Beautiful: The Music of Carole King – Book by Douglas McGrath. Words and Music by Gerry Goffin and Carole King, Barry Mann, and Cynthia Weil. Directed and Choreographed by Marcos Santana. Music Direction by Camille Villalpando Rolla. Scenic and Lighting Design by Jack Mehler. Costume Design by Travis M. Grant. Co-Sound Design by Alex Berg and Don Hanna. Hair and Wig Design by Rachel Padula-Shufelt. At North Shore Music Theatre, Beverly, through June 18, 2023.
by Linda Chin
North Shore Music Theatre’s season opener, Beautiful: the Music of Carole King, is not a stop that is part of a national tour/Broadway in Beverly – but a regional production that has been created and cast de novo with a blend of professional and emerging theater-makers. NSMT Producer Bill Hanney and Producing Artistic Director Kevin Hill, in concert with show director/choreographer Marcos Santana (Jersey Boys, 2022), have imbued Beautiful with their signature stamp of artistic excellence. On a similar note, Elena Ricardo, who played the titular role in NSMT’s Peter Pan at NSMT and understudied the lead role in Broadway’s Beautiful, does not attempt to clone Ms. King (née Carol Klein) nor actor Jessie Mueller, who won the 2014 Tony for her portrayal, but makes the role her own. Other actors, such as Jean McCormick as Genie Klein, play down the stereotype of an overbearing Jewish mother.
Much of the musical revolves around the story of songwriting partners King and Gerry Goffin (Jake Bentley Young) and their best friends/rivals Cynthia Weil (Jessica Rush) and Barry Mann (Jack Cahill-Lemme). The pairs are hired by Don Kirshner (Reed Campbell), get office space in the storied Brill Building in Times Square, and churn out songs to fuel the careers of “girl groups,” “boy bands,” and solo artists including Aretha Franklin (“You Make Me Feel Like A Natural Woman”), the Beatles (“Chains”), the Chiffons (“One Fine Day”), the Drifters (“Up on the Roof”), the Monkees (“Pleasant Valley Sunday”), and the Shirelles (“Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow”). Goffin and King make beautiful music together for a while as beaus, husband and wife, and parents, but their relationship deteriorated, they eventually divorced, and King’s career as a solo act skyrocketed. Besides enjoying productive careers, Weil and Mann were luckier in love and built a life and family together. On a sad note, Cynthia Weil passed away last week on June 6, at the age of 82. A statement posted on Carole King’s social media read: “We lost the beautiful, brilliant lyricist Cynthia Weil Mann. The four of us were close, caring friends despite our fierce competition to write the next hit for an artist with a No. 1 song.”
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical is filled with funny bits and one-liners, a jukebox or two worth of amazing tunes, a cultural history of pop music, and fun music facts (e.g. Little Eva – of Locomotion fame – was King and Goffin’s babysitter!). It is also filled with stories of King’s childhood in Brooklyn, NY, and examples of the many challenges women faced in the 1960s, 70s, and beyond trying to break into the business, juggle home and work responsibilities, and for artists to build and maintain successful careers (Perfect timing as I’ve been going through Marvelous Mrs. Maisel withdrawal). Beautiful is also full of feels. The moment when Ricardo sings “I Feel The Earth Move,” the platform in the center of the stage descends, then rises again with King’s arms held high, bringing the audience to their feet, is beautifully executed. And the unexpected chance to dance was a great surprise. Beautiful runs through June 18; I’d recommend seeing it before “It’s Too Late, Baby!” For information and tickets, go to: https://www.nsmt.org/beautiful.html
