Giddying. Wondrous.
— SF Chronicle

WORLD PREMIERE

Louisa May Alcott's

BEAUTIFUL: THE CAROLE KING MUSICAL

SHOW HAS CLOSED

Mar 31-apr 25, 2027

Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts

Words and Music by GERRY GOFFIN, CAROLE KING, BARRY MANN, CYNTHIA WEIL
Book by DOUGLAS MCGRATH
Directed by GIOVANNA SARDELLI

Feel the earth move under your feet! Soulful and irresistible, this feel-good musical tells the true story of the woman behind the soundtrack of our lives. From teenage songwriter to chart-topping legend, Carole King finds her voice in a world that wasn’t always ready to hear it. Set against the vibrant music scene of the 1950s and 1960s, the journey follows love, resilience, the sort of friendships that shape a life—and a career that changed music forever. Featuring a thrilling lineup of iconic hits including “You’ve Got a Friend,” “It’s Too Late,” and “You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman,” Beautiful makes you laugh, tear up, and leave the theatre humming all the way home.

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Special Events & Accessible Performances

Join TheatreWorks for a pre-show discussion with an artist from the production. In this free event, peer behind the scenes and learn more about the process of bringing this production to life.
  • Thursday, April 1 @ 6:15 – 6:45 pm (in the lobby)
  • Wednesday, April 7 @ 7:30pm
  • Wednesday, April 14 @ 7:30pm
  • Wednesday, April 21 @ 7:30pm
  • Sunday, April 11 @ 1pm
  • Sunday, April 18 @ 1pm
  • Thursday, April 15 @ 7:30pm

Photos: Kevin Berne, 2025

Cast

ELISSA BETH STEBBINS*

ELISSA BETH STEBBINS, they/she (Louisa/Jo) has previously been seen in TheatreWorks’ Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley, Mrs. Christie, and Nan and the Lower Body. Recent regional credits include The Return (Golden Thread Productions), Colonialism is Terrible but Pho is Delicious (Aurora), Becky Nurse of Salem (Berkeley Rep), Kings, Kiss, The Village Bike, and Caught (Shotgun Players), In Braunau (San Francisco Playhouse Sandbox Series), Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again., and You For Me For You (Crowded Fire Theatre). Elissa is a Teaching Artist, and a co-founder of Analog Theatre, where they produce and devise physical theatre. Elissa graduated with honors from Santa Clara University, and is a lifelong student, continuing their training with Shakespeare and Company, Atelier Matteo Destro, and more.  

EMILY OTA*

EMILY OTA (Meg) has performed with TheatreWorks and their New Works Festival. Other credits include: Becky in Bachelorette (Off-Broadway); Loren in Cult of Love (Berkeley Rep); One/Naomi Bell in Dogs (Berkeley Rep Ground Floor); Henry V in Henry V, Maria in Love’s Labor’s Lost, Maria/Lisa in Mr. Burns, a post-electric play, Prince Escalus in Romeo and Juliet (Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival); Miranda in The Tempest (The Oregon Symphony); Alice in Alice in Wonderland, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, Marianne in Sense and Sensibility (Oregon Shakespeare Festival); Narration for Sweet and Sour (Scholastic Books). Ota earned her graduate degree from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. Insta: @emilyota. Dedicated to her loved ones – especially her sister, Kelly.   

LAUREN HART*

LAUREN HART (Beth) is thrilled and grateful to be back at TheatreWorks for the first time since performing in Ragtime as a 10-year-old in 2002. Favorite credits include The Rocky Horror Show (Janet), The Unfortunates (Roxy), and A Christmas Carol (Ghost of Christmas Past) at A.C.T., Born in East Berlin (Lotte) at SF Playhouse, Peter and the Starcatcher (Molly), and Tartuffe (Elmire) at Summer Repertory Theatre. She received her MFA from American Conservatory Theater.  

IG: @Laurrrenharttt 

MAX TACHIS

MAX TACHIS, he/him (Laurie) has performed with TheatreWorks in The SantaLand Diaries (David/Crumpet), the 2018 New Works Festival in Something to Say: New Plays by Women (Various) and, most recently, Mrs. Christie (William/Collins). Other Bay Area credits include the world premiere of Waiting for Next (Marcus) at City Lights Theater Company, and co-writing and directing a world premiere adaptation of Cyrano for Los Altos Stage Company. 

