Gypsy has been referred to as the greatest American musical by numerous critics and writers, among

them Ben Brantley who described it as "what may be the greatest of all American musicals." Frank Rich
wrote that "Gypsy is nothing if not Broadway's own brassy, unlikely answer to 'King Lear.'" Theater critic
Clive Barnes wrote, "Gypsy is one of the best of musicals," and described the character of Rose as "one
of the few truly complex characters in the American musical." Barnes went on to state, “Everything
about Gypsy is right.”