Chilina Kennedy Returns to the Cast of BEAUTIFUL for Fifth Anniversary

Chilina Kennedy will return to Beautiful - The Carole King Musical starting Thursday, January 3 as the production prepares to celebrate its fifth anniversary on Broadway.

Kennedy has played the role of Carole King a remarkable 1,000 times.

Current star Abby Mueller will play her final performance in Beautiful on Sunday, December 30.

Kennedy joins the cast which currently includes Evan Todd as Gerry Goffin, Kate Reinders as Cynthia Weil, Ben Jacoby as Barry Mann, Paul Anthony Stewart as Don Kirshner, Tony Award nominee Liz Larsen as Genie Klein, and an ensemble that includes TyNia Brandon, Gabrielle Elisabeth, Matt Faucher, Alex Hairston, Mike Longo,Douglas Lyons, Stephanie Martignetti, Jay McKenzie, Paris Nix, Elena Ricardo, Nathan Scherich, Housso Semon, Sara Sheperd, Michael Stiggers, Yasmeen Sulieman, Salisha Thomas, Daniel Torres, and Melvin Tunstall.

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.

For five years, Beautiful, the Tony and Grammy Award-winning musical, has thrilled Broadway with the inspiring true story of one woman's remarkable journey from teenage songwriter to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

From the string of pop classics King wrote for the biggest acts in music to her own life-changing, chart-busting success with Tapestry, Beautiful takes you back to where it all began - and takes you on the ride of a lifetime.

Featuring over two dozen pop classics, including "You've Got a Friend," "One Fine Day," "Up on the Roof," "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling," "Will You Love Me Tomorrow," and "Natural Woman," this crowd-pleasing international phenomenon is filled with the songs you remember - and a story you'll never forget.

The Original Broadway Cast Recording of Beautiful - The Carole King Musical (Ghostlight Records), the 2015 Grammy Award winner for Best Musical Theater Album, is available on CD, digitally, and on vinyl.

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).

On Saturday, January 12, Beautiful will celebrate its fifth anniversary on Broadway at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre while the North American tour marked its third year of standing ovations.

Photo Credit: Jennifer Broski