GEORGE PSARRAS*

GEORGE PSARRAS (John/Bhaer) is thrilled to make his TheatreWorks return in Little Women. He was most recently seen on the TheatreWorks mainstage in Finks, as well as Water By The Spoonful and Anna In The Tropics. New Works credits include Father/Daughter and Born in East Berlin. At Hillbarn Theatre, Mr. Psarras was most recently seen in Daisy and before that as Sherlock Holmes in Baskerville! Select City Lights credits include Silent Sky, Ideation, The Elephant Man, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and Amadeus. At San Jose Stage, he was seen in The Humans and Between Riverside and Crazy. Film credits include Pixar’s Onward, Waltzing With Brando, and Tapawingo. On television, Mr. Psarras has been seen in General Hospital and The Last Ship. georgepsarras.com   

SHARON SHAO*

SHARON SHAO, she/they (Amy) is delighted to be making her TheatreWorks debut! Her regional credits include The Far Country (Berkeley Rep), The Winter’s Tale (CalShakes), and Good Person of Szechwan (CalShakes). She most recently appeared as Dawn in Waitress at SF Playhouse. Other local credits: Chinglish (SF Playhouse), Sleeping Beauty (Panto in the Presidio), The Paper Dreams of Harry Chin (SF Playhouse), Man of God (Shotgun Players), Vinegar Tom (Shotgun Players), The Tempest (Oakland Theater Project), Hamlet (Oakland Theater Project). They recently co-produced an original cabaret theater piece called “Sex, Camp, Rock ‘N Roll” at the 2024 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. She received her BA in Theatre Arts and Psychology from UC Santa Cruz. sharonshao.biz 

CATHLEEN RIDDLEY*

CATHLEEN RIDDLEY (Marmee/Aunt March) has performed with TheatreWorks in A Christmas Memory (for which she received a BATCC Award nomination), To Kill A Mockingbird, and Dessa Rose. Riddley has been seen as The Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz at A.C.T., Cynthia in Sweat at Center Rep, Mrs. Price in Tree at SF Playhouse, and Paulina in The Winter’s Tale and Kent in Lear at Cal Shakes. She is a multiple award-winning actor in the San Francisco Bay Area. Riddley is an Artistic Associate at Marin Shakes, and a company member with Shotgun Players and PlayGround. Film: La Mission with Benjamin Bratt.  Television: Trauma. Video games: CSI, Sam and Max. Riddley is a certified ASL interpreter with an MA in Sociology from UPenn. 

EIKO MOON-YAMAMOTO

EIKO MOON-YAMAMOTO (U/S Marmee/Aunt March) was born in Tokyo and raised in Seoul, Honolulu and Shafter, CA. Stage credits include Follies, Clue, Tiny Beautiful Things at San Francisco Playhouse, Cymbeline at San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, M’Lynn Eatenton in Steel Magnolias at Sierra Repertory Theatre, and world premiere of Downtown Crossing at Company One. Other credits: Shogun’s Mother in Pacific Overtures at Kunoichi Productions, Afong Moy in The Chinese Lady at Pear Theatre, and A Noh Christmas Carol at Theatre of Yugen. Film: The Truer History of the Chan Family. Upcoming: Jack’s Mother in Into the Woods at San Francisco Playhouse. Eiko is a company member of PlayGround and Artistic Associate of Rainbow Zebra Productions. Alum of UCLA and member of SAG–AFTRA. eikoyamamoto.com | @eikoyh  

KUSHI BEAUCHAMP

KUSHI BEAUCHAMP (U/S Jo, Meg, Beth, Amy) recently made her TheatreWorks debut in Vienna, as part of the 2025 New Works Festival. Favorite recent credits include Tinkerbell in Peter Pan & Wendy, Once, and A Christmas Carol (Kansas City Repertory Theatre), Charlie & The Chocolate Factory (The Coterie) and The Dogwood (Kansas City Actors Theatre). Beauchamp received her MFA in Acting & Directing from the University of Missouri, Kansas City. kushibeauchamp.com 

WILL LIVINGSTON

WILL LIVINGSTON, he/him (U/S Laurie, John, Bhaer) is thrilled to be making his TheatreWorks debut! Other recent Bay Area credits include Sweat (Jason) at Palo Alto Players, In Love and Warcraft (Male Ensemble) at City Lights Theatre Company, The Thanksgiving Play (Jaxton) at Altarena Playhouse, and Heroes of the Fourth Turning (Justin) at Los Altos Stage. Originally from Charlotte, North Carolina, he holds degrees in Drama and Psychology from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. 

*Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.

