I’ve heard it said that there are two kinds of people in this world: those who love Neil Diamond, and those who haven’t heard enough Neil Diamond to know they do. There’s also apparently a third: people who got beat down by life and forgot how much they love Neil Diamond until they’re presented with an evening of his “best of”. And last night, from the first notes of the overture that rang out in A Beautiful Noise til the post curtain call audience sing-a-long of “Sweet Caroline”, it became clear that I fell into this third faction. Part concert, part biomusical, and all heart, this jukebox musical (book by Anthony McCarten, music & lyrics by Diamond) celebrates the life and music of an artist whose songs have provided the soundtrack to 50 years of road-trips, karaoke, bar sing-alongs, and become a staple for DJ’s across the ages. By the time the audience was clapping along to familiar favorites, it felt less like a night at the theatre and more like a love letter to an artist whose music continues to bring people together.
Diamond, who tragically had to retire from touring in 2018 due to a diagnosis of Parkinson’s Disease, has experienced a resurgence in recent years. This musical exploration of Diamond’s life and career opened on Broadway in 2022 and last year Song Sung Blue, a star-driven (Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson) movie that isn’t about Diamond but is a valentine to his music, arrived in theatres with a true-life tale of a tribute act who have a deep love and appreciation for his songbook. The movie reminded me how much I once loved Diamond, a constant on the easy listening/pop stations I grew up with. Last night’s opening of A Beautiful Noise gave me an appreciation I have never had before.
Diamond is the king of feel good music. He occasionally referred to himself as the Jewish Elvis. A better legacy might be the Jewish Jimmy Buffett, whose own jukebox musical Escape to Margaritaville is the only other time I’ve ever seen audiences so completely throw themselves into the music and celebrate along with the performers. But where Margaritaville tells its tale with sheer nonsense and hijinx, A Beautiful Noise is even more successful sharing the absolute joy of Diamond’s music against a tale accenting the darkness, depression, and loneliness that haunted his life but inspired his songs.
Framed within a therapy session that present day Diamond, billed as Neil – Now and played by Broadway vet Robert Westenberg (Into the Woods, The Secret Garden, The Full Monty), is dodging questions from his Doctor (an engaging Lisa Reneé Pitts). A man of few words, she confronts his resistance to open up when he tells her his life story is in his music. She pulls out a second hand book she acquired, The Complete Lyrics of Neil Diamond, and uses the imagery and the story telling within to open up a lively discussion of his life, his career, his music, and his lifelong attempt to fight off the “clouds” that have complicated all his personal relationships. And yet, to illustrate the validity of that “king of feel good” title (as she points out how often “King” imagery pops up in his music) against these deep discussions of difficulty and despair, the events he divulges are brought to the most vivid life by American Idol Season 15 champion and recording artist Nick Fradiani (as Neil – Then) and a boisterous troupe of supporting actors and ensemble who bring his music to a jubilant full color life before our eyes. For the audience to feel so good (“so good…so good”; sorry, it’s infectious) is a tribute to how much joy and love Diamond has cultivated with generations of fans over his 50+ year career as a singer/songwriter/storyteller/musical poet.
Westenberg and Pitts are excellent in balancing the passion with the pain and the angst as we see the real Neil Diamond, a shy, reclusive introvert constantly fighting off his “clouds” by chasing the thrill and joy of performing live. But the trouble is that it is like any other addiction. The high disappears pretty quickly and takes another performance to achieve it again. And another. And another. Which is not great for a marriage and family back home. It’s hard for two non-singing actors to maintain their strength in a full-out upbeat musical, but Westenberg and Pitts are firmly in control of the storytelling. Pitts should get special consideration because Westenberg has at least an aura of the Neil Diamond persona to aid him, she’s doing it all on her own. And they are both compelling and thought-provoking in their sessions between songs.
Never since Stephanie J. Block won her only long-deserved Tony giving life to Cher in The Cher Show has a performance been so critical to pay homage to the legend on stage. Audiences of fans know full well they are seeing actors impersonate and pay tribute to their idols, but they really just want to hear the originals. One of my favorite New York stories concerns the woman who, at the end of a performance of Summer: The Donna Summer Musical I attended, strongly voiced her disappointment snapping “I thought I was coming to hear Donna Summer sing.” (Miss Summer had passed five years earlier.) It is with great enthusiasm that I cannot emphasize enough that I did not see Fradiani perform as Neil Diamond. I can solidly affirm that this is one of those rare star-making turns where Nick Fradiani is Neil Diamond. He nails the look, the presence, the swagger, the closet introversion, and, most importantly, the sound (aptly described by Heidi Kettenring as fellow songwriter/producer Ellie Greenwich as “gravel wrapped in velvet”). He’s the star in all the concert sequences, rocking the progression of sequin costumes as well as the songs, and phenomenal in capturing the mood swings his latter-day self describes in the therapy scenes. We also are treated to watching him boil and erupt as he demonstrates why Diamond inevitably became a star. From the moment he pitches “I’m a Believer” to Greenwich to the last minute desperation that gave birth to “Sweet Caroline”, Fradiani gives us progressively bigger and showier moments that culminate in the star Diamond he evolves into in a whirlwind Act 2 opening concert segment that starts with the rousing “Brother Love’s Traveling Salvation Show” and proceeds through “Soolaimon”, “Thank the Lord for the Night Time”, and “Crunchy Granola Suite”.
