A New Natural Woman! Chilina Kennedy to Take Over For Tony Winner Jessie Mueller in Beautiful on Broadway

The rumors proved true and Chilina Kennedy will replace Tony winner Jessie Mueller as Carole King on March 7 in the Great White Way production of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical. Mueller will play her final performance on March 6 at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre. Jessica Keenan Wynn will also begin performances on March 7, making her Broadway debut as Cynthia Weil while Anika Larsen takes maternity leave.

Kennedy made her Great White Way debut as Mary Magdalene in the most recent revival of Jesus Christ Superstar. Wynn was recently seen off-Broadway in Heathers.

Featuring songs written by Gerry Goffin, Carole King, Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil and a book by Douglas McGrath, Beautiful tells the story of King from her early days as a Brooklyn teenager (named Carol Klein) struggling to enter the record business to her years spent as a chart-topping music legend. The production is directed by Marc Bruni.

The current Broadway cast of Beautiful also includes Scott J. Campbell as Gerry Goffin, Jarrod Spector as Barry Mann, Paul Anthony Stewart as Don Kirshner and Liz Larsen as Genie Klein.