CREATIVE TEAM

LAUREN GUNDERSON, Playwright

LAUREN GUNDERSON (Playwright). Lauren has been one of the most produced playwrights in America since 2015, topping the list thrice including 2022/23. She is a two-time winner of the Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award for I and You and The Book of Will, the winner of the William Inge Distinguished Achievement in Theatre Award, the Lanford Wilson Award, and a finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. She is a playwright, screenwriter, musical book writer and children's author who lives in San Francisco. She graduated from NYU Tisch as a Reynolds Fellow in Social Entrepreneurship. LaurenGunderson.com 

GIOVANNA SARDELLI, Director

GIOVANNA SARDELLI (Director) is TheatreWorks’ Artistic Director and former Director of New Works for nine years. TheatreWorks directing credits include Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean: A New Musical, King James (which received the SFBATCC Award for Best Production in the Bay and Best Director, among others), Mrs. Christie, A Distinct Society, Nan and the Lower Body, It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play, They Promised Her the Moon, Archduke, Crimes of the Heart, The North Pool, and Somewhere. Other directing credits: Describe the Night (Obie Award Best New Play) at Atlantic Theater Co., the World Premiere of Archduke at Mark Taper Forum, and the Marvel podcast Squirrel Girl: The Unbeatable Radio Show! Sardelli holds an MFA in Acting from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and taught in NYU’s Graduate Acting Program and Dance Department for over a decade. 

ANNIE SMART, Scenic Design
MEG NEVILLE, Scenic Design
JAMES ARD, Sound Design

JAMES ARD (Sound Design) is a noisemaker specializing in new works, live experiences, and immersive stage productions. Ard’s recent designs at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley include Miss Bennet, Queen, and Mrs. Christie. Recent work outside TWSV includes collaborations with Under the Radar at The Public Theater, American Conservatory Theater, San Francisco Playhouse, Summerhall at the Edinburgh Fringe, Sibiu International Theatre Festival, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, Guthrie Theater, American Repertory Theater, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Portland Center Stage, Center Repertory Company, Ensemble Theatre Company, Cutting Ball Theater, Crowded Fire Theater, Joe Goode Performance Group, Stanford University, UC Berkeley, and Atlantic Theater Company.   

KURT LANDISMAN, Lighting Design

KURT LANDISMAN (Lighting Design) previously designed TheatreWorks’ Tiger Style!, In Every Generation, The Joy Luck Club, Once on This Island, and The Heidi Chronicles, which received the BATCC Award for Best Lighting Design. Bay Area credits include American Conservatory Theater, San Jose Rep, San Francisco Opera, Berkeley Rep, Marin Theatre Co., Center Rep, Magic Theatre, and many others. His 45 years of lighting design include the premieres of Sam Shepard’s True West as well as Fool for Love which played Off-Broadway for 2 years. His lighting has been seen throughout the US, as well as internationally with productions in Tokyo, Singapore, and Shanghai. His designs have received 22 Bay Area Critics Circle Awards. kurtlandisman.com  

RANDALL K. LUM, Stage Manager

RANDALL K. LUM (Stage Manager) is a resident stage manager for TheatreWorks, where he worked on productions of Happy Pleasant Valley, King James, Being Alive, Queen, How I Learned What I Learned, Steel Magnolias, In Every Generation, Nan and the Lower Body, They Promised Her The Moon, Pride and Prejudice, The 39 Steps, Archduke, Fun Home, Hold These Truths, Finks, Skeleton Crew, Around the World in 80 Days, and The Prince of Egypt, among others. Other credits include the Oregon and San Francisco Shakespeare Festivals, Laguna Playhouse, Pasadena Playhouse, Denver Center Theatre Co., La Jolla Playhouse, Center Theatre Group, The Old Globe, American Conservatory Theater, California Shakespeare Theater, Berkeley Rep, Center Rep, Seattle Rep, and South Coast Rep.  

JUDITH NIHEI, Artist Counselor

JUDITH NIHEI (Artist Counselor) is a San Francisco-based licensed psychotherapist in private practice. She consults for schools, nonprofits, and community-based organizations, facilitating the incorporation of stress-reduction and cultural humility as an integral part of trauma-informed services. Clients have included Edgewood Center for Children and Families, Japanese Community Youth Council, and Theatre Communications Group, Inc.  As a director, dramaturg, writer, actor, and administrator, she worked with Asian American theatre companies in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle, as well as The Seattle Rep, Cornish College of the Arts, Hillbarn Theatre, and BRAVA. She began her career in improv with The Committee and currently performs as one of The Bad Aunties. 

Y. SHARON PENG, Wig and Hair Design

Y. SHARON PENG, she/they (Wig and Hair Design) recently designed for Harvey Milk Reimagined (Opera Parallèle), Cabaret (Los Altos Stage Company), What The Constitution Means To Me (Perseverance Theatre, Alaska), and Chriskirkpatrickmas (Seven Dials Playhouse, United Kingdom). Recent TV/Film: Stranger Things (Makeup Artist), Ride (Costume Supervisor), Finger (Costume Designer), and Anime Crimes Division (Costume Designer). Sharon currently heads the Hair & Makeup Department at Opera San José, styles wigs for San Francisco Ballet, and is a Principal Artist and Foreperson at San Francisco Opera. An alum of Fashion School of Design & Merchandising (San Francisco), Sharon trained in bespoke wig construction with the English National Opera (London, United Kingdom). Member of IATSE Local 706. ysharonpeng.net

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Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts

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