“It’s Too Late” “So Far Away” “You’ve Got a Friend” “(You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman” “I Feel The Earth Move” “Will You Love Me Tomorrow?”

If these six megahits don’t have you itching to spread the word about Beautiful: The Carole King Musical at La Mirada Theatre For The Performing Arts, then Sara Shepard’s star turn as the woman who wrote and performed some of the mid-20th century’s Greatest Hits most definitely will.

And that’s not the only reason you won’t want to miss Beautiful’s Southern California Regional Premiere courtesy of McCoy Rigby Entertainment.

There’s also Douglas McGrath’s Tony-nominated book, one which focuses on two major aspects of King’s personal and professional life, her teen marriage to lyricist Gerry Goffin (Miles Jacoby) and the couple’s friendly rivalry with their chief competitors, composer Barry Mann (Trevor James) and his lyricist girlfriend Cynthia Weil (Sara King).

And if the real Gerry Goffin was even half as tall, dark, and hunky as Jacoby’s Gerry most definitely is, then it’s no wonder Sheperd’s shy, gawky Brooklyn teen falls head over heels in love with him, that is until Gerry’s inner demons begin to spell trouble for a couple married too young, even for the Eisenhower ‘50s.

Meanwhile, Barry and Cynthia, whose own hits include “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling” and “On Broadway,” seem as ill-inclined to walk down the aisle as Gerry and Carole are to wed (though admittedly teen pregnancy did influence the latter couple’s decision to get hitched).

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical may lack Jersey Boys’ jail sentences and drug overdoses, but it definitely has its own share of drama (including one nervous breakdown and plenty of extramarital cheating), and with such Goffin-King classics as “Up On The Roof,” “The Locomotion,” and “One Fine Day” performed by an all-around-stellar cast, this is one hook-filled musical indeed.

Not that there isn’t a bit of fiction mixed in with the facts. For instance, whoever it was that Gerry philandered with, it was not “Janelle Woods,” nor did “Janelle” record “One Fine Day.” (That was The Shirelles.)

And though Beautiful would have you believe that Carole wrote “It Might As Well Rain Until September” all by herself before even meeting Gerry, it was in truth one of their earliest collaborations.

But who cares, not with Sheperd proving herself the next best thing to Carole in the flesh from the moment she sits down at the piano to belt out “So Far Away”, a performance honed during her tenure as an Original Broadway Cast member, four-and-a-half years during which she swung into role after role including the show’s title character.

As for King’s fellow songwriters, Jacoby’s Gerry is as swoon-worthy as he blessed with dramatic chops and velvet pipes, La Mirada favorite King reprises the role she played on Broadway to sassy, sensational effect, and L.A.’s very own James makes for the most engaging of neurotic hypochondriacal New York nerds.

Valerie Perri and Brian Ibsen complete the cast of principal players under David Ruttura’s incisive direction as Carole’s doting mom Genie and legend-making rock music producer Don Kirschner, proving that you don’t need to sing a note to deliver the goods in a Broadway musical.

SoCal ensembles don’t get any more pop-pipe-blessed than Brian Brooks (Lucille, Shirelle, “One Fine Day” Backup Singer), Domo D’Ante (Drifter), Fatima El-Bashir (Shirelle, “One Fine Day” Backup Singer, “Uptown” singer), Rosharra Francis (Shirelle, Janelle Woods), Brady Fritz (Neil Sedaka, Righteous Brother, Lou Adler), David Ginlet (Drifter), Cornelius Jones, Jr. (Drifter), James Larsen (Righteous Brother, Nick), Jazz Madison (Shirelle, Little Eva, “One Fine Day” Backup Singer), Kenneth Mosley (Drifter), Melissa Musia (Betty), and Monet Sabel (Marilyn Wald), most of whom get to sing lead at one point or another in addition to performing assistant director-choreographer Joyce Chittock’s groovy boy-group/girl-group moves amidst wig-and-costume changes galore.

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical looks terrific too thanks to scenic designer Derek McLane’s glitzy designed-for-Broadway set and Ethan Steimel’s Vegas-flashy lighting design, with Alejo Vietti’s original Broadway costumes, Katilin Yagen’s snazzy hair and wigs, and Kevin Williams’ period properties taking us from late ‘50s to late ’60 with a combination of authenticity and pizzazz.

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical sounds fabulous too thanks to music director/conductor Ryan O’Connell and sound designer Josh Bessom, and though it is a bit distracting to see on-stage performers so obviously not playing the instruments they’re supposed to be playing, this is a minor quibble, and perhaps not even noticeable to those seated further back than I was.

Casting is by Julia Flores. Mitchell Lam Hau, Keturah McIntyre, and Michael Swain-Smith are swings.

Kevin Clowes is technical director. David Nestor is company manager. Monica Dickhens is production stage manager and Lisa Palmaire is assistant stage manager. David Elzer is publicist.

Both a nostalgic, tune-filled trip down memory lane and a revelatory look at the early days of the singer-songwriter whose album Tapestry turned her into an “overnight” superstar, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical is all that and more.

I absolutely guarantee that you’ll have a couple dozen Golden Oldies swimming around in your head long after you rise from your seat to give Carole another much-deserved standing ovation.

La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts, 14900 La Mirada Boulevard, La Mirada.
www.lamiradatheatre.com

–Steven Stanley
November 11, 2023
Photos: Jason Niedle/Tethos

Tags: Barry Mann, Carole King, Cynthia Weil, Gerry Goffin, La Mirada Theatre For The Performing Arts, Los Angeles Theater Review, McCoy Rigby Entertainment