Beautiful - The Carole King Musical ★★★★✩
Theatre Royal Bath
THIS show reminds me of those Hollywood musical biographies which provided a great excuse for presenting a string of wonderful hit songs, but told you little about the people who had written them.
The little they did tell you was a sanitised version of the subject’s life, papering over any cracks in their personalities. In all fairness, when you are trying to recreate the life and career of someone who has composed over 100 pop hits, and has 25 hit solo albums to their credit, two and a half hours is hardly long enough to delve very deeply into their private life.
With 28 numbers to present in 35 scenes, it’s a wonder that director Nikolai Foster and his production team found room to fit in the limited amount of personal background they did of Carole King’s life story. Thanks to welldesigned sets, sound and lighting, all delivered skilfully at speed, we do get the flavour of this talented singer/songwriter and some of the personal battles she had to tackle.
But it’s those 28 numbers that form the heart of this show, and those who have to deliver them in the style of the Shirelles, the Drifters, the Righteous Brothers, Little Eva, Neil Sedaka and Carole King. Led in fine style by MollyGrace Cutler’s Carole King singing It Might As Well Rain Until September and Will You Love Me Tomorrow in a manner that convinces you that the singer/composer is actually on stage, the show is a musical feast for those who love the music of that era. One classic number follows another – the Drifters’ Up on the Roof, Little Eva’s The Locomotion, Walking in the Rain, You’ve Got a Friend, Take Good Care of My Baby and Beautiful are all on hand to sweep you along on a pleasant wave of nostalgia.
These numbers and the characters are delivered by a talented cast, Tom Milner as Carole’s erring first husband and lyricist Gerry Goffin, Seren Sandham-Davies and Jos Slovick as their rivals and friends Cynthia Weil and Barry Mann scoring heavily.
Carole King may not have had as colourful a life as many of those involved in the evolving pop world of the late 20th century but, as this show demonstrates, few, if any, can match her influence and legacy.