".