Last April, when Carole King was getting ready to book her tickets to see Chilina Kennedy—the actress who replaced 2014 Tony winner Jessie Mueller the hit musical about King’s life—Kennedy was asked whether or not she wanted to know what performance King would attend. Her response was short and sweet: “Dear Miss King, Please do not tell me when you’re coming.”
When King did turn up (unannounced and in disguise), Kennedy describes their post-show encounter as if it were a scene from the show: “She didn’t make eye contact for awhile, but then we locked eyes she burst into tears and I was all emotional and she held me,” says Kennedy. “The experience was so personal and precious. I couldn’t ask for a better a moment.”
Chilina Kennedy is extraordinary as Carole King in Beautiful on Broadway. Photo: Joan Marcus
Kennedy’s history with Beautiful dates back to early 2013. “I went in for a reading and fell in love with the script,” she says, but moved on to other projects before getting the call—while 33 weeks pregnant—to re-audition and, subsequently, take over the coveted role that tracks King’s career trajectory, including her partnership and marriage to lyricist Gerry Goffin (Scott J. Campbell) and competitive friendship with Cynthia Weil (Jessica Keenan Wynn) and Barry Mann (Jarrod Spector).
Notes Kennedy, “I think because the character is open and generous and vulnerable the show has a very real impact on people. As a society today we’ve become so egocentric and she represents a sort of ‘we’ mentality that emphasizes it’s not weak to care about other people.”
It doesn’t hurt that Kennedy herself is extraordinary as King... nor that Beautiful also combines a dynamite script with an awesomely versatile supporting ensemble delivering a steady stream of hits from the ‘60s and ‘70s: “One Fine Day”; “Take Good Care of My Baby”; “Chains”, “You’ve Got a Friend”...and on, and beyond.
As for audiences, Kennedy says that besides Boomers, teens are also a major part of the show’s demographic. “Although I don’t know if they’re aware that the artists they listen to and love today are standing on the shoulders of the music King wrote, both with Goffin and on her own.”
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical is currently playing at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre, 124 W. 43rd Street, 212-239-6200, beautifulonbroadway.com