Fradiani is one of the brightest talents to emerge on the musical theatre scene with this high octane performance delivering on a Top 40 legend, and, while I’d hate to see him pigeonholed as a tribute act, I feel confident there is a way to pivot on this success to bigger things both on Broadway and in pop radio airplay. Perhaps an original take on some of these classic Neil Diamond numbers in the middle of this Neil Diamond resurgence could be a great place to jumpstart accessing mainstream stardom. Great things have happened to a handful of American Idol winners. I easily see it happening for Fradiani.
A strong supporting cast and a stellar ensemble give him all the assistance he needs. Kettenring as Ellie Greenwich is broadly hilarious as a fellow Brooklyn-born, songwriting prodigy contemporary who gave him his break at Phil Spector’s legenday Brill Building song mill. By the time he meets her, she’s a respected producer with a steady line of hits of her own. She knows pop music and she knows he’s got talent. (Ironically, Greenwich is the subject of what may be the first ever jukebox musical, 1985’s Leader of the Pack, which chronicles her humble beginnings and rise to fame in the 60’a music scene through her own highly impressive hit parade).
But the other, unexpected, star turn of the show is the bang-up Amber Ardolino as major fan come second wife Marcia Murphy. She gives us a glimpse of what’s to come as she dances through “Cherry, Cherry” at The Bitter End in a slinky red dress that makes it an unexpected gogo dance treat. But as her role develops during Act 2, we see her bloom as an actress and excel in numbers as diverse as the bittersweet Barbra Streisand half of “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers” and the even more unanticipated show-stealing “Forever in Blue Jeans” which, in a show full of sequins and fringe, Ardolino is dressed down in just a fitted T-shirt and titular denim, but proceeds to execute a dance break that looks literally lifted from Donna McKechnie’s “Music and the Mirror” tour de force from A Chorus Line. Ardolino, who played the role in New York as well as an impressive resume of other hit shows including Hamilton, Moulin Rouge, Funny Girl, and Head Over Heels, could be the next Broadway star waiting to happen.
Other notable performances include Tiffany Tatreau as patient and understanding first wife Jaye Posner, who delivers heartfelt renditions of “September Morn”. “Love on the Rocks”, and “Hello Again”. Gene Weygandt provides comic relief as Fred Weintraub, the manager of the infamous Bitter End nightclub, and Tommy “O’Rourke” a rough around the edges mobster who runs the shady Bang Record Company Greenwich sets him up with. And Michael Accardo scores as Bert Berns, the equally shady manager fronting the mob at Bang and Diamond’s father Kieve (with an assist from Kettenberg as his concerned mother Rose).
And it would be a slight not to give a standing ovation to one of the hardest working ensembles I’ve seen on the road in ages. Billed as “The Beautiful Noise”, Emma Grace Bailey, Ninake Donville, Matthew Fedorek, Christian Maxwell Henry, Spencer Donovan, Ellen McGihon, Dimitri Joseph Moise, Olivia Quesada, Nik Vlachos, J’Kobe Wallace, and Nazarria Workman add everything to the score of the show, providing solid background vocals, fluid interpretive dance to the character numbers, and flashy show dance to the concert numbers. They rarely leave the stage except to change costumes, but they are another pleasant surprise aspect to the show. No one ever mistook the Neil Diamond songbook as dance music, but Choreographer Steven Hoggett thought outside that box and cast this amazing band of triple threats that add vocal, visual, and performance energy to virtually every number of the show. They are indeed a Beautiful Noise, but also a Beautiful Vision, and a Beautiful Energy.
The show has so much liveliness going on it’s not necessary to have extravagant physical trappings. Scenic Designer David Rockwell keeps things minimalistic so things flow smoothly and fluidly. Other than a semi-elaborate concert stage, his other sets are mostly set pieces as needed and the omnipresent therapy chairs for Neil – Now and the Doctor. There is an interesting array of various lighting fixtures in the first act therapy scenes which seems to merely be there to fill negative space. But he understands, the audience is here for Neil. Make everything about Neil.
