Beautiful, The Carole King Musical At The Birmingham Hippodrome Review

Reviewed by Jenna Farmer

How much do you know about Carole King? Unless you’re a diehard fan, the answer may be that you played her album Tapestry on repeat in the 70s or know a few of her hit songs (such as ‘So Far Away’ or ‘You’ve Got A Friend). But Carole King’s story is more than just one album-and this musical offers something for both superfans and those less familiar with her work. It doesn’t matter, either way you’ll leave this show with a huge smile on your face.

In just under 2 and a half hours, this musical spans both the personal and professional life of Carole King. Starting from her teenage years (where Carole sold her first song written aged 16) to the many household name tracks she penned for other artists with husband Gerry Goffin as a songwriting team (did you know she co-wrote The Loco-motion? Me neither!) before she became an artist in her own right. All woven in perfectly to a story of love, triumph and the many bumps in the road on the way.

The star of the show is undoubtedly Molly Grace Cutler, who takes on the role of Carole herself. From her spot-on Brooklyn accent to her breathtaking vocals which are simply flawless, she simply becomes Carole in this role; creating an empathy which means you can’t help but connect and root for the character the whole way through. And, of course, It’s hard not to get goosebumps all over every time she sits down at the piano and begins her first note. She is quite simply, a star destined for huge things and we can’t wait to see her in her next role.

However, the rest of the cast are still very much deserving of a mention and many of the ensemble are also given the chance to show off their vocal talents too. Tom Milner (who plays Gerry Goffin) is a brilliant partner to Cutler’s Carole whilst the accompanying love story of fellow singing partners Cynthia Weil (played by Seren Sandham-Davies) and Barry (played by Jos Slovick) provides a lovely comedic contrast to the more serious aspects of Gerry and Carole’s relationship.The songs themselves hold a mirror up to the story around them: with ‘Will you still love me tomorrow’ highlight Carole’s fear of her and Gerry’s relationship and ‘Up on the roof’ revealing Gerry’s difficult family life.

With voices like these, staging almost becomes perfunctory but it’s worth sharing that the set design works perfectly in this show to not detract from the power of the story and songs, whilst providing transitional backdrops of the studio, Brooklyn and ski chalet to move the story and years of Carole’s life along.

This was one of the best musicals we’ve seen in quite some time-if you’re able to catch it in the next few days whilst in its home in Birmingham, you definitely won’t regret it.

Rating: 5/5

Tickets cost from £27. Beautiful, The Carole King Musical is at The Birmingham Hippodrome from 30th August until the 3rd September. For more information or to book tickets visit: https://www.birminghamhippodrome.com/calendar/beautiful-the-carole-king-mu/ or call 0844 338 5000

Birmingham Hippodrome Theatre Hurst Street, Southside Birmingham, B5 4TB