If you're a musical buff such as I am, you can't help but want to be like the characters that you watch or play. So here, in no particular order, is a list of the female characters that I wish I could be more like in real life! Side note: if you haven't seen some or all of these musicals, you might get spoiled on their plot line, character development, or ending. Side note to the side note: if you haven't seen one or more of the following musicals, what are you doing? Go! Watch! Have fun!

1. Elle Woods - Legally Blonde

Elle shows how a girl can be whoever she wants to be if she puts hard work and effort into it. She also rocks a bunny suit like no other.

2. Marcy Parks - The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

Anyone who can speak six languages fluently is an inspiration in my book. Her spunk and perseverance is something that I wish I could have.

3. Wednesday Addams - The Addams Family

Wednesday doesn’t let her past dictate who she wants to be, and she ends up falling in love with a guy that isn’t like what the rest of her family is used to. She doesn't back down and convinces them to accept him as one of their own.

4. Lise Dassin - An American In Paris

Lise doesn’t let the idea of having a man stop her from fulfilling her dreams, she just has him tag along for the ride. Once she has accomplished her dreams of becoming a dancer, then she settles down with the man of her dreams.

5. Annie Oakley - Annie Get Your Gun

Annie, like Wednesday, never changes who she is for a guy. Annie waits for a man who can keep up with her spunky, tomboy-ish personality and doesn’t settle until she gets what she wants.

6. Belle - Beauty and the Beast

Belle is an amazing woman; she gives up her freedom, independence, and (most importantly), her library, to save her father’s life. Who else could face danger so strongly without knowing what the future holds? I wish I would be that strong if I were ever in a situation that dangerous. Also, who else can rock a yellow dress like that?

7. Roxie Hart - Chicago

Roxie isn’t exactly the definition of a perfect role model, but when Roxie wants something, she does whatever it takes to get it. She doesn’t let anyone, not a devious jazz performer, or a money hogging defense lawyer, or a cheating furniture salesman get in her way from becoming the next big jazz artist.

8. Rosalie Craig - Finding Neverland

Rosalie doesn’t let the fact that she’s a single mother of three boys stop her from having a wild imagination. She is mature, strong, and an amazing mother, but she still knows that having creativity is the best way to have fun, even if nothing you’re imagining is real. Come on, who wouldn’t want to play with a rollerblading dog in a park?

9. Penny Pingleton - Hairspray

Penny didn’t let her mother, the time period she grew up in, or the law stop her from loving whoever she wanted to.

10. Katherine Plumber - Newsies

Katherine didn’t let her dad give her the easy route when it came to getting a job - she worked hard to get the job on her own. I find that commendable, because how easy would it have been for her to just take the job that her dad gave her and move on? Can you imagine how different the newsies strike would have turned out if she didn’t put in all of that hard work?

11. Joanne Jefferson - RENT

Joanne doesn’t take crap from anyone, and I love that about her. She is smart, knows what she wants, and is fantastic at the tango. When her fiance Maureen can’t control her flirting with other women, Joanne stands up for herself and confronts her about it.

12. Fiona - Shrek: The Musical

Fiona never hides who she is, because she doesn’t want to give the wrong impression. Sure, she’s a princess, but even princesses burp, fart, drink a little too much coffee, and like to eat messy foods! And even with her being her crude and occasionally disgusting self, she still found a man who loves her for exactly who she is, and that requires a level of confidence that I hope to possess some day.

13. Maria - West Side Story

Maria is a romantic who doesn’t let the boundaries set by her family and friends stop her from falling in love with an equally romantic man from a different community. She loves the man that she loves, and she doesn’t let her ethnicity get in the way of that.

14. Maria Von Trapp - The Sound of Music

Based off of a real woman, Maria is a free spirit who flees her country to escape Nazi’s, all after adopting seven children to be her own. I can’t even begin to imagine what kind of strength that woman had.

15. Cathy - The Last Five Years

Cathy is incredibly strong, because she stood up for herself in front of the man that she loved when he cheated on her and belittled her for her under-achievements. She works very hard, and deserves a break to acknowledge all of that hard work. I only hope that, if I were ever in her position, I would be able to stand up for myself as she did.

16. Gertrude McFuzz - Seussical the Musical

Gertrude worked for her man, and she never expected him to give up his dreams for her. Instead, she joined the ride and helped him achieve his dreams, all while getting hers as well. I really love her kindness and her ability to realize that a relationship is a two-way street.

17. Nala - The Lion King

When the going gets tough, Nala fights back. She confronted Scar when he was being a terrible ruler of the Pride Lands and when she received no help, she left the land that she knew, loved, and grew up in to try to find food and shelter for her family and friends. Talk about strong-willed!

Did you agree with my picks? Do you disagree with any? Did I miss any women that you wish you could be like? Let me know by commenting below!