Beautiful - The Carole King Musical announces cast and tour dates
The tour begins in Leicester next year
Casting has been revealed for the new UK tour of Beautiful - The Carole King Musical which will commence in 2022. The tour is a co-production from Leicester's Curve, Theatre Royal Bath Productions and Mayflower Theatre Southampton.
Beautiful - The Carole King Musical tells the story of the singer and songwriter's rise to become a chart-topping music legend. The production promises to take audiences back to the heart of Carole’s landmark 1971 album ‘Tapestry’.
Beautiful - The Carole King Musical cast:
Molly-Grace Cutler as Carole King
Molly-Grace's credits include The Worst Witch, Girls Don't Play Guitars and We'll Live and Die in these Towns.
Tom Milner as Gerry Goffin
Tom's credits include Holby City and Waterloo Road.
Jos Slovick as Barry Mann
Jos previously appeared in the West End production of Once
Garry Robson as Don Kirshner
Garry was last at the Curve in their 2018 production of White Christmas.
Clare Greenway as Genie Klein
Clare originated the role of Sister Mary Patrick in Sister Act at the London Palladium.
Seren Sandham-Davies plays Cynthia Weil and Dan de Cruz will join as the production’s on-stage Musical Director. The cast is completed by Naomi Alade, Kemi Clarke, Chris Coxon, Amena El-Kindy, Louise Francis, Dylan Gordon-Jones, Jessica Jolleys, Sorrel Jordan, Myles Miller, Peter Mooney and Adrien Spencer.
The tour will open at the Curve in Leicester on 28th February 2022 before heading to Theatre Royal Bath 17 – 26 March, Theatre Royal Brighton 29 March – 2 April, Festival Theatre Edinburgh 5 – 9 April, Mayflower Theatre, Southampton 12 – 16 April, Newcastle Theatre Royal 19 – 23 April, Orchard Theatre Dartford 26 – 30 April, Malvern Theatres 3 -7 May, Cambridge Arts Theatre 10 – 21 May and New Theatre, Cardiff 24 – 28 May.
The production is directed by Curve's Artistic Director Nikolai Foster, who said along with Curve's Chief Executive Chris Stafford:
‘Carole King’s body of work speaks for itself and it is an honour to work on a show which celebrates some of the greatest pop songs ever written and the extraordinary life of the woman who has provided the soundtrack to our lives across the decades.
‘In Molly-Grace Cutler, we have the perfect actor to lead our production and embody the spirit of King’s supreme artistry. Molly leads a phenomenal company of actor-musicians, who will recreate all the hits live onstage, under the supreme musical talents of Grammy winner Steve Sidwell and Tony winner Sarah Travis.
‘We are thrilled to be collaborating with our friends at Theatre Royal Bath and Southampton Mayflower, flying the flag for Leicester once Beautiful tours from Curve.’
Scroll through some of our favourite jukebox musicals
& Juliet
One of the newer entries to the jukebox musical list is & Juliet, which imagines what would have happened if Shakespeare's famous character hadn't died at the end of his play and what would come next. The show is packed with the music of producer and songwriter Max Martin who's behind the hits of some of the biggest pop artists including Britney Spears, Bon Jovi, Katy Perry, Ariana Grande and the Backstreet Boys.
The musical includes songs such as 'Baby One More Time', 'It's My Life' 'Everybody (Backstreet's Back)' and a brilliant mash up of 'Teenage Dream' and 'Break Free'.
Bat Out of Hell: The Musical
Based on Jim Steinman and Meat Loaf's Bat Out of Hell album trilogy, Bat Out of Hell: The Musical is not a spectacle to be missed! The story is loosely based on the story of Peter Pan but set in a post-apocalyptic Manhattan which is now ruled by tyrannical ruler called Obsidian.
The show's score includes many fan favourites such as 'Bat Out of Hell', 'You Took the Words Right Out of My Mouth (Hot Summer Night)', 'It's All Coming Back to Me Now', and 'I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)'.
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical
This musical is exactly what you'd expect from the title, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical tells the story of the singer and songwriter, Carole King.
