It’s beautiful to think how dynamic life is. Full of so many ups and downs, changes of direction and rises over challenges. This February 2025, Pioneer Theatre Company (PTC) presents “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical,” chronicling the life and career of Grammy Awards winner and songwriting legend Carole King. PTC brings to life King’s song catalogue along with her music partners and friends Gerry Goffin, Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. There are plenty of dance moments and classic song bites to entertain a variety of audiences.
Music Protégé
Before there was Carole King, there was Carol Klein, a young girl growing up in Manhattan, New York City. Growing up in a musical household, King’s mother taught her piano from the age of four. King later attended Queens College where she met Gerry Goffin. The two married shortly after, having a child soon after. King and Goffin became a songwriting duo for Aldon Music and Dimension Records in the 1960s. Goffin wrote the lyrics to accompany King’s music compositions.
In 1968, King moved from the Big Apple to the Golden State, settling in Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles. Living in LA changed King’s perspective, transforming her from behind the curtain to an on-stage singer-songwriter. The rest is history, with King debuting her albums “Writer” in 1970 and “Tapestry” in 1971, launching her to Billboard #1 fame and a Hall of Fame career.
Bringing Music to Stage
Douglas McGrath penned “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical” in 2013, piecing together songs and the story of King’s illustrious career. The musical launched in San Francisco, California, at the Curran Theatre. This run was a success, selling out every show at the Curran Theatre and earning seven Tony nominations. Jessie Mueller won a Tony for Best Leading Actress in a Musical and Brian Ronan won a Tony for Best Sound Design.
“Beautiful: The Carole King Musical” premiered on Broadway at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre in 2014. The Broadway cast recorded an album for the musical, winning a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album in 2015. The show closed in 2019 and subsequently had a West End run and U.S., U.K. and Australia National Tours.
Beautiful Utah
PTC puts on an entertaining, yet long production. It packs 28 songs into a two-hour 40-minute runtime, including one 15-minute intermission. The acting talent was great, with lead Sara Sheperd as King stealing the show with her witty humor and beautiful vocals. The show brought the audience together and was very uplifting. While King’s relationship with Goffin had many ups and downs, overall the musical stayed pretty upbeat and hopeful.
“Beautiful” is a story of empowerment and finding self-confidence painted in a musical and colorful world. Mann, played by Stephen Christopher Anthony, stole the show delivering countless hilarious lines as the resident hypochondriac of the show. The musical had a vibrant ensemble of characters, from the record executive Don Kirshner, played by Jason Andrew Hackney, to the musicians and dancers. “Beautiful” comes alive in the ensemble.
Costumes and sets contributed well to setting the time period of the play. Poodle skirts and cardigans, hippy skirts, to the rise of televised music productions. The little pop culture easter eggs were greatly appreciated, like when King, Mann, Weil and Goffin are tasked with writing songs for the Monkees television show or are tasked with writing music in the landscape of the Beatles. Context is given for many popular songs audience members have heard before, but possibly don’t know the origin or singer such as “On Broadway” by The Drifters, “The Locomotion” by Little Eva, and of course King classics “You’ve Got a Friend,” “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” and “I Feel the Earth Move.”
Time spent at Pioneer Theatre Company shows are always enjoyable, and “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical” is no exception. For music lovers, “Beautiful” is an uplifting assembly of wonderful music from the 1960s through the 1970s that any audience member will enjoy.“Beautiful: The Carole King Musical” runs Feb. 14 through March 1 and tickets can be purchased from the box office or online.
