Ryan Farnsworth News

The Broadway replica production of BEAUTIFUL: THE CAROLE KING MUSICAL, currently playing in Tuacahn’s indoor Hafen Theatre, is Broadway caliber—a moniker that should never be used lightly but in this case is wholly and completely warranted.

What did our critic think of BEAUTIFUL THE CAROLE KING MUSICAL at Ogunquit Playhouse?

BEAUTIFUL - THE CAROLE KING MUSICAL is not only a time capsule of some of the greatest hits of music history, it’s a peek behind the curtain of how they all came to be. The life story of the iconic Carole King is inseparable from her songbook. This story starts with a Carole Klein—before she was the Carole King we adore—and takes us behind the scenes to see how her genius blossomed.

An exciting prospect of every touring production is seeing how the invigorate the dynamic town that is Space City, USA. With our thriving theater scene it is always a fantastic experience seeing new creatives and artists take refuge in our humble city. Melvin Tunstall III is one of these exciting people that will grace the Hobby Center in the coming tour of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical. 

But BEAUTIFUL is structured differently than most 'backstage biomusicals.' It's not a rags to riches story, exactly, nor the routine tale of one woman's ascent to superstardom. Mercifully, we are spared the obligatory plot points of that particular formula. King never learns her contract is unconscionable nor fires a manager in dramatic fashion. There is no descent into addiction, fall from grace, dramatic career slump, or climatic comeback...

Jukebox musicals are a mainstay of the American Musical Theater. They have recognizable hit songs built in and instant appeal for fans. But they’re difficult to get right, needing a good book to incorporate the songs into a cohesive story. Even more difficult is the jukebox bio-musical where they’re trying to tell the story of the artist’s life with their own songs. Read our critic's review.

The Carole King Musical will return to the Paramount Theatre for three performances only – on Friday, April 8 (8pm) and Saturday, April 9 (2pm and 8pm). The two previously scheduled performances on Sunday, April 10 (1pm and 6:30 pm) have been cancelled due to the limited availability of transportation to ship the set to the tour’s next engagement.

The jukebox musical is a genre of musical theatre that is not always easy to get right. Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, which opened last night at the Kimmel Cultural Campus' Academy of Music, is an example of a jukebox musical done perfectly.

The earth is certainly moving in Lincoln this weekend thanks to the talented cast of the Broadway musical tour BEAUTIFUL The Carole King Musical which is currently showing at the Lied Center for Performing Arts. Featuring musical arrangements comprised of some of the biggest hits of the last six decades, Beautiful expertly takes audiences through the highs and lows of the life of beloved singer-songwriter Carole King and her rise to fame.

The North American tour will welcome Toledo native Sara Sheperd (Carole King), James D. Gish (Gerry Goffin), Sara King (Cynthia Weil), Ryan Farnsworth (Barry Mann), Matt Loehr (Don Kirshner), and Rachel Coloff (Genie Klein) to the company.

Beautiful- The Carole King Musical will welcome Sara Sheperd (Carole King), James D. Gish (Gerry Goffin), Sara King (Cynthia Weil), Ryan Farnsworth (Barry Mann), Matt Loehr (Don Kirshner) and Rachel Coloff (Genie Klein) to the Company. Beautiful – The Carole King Musical will make its Atlanta return at the Fox Theatre May 20-22.

Before stepping foot into the theatre, you’ve already experienced the best aspect of Beautiful – The Carole King Musical – the extraordinary songs. The production, touring to the Kennedy Center through January 2, highlights the best of Carole King’s hits and reminds us of the tremendous range of her talent. Sadly, that narrative arc of Beautiful – The Carole King Musical is at such a frantic pace and is so light on details it takes a fascinating true story of grit, luck, and talent and renders it a flat, bland, homogenized variety-show telling of King’s career.

Beautiful – The Carole King Musical returned to the road on November 2, 2021 in Chicago, IL, having been off the road for 600 days due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Beautiful opened last night at the Count Basie Center for the Arts in Red Bank, NJ and will play more than 65 cities on its 2021-22 North American Touring season.

The North American tour of the Tony and Grammy Award-winning hit musical Beautiful- The Carole King Musical, which has played 1,586 performances in 160 cities over 204 weeks to nearly 2.7 million patrons, is getting ready to hit the road again. Ahead of the reopening, BroadwayWorld's Richard Ridge spoke to the show's four leading players: Sara Sheperd (Carole King), James D. Gish (Gerry Goffin), Sara King (Cynthia Weil), and Ryan Farnsworth (Barry Mann) about getting the show ready for audience across America.

The North American tour of the Tony and Grammy Award-winning hit musical Beautiful- The Carole King Musical will welcome Sara Sheperd (Carole King), James D. Gish (Gerry Goffin), Sara King (Cynthia Weil), Ryan Farnsworth (Barry Mann), Matt Loehr (Don Kirshner) and Rachel Coloff (Genie Klein) to the Company.

At the close of the performance, my face hurt from laughing, but what else would you expect from a musical with the name Mel Brooks attached. This over-the-top and exquisitely offensive masterpiece, with everything from the producer's casting couch, grossly stereotypical ultra-sexy foreign female secretary/actress, sex-crazed old ladies to syrupy-sweet gay characters to literally, singing and dancing Nazis, this show is the antithesis to today's political correctness. The Producers at Carrollwood Players has something to make everyone do a little squirm in their seats and I loved every purposely-uncomfortable minute of this madcap story that revels in Mel Brook's irreverent humor.

Miller-Coffman Production LLC proudly present a new musical with a book by C. Stephen Foster & Rod Damer with music and lyrics by Chuck Pelletier.

Uke Night is back! The third installment of the musical evening devoted to the Ukulele created and hosted by Jeffry Denman, (multi-Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Astaire Award nominee and Bistro Award winner, star of Irving Berlin's White Christmas on Broadway and last year's Kid Victory at the Vineyard Theatre) as part of Jim Caruso's Broadway at Birdland series.

Theatre Aspen announced casting for the organization's 35th Anniversary Season, which includes Ragtime, Godspell, and Our Town today. This season's productions promise to bring world class theatre dramatically closer by presenting talent from Broadway, national tours, and training programs from across the country.

The Broadway at Birdland concert series was proud to present another 'Uke Night,' a Broadway celebration of the ukulele!  The one-night-only event took place on Monday, April 2 at 7pm.