The musical is packed with music written by Carole and those she worked with. Some of the songs included are 'Take Good Care of My Baby', 'Will You Love Me Tomorrow', '(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman', and 'I Feel the Earth Move'.
Jersey Boys
When you think about jukebox musicals there's no doubt that Jersey Boys would come to mind! Since it opened on Broadway back in 2005 Jersey Boys has become a global sensation! The musical stays close to its source material as the plot revolves around the history of The Four Seasons (AKA Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons).
Using the seasons as a story telling device the musical gives each band member their chance to narrate the story. The musical includes some of The Four Seasons' most famous songs including 'Sherry', 'Big Girls Don't Cry', 'December 1963 (Oh What a Night)', and 'Can't Take My Eyes Off You'.
Mamma Mia!
It's fair to argue that Mamma Mia is probably one of if not the most successful jukebox musicals of all time. Featuring the music of the Eurovision-winning band ABBA, Mamma Mia takes us to a Greek Island where 20-year-old Sophie is set to marry her fiancée. Sophie wants to invite her father to the wedding however she doesn't know who he could be. After finding her mother's diary she finds out there are three possible contenders and decides to invite them all to the wedding!
The West End production opened back in 1999 and includes so many of ABBA's greatest hits including 'Take a Chance on Me', 'Dancing Queen', and 'Voulez-Vous' to name a few. A film adaptation was released in 2008 with an A-list cast including Meryl Streep, Colin Firth, Pierce Brosnan, and Julie Walters. The film was a huge success and got its own sequel – Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again 10 years later which starred Cher!
Moulin Rouge!
Originally made as a musical film, Baz Luhrman's Moulin Rouge! has been adapted as a stage show with new additions to its phenomenal score. Set in Paris' iconic venue Moulin Rouge is a story of love set in a surreal world with high camp mash ups!
After success on Broadway the show has now entertaining UK audiences in London's West End!
Priscilla Queen of the Desert
This musical has become a classic musical beloved by the LGBT+ community, based on the 1994 film of the same name, Priscilla Queen of the Desert takes us on a road trip across Australia as three drag queens travel to a perform in a show.
Despite being a fun and whacky adventure with some queer anthems such as 'Don't Leave Me This Way' , 'Go West' and 'MacArthur Park', Priscilla is unafraid to take on the tough realities of the homophobia and transphobia still suffered by the LGBT+ community.
Return to the Forbidden Planet
Probably one of the lesser-known musicals on this list, Return to the Forbidden Planet is a gem of a silly-but-fun musical. With a plot based on Shakespeare's The Tempest and the 1956 sci-fi film Forbidden Planet this musical plays wonderful homage to classic science fiction. The musical is packed with the rock 'n' roll hits of the 1950s and 60s such as 'Great Balls of Fire', 'Good Vibrations', 'Teenager in Love', and 'Shake, Rattle and Roll'.
Rock of Ages
Rock of Ages takes us back to 1987 where the Bourbon Room, a Hollywood bar is under threat by developers who want to clean up the Sunset Strip's reputation for 'sex, drugs and rock-n-roll'! The show is filled with classic rock anthems such as 'Don't Stop Believin', 'We Built This City', and 'Here I Go Again'.
The musical was adapted into a film in 2012 which included a star-studded cast including Tom Cruise, Alec Baldwin, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Mary J. Blige!
TINA: The Tina Turner Musical
Based on the life of the legendary singer, TINA: The Tina Turner musical explores her humble beginnings in town in Tennessee to growing into a global superstar. The show is packed with some iconic hits such as 'River Deep Mountain High' and 'Proud Mary'.
We Will Rock You
Does anyone else miss the statue of Freddie Mercury that used to stand at the front of the Dominion Theatre? The statue was a prominent fixture of the theatre throughout We Will Rock You's 12-year West End run. With the incredible music of Queen, We Will Rock You took us to a dystopian future where all non-computer generated music is banned and all instruments have been locked away!
The show is jam packed with brilliant characters and amazing Queen songs including 'Radio Gaga' (with some updated lyrics), 'Somebody to Love', 'Killer Queen' 'Under Pressure', and 'Seven Seas of Rye'.
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