Joan Marcus
Julia Knitel delivers full-throated, joyous versions of Carole King's timeless songs.
If you love Carole King, you’ll want to see Beautiful: The Carole King Musical. It’s that simple.
Beyond that, it gets a little more complicated. I went in a fan of Carole King’s music, but I was skeptical about seeing another jukebox musical, even though I readily admit I’ve found some guilty pleasure from seeing Jersey Boys, Motown and Mamma Mia!
But I wondered: Does Carole King really need the Broadway treatment? Would the songs be linked by a formulaic inspirational, beating-the-odds narrative? Would they gunk up King’s songs (which are already perfect) with brassy vocals and cheesy arrangements?
So, my answer is yes, there’s room (in my heart, at least) for one more jukebox musical — when the music is this good. That’s certainly the answer from the audience (here and on Broadway, where the Grammy and Tony-winning show continues to break box-office records). The opening night crowd at Overture Hall on June 13 burst into applause at the first notes of a medley that began with “I Feel the Earth Move.”
The hits just kept coming all night long. I couldn’t stop from swaying and singing along. I shed a tear or two. And I woke up this morning “with a smile on my face” and an image of the luminous Julia Knitel (who plays King), her face and curly mane framed by light as she belted out “Beautiful,” the closing song.
Before she released Tapestry in 1971 (one of the best-selling albums of all time), King and lyricist Gerry Goffin shared a romance and a songwriting partnership that propelled others to stardom. After they met at Queens College (when she was Carol Klein), they wrote indelible hits, including “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?” for the Shirelles, “Take Good Care of My Baby” for Bobby Vee, “Pleasant Valley Sunday” for the Monkees and “The Loco-Motion” for Little Eva (their daughter’s babysitter). The renditions of numbers by these ‘60s-style ensembles are spectacular, with tight harmonies and delightful choreography and costuming.
The narrative is thin, which is to be expected — there are lots of hits to fit in — but only slightly marred by a few moments of overly obvious dialogue. A significant subplot charts the King/Goffin’s friendly competition with another dynamic duo, Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. We see the dissolution of Goffin and King’s marriage, although their conflict wraps up too conveniently, right before King’s triumphant solo concert at Carnegie Hall.
The show’s Achilles heel is the musical arrangements, which sometimes veer into slick, modernized Broadway sound, adding decidedly ’80s guitar licks.
At one point early in the play, Carol Klein’s mother (a piano teacher) tells her ambitious 16-year-old to stop trying to sell songs: “Girls don’t write music, they teach it.” The line reflected the reality of the times, when women’s contributions took a backseat to men’s. But Carole King proved them all wrong. The Brooklyn gal defied the odds, which is why we still sing along to her enduring — and beautiful — melodies.
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical runs through June 18 at Overture Hall.
