Carole King Celebrated in "Beautiful"

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Becky Gulsvig as Cynthia Weill

Carole King Celebrated in “Beautiful”

By Skip Sheffield

Will you still love me tomorrow?

Yes we will Carole King, and always. “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical,” opens Tuesday, May 10 and runs through May 22 at Broward Center for the Arts.

Carole King wrote or co-wrote some of the greatest song hits of the 1960s and 1970s. She talked her way into the famed Brill Building when she was only 16 in 1958, and became partners with fellow songwriters Cynthia Weil, Barry Mann and one-time husband Gerry Coffin. They became a virtual hit machine with classics like “Chains,” “Cryin’ in the Rain,” “Loco-Motion” and “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?” King became an even greater success with her 1971 solo album “Tapestry,” which became one of the best-selling albums of all time with such hits as “It’s Too Late, “A Natural Woman,” “I Feel the Earth Move,” and another song that became a hit for her friend James Taylor, “You’ve Got a Friend.”

Becky Gulsvig plays the role of songwriter Cynthia Weil, who was King’s best female buddy at the Brill Building. Abby Mueller plays Carole King and Liam Tobin her ex-husband, Gerry Coffin.

“Carole surprised us by showing up at the show in Boston,” says Gulsvig, who joined the tour in September. “It’s the story of how Carole King came to be Carole King, and how she met Gerry Coffin. People come for the music, but the story has humor and romance.”

Among Gulsvig’s credits are the original cast of “Legally Blonde”. Most recently she originated the role of Cinderella in “Disenchanted” Off-Broadway.
“The show opens with Carole at Carnegie Hall, then flashes back to her humble beginnings in Brooklyn,” Gulsvig explains. “It’s a full production with a full orchestra, plus Carole’s piano. It’s a joy being part of it.”

Tickets start at $35. Call 954-462-0222 or go to www.browardcenter.org.