Carole King’s music shaped a generation, and the Broadway hit musical showcasing her extraordinary life is the latest crowd-pleasing offering from City Springs Theatre Company (CSTC). Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, playing at the Byers Theatre in Sandy Springs, will mark the end of the company’s 2024 – 2025 PNC Season. CSTC is one of the nation’s newest and fastest-growing professional theatre companies.
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical is the inspiring true story of King’s remarkable rise to stardom, from being part of a hit songwriting team with her husband, Gerry Goffin, to her relationship with fellow writers and best friends Cynthia Weil and Barry Mann, to becoming one of the most successful solo acts in popular music history. Although it tells the story of her life, it's more like a concert than a play.
Not only does Megan K. Hill, as Carol, sing a stunning array of her most beloved songs like "You've Got A Friend", “I Feel The Earth Move,” "So Far Away", “One Fine Day,” and the title song, "Beautiful", which took home two Tony Awards, but many of the other artists whose hits she wrote were also portrayed by the cast!
I had no idea that so many of my favorites were written by King. Besides "Natural Woman" for Aretha Franklin, she also wrote "Take Good Care of My Baby" for Bobby Vee, "The Locootimon" for Little Eva, "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" for the Shirelles and "Up On The Roof" for The Drifters. I loved watching the Drifters reenact their performance complete with matching suits and choreographed dance moves. It was as if I were suddenly back in the 60's watching all of these these artists perform.
The cast was fabulous! Anytime I see that Hayden Rider is in the cast, I know it will be a fabulous show. You better enjoy his performances while you can, because I'm sure he is Broadway bound! I also loved watching Alexandria Joy sing The Locomotion as Little Eva. She was dynamite!
The real story of this play is about the adversity that Carol overcame through sheer determination and her need to tell her own story through music. Pregnant and married at 16, she persevered through the heartache of an unfaithful husband, a failed marriage and pioneered being a songwriter that performed her own music. She overcame her shyness and self-consciousness to become not only a star, but a living legend.
Carol King has made 25 solo albums, the most successful being Tapestry, which held the record for most weeks at No. 1 by a female artist for more than 20 years. She has won four Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for her songwriting and in 2013, received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. She was the first woman to ever receive the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song from the Library of Congress.
The story was inspiring, the cast was fantastic and the music was dance worthy! I would definitely give this show 5 out of 5 stars!! I LOVED it!! If you like great music, I would highly recommend Beautiful: The Carol King Musical!
Playing the title role will be Atlanta’s-own Megan K. Hill, who was most recently seen in CSTC’s productions of Disney’s Frozen and Ragtime The Musical. “We have an enormous talent pool here in Atlanta, and Megan is a considerable talent whom we have had our eyes on for some time,” says Executive Director Natalie DeLancey, “We’re fortunate and so thrilled to have her as our Carole. Megan is an electric performer, and I cannot wait for Atlanta audiences to fall in love with her.”
CAST:
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical also features Broadway veterans Lily Kaufmann, as Cynthia Weil, and Courtenay Collins, as Carole’s mother Genie Klein. Kaufmann has appeared on Broadway in Mean Girls, Monty Python’s Spamalot, and Tammy Faye. She made her CSTC debut one year ago, playing Elle Woods in Legally Blonde The Musical. Collins appeared on Broadway in The Prom, and has played memorable roles in the CSTC productions of Fiddler on the Roof and The Music Man. Making their return to the CSTC stage are Nick Walker Jones (CSTC’s Spamalot, Disney’s Frozen, Jersey Boys) as Gerry Goffin; Haden Rider (CSTC’s Jersey Boys, Fiddler on the Roof, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder) as Barry Mann; Jordan Sam Rich (CSTC’s Ragtime The Musical, The Music Man) as famed producer/manager Don Kirschner; Kyla Bolling and Shena Renee as one-half of The Shirelles; Cedric J. Paige, Zac Pritts and Charles Pruitt as three of The Drifters; Alec Beard and Claudio Pestana as The Righteous Brothers; and Callie Regan Walker as Betty. Making their CSTC debuts are Mionne Destiny and Alexandria Joy as the remaining Shirelles; Jerrell Melton III as one of The Drifters; and Kennedy Bastow as Marilyn. The talented cast also includes Avanni Cherie, Evan Ellicott (CSTC debut), Grace Arnold Hogan, and Rayvon Love as swings.
PRODUCTION TEAM:
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical features a Tony-nominated book by Douglas McGrath, with words and music by Gerry Goffin, Carole King, Barry Mann, and Cynthia Weil. The City Springs Theatre Company production will be directed by Shane DeLancey, who previously helmed CSTC’s hit productions of Spamalot and Jersey Boys. The show’s music director and conductor will be Chase Anderson, with choreography by Jordan Pretorius. The creative team also includes Jacob Olson (scenic design); Seth Rieser (lighting design), Anthony Narciso (sound design), Alycia Berry (wig and makeup design); and Ashley Raper (production stage manager).
PERFORMANCES:
Friday, May 2 @ 8:00pm
Saturday, May 3 @ 2:00pm and @ 8:00pm
Sunday, May 4 @ 2:00pm
Wednesday, May 7 and Thursday, May 8 @ 7:30pm
Friday, May 9 @ 8:00pm
Saturday, May 10 @ 2:00pm and @ 8:00pm
Sunday, May 11 @ 2:00pm
Wednesday, May 14 and Thursday, May 15 @ 7:30pm
Friday, May 16 @ 8:00pm
Saturday, May 17 @ 2:00pm and @ 8:00pm
Sunday, May 18 @ 2:00pm
TICKETS: This production contains adult themes and language and is recommended for ages 13 and older.
Purchase tickets online at at CitySpringsTheatre.com, or call the Box Office at 404-477-4365 Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Visit for more information. Tickets to see Beautiful: The Carole King Musical range from $64 to $115, including all fees, with discounts for seniors, students, groups, and active and retired military personnel. Gift cards and discounts for groups of 10 or more are available.
LOCATION:
Live performances of the City Springs Theatre Company production are at the Byers Theatre in Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center, 1 Galambos Way, Sandy Springs, GA 30328
ABOUT CITY SPRINGS THEATRE COMPANY:
City Springs Theatre Company (CSTC) is dedicated to entertaining, educating, and enriching lives by creating world-class entertainment experiences and innovative arts education programs that drive cultural and economic vitality. Through musical theatre productions that utilize the talents of local and national artists, CSTC provides Broadway-quality entertainment to the diverse Atlanta populace, helping to establish Sandy Springs, Georgia, as a growing cultural center. City Springs Theatre Company is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, led by Natalie DeLancey as executive director, and Tony Award®-winner and Atlanta native Shuler Hensley as artistic director. To date, CSTC has served over 275,000 patrons and 140,000 students through its mainstage musicals and educational programs.
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