Ogunquit Playhouse’s ‘Beautiful’ Cast Gives Its Love ‘So Sweetly and Completely’

‘Beautiful’ – Book by Douglas McGrath. Words and Music by Gerry Goffin and Carole King, Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. David Ruttura, Director. Joyce Chittick, Choreographer/Associate Director. Nick Williams, Music Director. Derek McLane, Scenic Design. Alejo Vieti, Costume Design. Richard Latta, Lighting Design. Kevin Heard, Sound Design. Roxanne De Luna, Wig Design. At Ogunquit Playhouse through October 30

by Linda Chin

Back in the pre-music streaming, pre-CD teenage days, I stayed in bed all morning on many a Saturday listening to (and singing along with) Carole King’s Tapestry over and over, getting up only to advance the needle on the record player. I studied the album cover – her fuzzy sweater and jeans atop bare feet, tangle of frizzy hair, furry cat and confident but relaxed gaze so different from my own self-portrait; I absorbed her songs “It’s Too Late” (about the breakup of a loving relationship), “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?” (about the aftermath of a one-night stand) as gospel, so foreign were these concepts from my own experience. Especially on those days when I didn’t get up with a smile on my face, King was the enthusiastic cheerleader, understanding therapist, reliable friend who’d come running if needed.

It wasn’t until reading A Natural Woman: A Memoir (when it was published in 2012), that I learned – in King’s own words – about her upbringing in Brooklyn NY by a single mother who instilled Jewish traditions and love of music/piano lessons in her daughter’s life, her marriage at age 17 to Queens College classmate Gerry Goffin, when she became pregnant with their first daughter Louise, and involvement in the music industry over the course of five decades, starting as a songwriter. Much to my amazement, Goffin (as lyricist) and King (as composer) were the geniuses who birthed dozens of “classic” hits for other favorite performers, 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”), Little Eva (“Loco-Motion”), the Monkees (“Pleasant Valley Sunday”), and the Shirelles (“Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow”). King also writes – with great honesty and humility – about three more complicated (including one that was abusive) marriages, raising three more children, and the trials and tribulations of being an artist in an industry and society that is not always kind.

Ogunquit Playhouse’s production of Beautiful – The Carole King Musical (playing through October 30) not only gives audience members the wonderful gift of live musical performance of Carole King’s greatest hits, but a deeper dive into how an artist’s creative work is influenced by their family, intimate relationships, and society. While her memoir spans her life to date (she now lives in Idaho, is an environmental activist, and at this writing is 80 years young), the musical focuses on the early part of King’s life as a daughter, wife, and mother, songwriter, singer and emergence as a solo performer. The show is bookended by scenes set in a concert hall, with an elegantly dressed King (Sarah Bockel) and a grand piano center stage. The opening scene quickly shifts to her Brooklyn home, and the spinet in their living room; the story is told through flashback. A shy but determined and optimistic young Carole Joan Klein (Sarah Bockel) makes a deal with her loving but stubborn and bitter mother Genie Klein (Suzanne Grodner) that if she does not sell her work that day, she will give up her songwriting aspirations and take the safer (and more gender-appropriate) path as a teacher. Taking on the name King as her new last name (because “it sounds better, don’t you think?” = less Jewish?), she and a friend head to Manhattan to pitch a song to new NYC producer Don Kirschner (Matt Loehr), even overcoming her reluctance to sing in front of “so many people” (actually five in number). The remainder of the show proceeds somewhat chronologically, and centers on her job at Kirshner’s company, where she and partner Goffin (Anthony Festa) are on contract to churn out songs, befriend another songwriting team, Barry Mann (Ben Jacoby) and Cynthia Weil (Taylor Aronson), meet rising industry stars (D’Marreon Alexander, Tyler Michael Breeding, Reggie Bromell, Anthony Cataldo, Kaitlyn Davis, J. Daughtry, Gabrielle Elisabeth, Rosharra Francis, Jacquez Linder-Long, Jazz Madison, Jack Mastrianni, Nigel O. Richards, Chandler Reeves, Aiyana Smash, Salisha Thomas), and vie for the top spots on the hit song lists.

In the closing scene we return to where the show began, Carnegie Hall in 1971. Now age 29, King is a solo performer in her own right, divorced from Goffin, living in LA, working – at Kirschner’s referral – with new manager Lou Adler (Jack Mastrianni), Tapestry – released a mere five months before – has topped the chart and selling thousands of albums, has broken records, and there is with a packed audience (more than five people) in attendance. Lou, Genie, Barry, and Cynthia, go backstage to cheer her on. (Bubbling over with pride at this magical moment, Genie’s exclamation where she takes credit for convincing Carole to pursue her craft and not be a teacher is priceless). Right after they leave and before Carole goes on, Gerry appears and apologizes for his part in the disintegration of their marriage and to express pride in her accomplishments.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        .

Beautiful is blessed with an ultra-talented cast of 21 actors, including veterans of the show and newcomers (and nearly half of whom are people of color), who bring Carole King’s remarkable story to life, and generously give their love for performing so sweetly and completely. Bravo to Taylor Aronson (Cynthia Weil), recent graduate of the musical theatre program at Texas State University, for more than holding her own with the more experienced Broadway/Tour veterans, and to Gabrielle Elisabeth for reviving her role as Little Eva in the Broadway production and leading the energetic ensemble motoring a human train, in the showstopping crowd pleaser “The Locomotion.”  

While this musical centers on the Carole King the legend, it is especially “beautiful” because her legacy of kindness and respect for other humans shines through. It is rare to witness collaboration trumping competition in the business or see it celebrated on stage, including the bond between Goffin and King and their rivals Mann and Weil, and producers giving opportunities to/taking a chance on rising talent. Moreover, this production captures the beauty of black and white performing artists working together to change the world for the better.  Beautiful – The Carol King Musical runs through October 30. Strongly recommend that you go see it before it’s too late, baby! For tickets and information, go to: http://www.ogunquitplayhouse.org/2022-beautiful