Kevin Adams’ Lighting Design is perfectly adequate. Erring on the dim side most of the show, almost to the point where it is occasionally difficult to see facial expressions (maybe a way of commenting on the perpetual darkness alluded to in Diamond’s therapy sessions), he makes up for it in the vibrant full-stage concert lighting for those segments when everything is high energy and overdrive.
Costume Design Emilio Sosa gives us a variety of looks, specializing in the standard concert sequin studded performance outfits. (Pitts asks Neil – Now at one point what it means going back out on the road. Westenberg responded, “More sequins”) Way to know your audience. Baltimore’s Bob Mackie has never met a sequin outfit he didn’t love. Ardolino also benefits from an array of exceptionally complementary looks as she progresses from fangirl to girlfriend to wife to fashionable ex-wife.
McCarten’s book takes an interesting approach of exploring Diamond’s life through his own words in his immortal songs. New York critics branded it a heavy-handed approach, but it works remarkably well. Diamond’s songs are surprisingly morose to flat out dark at times, with prominent themes of loss and loneliness often repeated. But when he turns around and wraps them in gorgeous to buoyant melodies, they mask those feelings for the most part and deliver the song hooks that the world loves to sing. Yes the therapy scenes may be a little long at times, but Pitts’ Doctor is proficient at poking Westenberg’s Neil to elaborate and show the artist behind the art that very few understood. The “Solitary Man” with a “Song Sung Blue” (and the unexpected genesis of his hit “Shilo”) in his heart may seem like a cliché, but it works well here in contrast to the joyous music being celebrated.
Credit Sound Designer Jessica Paz with the perfect sound for Diamond’s music, especially the concert sequences. Yes it was borderline loud, but that was the energy that the evening required to perfectly sell the music. The plus side is that it’s incredibly clear but plenty loud to cover the audience members that can’t quite contain their joy to sing along. And sing along they do. The best conceived part of the show was when, during the segment where Fradiani finds the last minute inspiration to dash out the iconic “Sweet Caroline” in a hotel room 30 minutes before his recording session, no one makes any pretense for theatre decorum and gives in to the spontaneous audience sing-along that inevitably erupts and is entirely encouraged. Sonny Paladino’s arrangements even fill in the now ubiquitous background bar vocals with “Bom bom bom”s and “so good, so good, so good”s as Adams throws full light up on the audience to give them permission to be part of the show and take the first act home the way they absolutely want to.
But the unsung hero of this exuberant, joyful love fest is Choreographer Hoggett. Director Michael Mayer does an excellent job bringing his characters to life, but Hoggett brings Diamond’s music to even bigger life. As previously stated, there is no need to make every Neil Diamond a dance number, but Hoggett, under Mayer’s eye, saw something bigger and his additions elevate the score and the show to an unanticipated level of art.
As I wrap this review up, let me illustrate for you just how wonderful this show was. I am not an emotional creature in the theatre, easily manipulated by artistic trappings. I have, in my entire life, only cried three times ever in a theatre audience. The first time was when my then 7-year-old daughter made her stage debut as Little Cossette in one of the first ever productions of the High School Edition of Les Misérables, her angelic voice soaring in a solo spotlight over an audience of 900+ and 32 piece orchestra. The second was years later when she won me front row tickets to The Cher Show in New York, as Jarrod Spector and Micaela Diamond (no relation) broke into “I Got You, Babe” and my entire childhood came flooding back to me. The third time was last night, from the moment Fradiani sold Ellie Greenwich “I’m a Believer” to the end of the show. And they were tears of sheer joy.
A recurring theme this season of reviews is how shows are landing differently than ever before in these dark, frequently hopeless days we currently endure in this country. West Side Story in the ICE Age. The Sound of Music when the Nazis quietly infiltrate Austrian society. Chess, when a heavy-handed rewrite makes the Russian presence very pronounced globally beyond the games at hand. And last month’s underrated Suffs, showing the work women had to put in for the better part of a century to procure the very rights they’re now losing daily. They all mean things they didn’t even a few years ago.
With so much darkness, uncertainty, and hate in this world today, 2 ½ hours celebrating the sheer joy and light of Neil Diamond’s song catalog is another show we just didn’t know we needed until we did. Do yourself a favor and get one of the few remaining tickets for A Beautiful Noise this week while you can. When it comes to the legacy of Neil Diamond, it’s been proven I’m a Believer. You’ll be too. And trust me, you will leave feeling so good…so good…so good. See, you can’t help but. It’s just that intoxicating.
Photos courtesy of Jeremy Daniel.
The show runs 2 hours and 30 minutes with a 15 minute intermission.
The Neil Diamond Musical: A Beautiful Noise runs through June 28, 2026, at the Hippodrome Theatre in the France-Merrick Performing Arts Center at 12 N. Eutaw Street. For tickets call the box office at 410.752.7444. or purchase them online.