BEAUTIFUL - THE CAROLE KING MUSICAL Starring Toronto's Chilina Kennedy Begins Performances Today at the Ed Mirvish Theatre

The highly anticipated engagement in Toronto of the Tony and Grammy Award-winning hit musical BEAUTIFUL - THE Carole King MUSICAL begins performances today - June 27 and plays through September 3, 2017 at the Ed Mirvish Theatre. Media night is Wednesday July 5, 2017.

Toronto's Chilina Kennedy will recreate her Broadway role exclusively for the Toronto engagement and will be joined by fellow Canadian, Liam Tobin, who originated the role of 'Gerry Goffin' on tour. Kennedy will return to the Broadway production following the Toronto run of BEAUTIFUL.

Chilina Kennedy and Liam Tobin will join Erika Olson (Cynthia Weil) Ben Fankhauser (Barry Mann), with James Clow (Don Kirshner) and Suzanne Grodner (Genie Klein).

The current ensemble of BEAUTIFUL includes Andrew Brewer, Erin Clemons, Josh A. Dawson, John Michael Dias, Willie Hill, James Michael Lambert, Traci Elaine Lee, Jay McKenzie, Alaina Mills, Aashley Morgan, Elena Ricardo, Kris Roberts, Ximone Rose, Leighton Samuels, Nathan Scherich, LaQuet Sharnell Pringle, Avery Smith and Alexis Tidwell

With a book by Tony and Academy Award-nominee Douglas McGrath, direction by Marc Bruni and choreography by Josh Prince, BEAUTIFUL features a stunning array of beloved songs written by Gerry Goffin/Carole King and Barry Mann/Cynthia Weil.

The creative team of BEAUTIFUL also includes Derek McLane (Set Design), Alejo Vietti (Costume Design), Peter Kaczorowski (Lighting Design), Brian Ronan (Sound Design), Charles G. LaPointe (Wig and Hair Design), Steve Sidwell (Orchestrations and Music Arrangements), Jason Howland (Music Supervision) and John Miller (Music Coordination).

Long before she was Carole King, chart-topping music legend, she was Carol Klein, Brooklyn girl with passion and chutzpah. She fought her way into the record business as a teenager and, by the time she reached her twenties, had the husband of her dreams and a flourishing career writing hits for the biggest acts in rock 'n' roll. But it wasn't until her personal life began to crack that she finally managed to find her true voice. BEAUTIFUL tells 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. Along the way, she made more than beautiful music, she wrote the soundtrack to a generation.

BEAUTIFUL - THE Carole King MUSICAL opened on Broadway at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre on January 12, 2014, where it continues its record-breaking run. The production won two 2014 Tony Awards as well as the 2014 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. A London production opened February 25, 2015 at London's Aldwych Theater, where it continues its run, and has won two Olivier Awards.

BEAUTIFUL - THE Carole King MUSICAL North American Tour is produced by Paul Blake, Sony/ATV Music Publishing, Jeffrey A. Sine, Richard A. Smith, Mike Bosner, Harriet N. Leve/Elaine Krauss, Terry Schnuck, Orin Wolf, Patty Baker/Good Productions, Roger Faxon, Larry Magid, Kit Seidel, Lawrence S. Toppall, Fakston Productions/Mary Solomon, William Court Cohen, BarLor Productions, Matthew C. Blank, Tim Hogue, Joel Hyatt, Marianne Mills, Michael J. Moritz, Jr., StylesFour Productions, Brunish/Trinchero, and Jeremiah J. Harris.

CAST BIOGRAPHIES

Chilina Kennedy (Carole King). Chilina just spent the past two years playing Carole in Beautiful on Broadway. Broadway: Mary Magdalene ?in Des McAnuff's Jesus Christ Superstar. 1st national tour: Sophie in Mamma Mia! Selected regional: Pheobe D'Ysquith in A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder (CT and San Diego Critics Circle nominations), Evangeline in Evangeline (original production and album), Ross Petty's panto The Little Mermaid (Toronto Theatre Critics' Award), three seasons at the Stratford Festival including Maria in Gary Griffin's West Side Story, three seasons at the Shaw Festival and The Lord of the Rings (world premiere, Toronto). Chilina performed at the 2015 Kennedy Center Honors and is the winner of three Broadway World Awards. Chilina is a singer/songwriter with a debut album entitled What You Find in a Bottle.

www.chilinakennedy.com

Liam Tobin (Gerry Goffin) Toronto: Alfred Packer in Trey Parker's Cannibal the Musical, The Sound of Music. Tony in the Intl' Tour of West Side Story. Selected Regional: Lord Farquaad in Shrek, Buddy in Elf (The Grand), Lancelot in Spamalot, Joe Hardy in Damn Yankees, Lt. Cable in South Pacific (Drayton), Gabe in Next to Normal (Manitoba Theatre Centre), Link in Hairspray (Charlottetown), Joseph in Joseph...(Stage West). Liam is from Newfoundland, Canada.

Photo credit: Joan Marcus