[title]
Diamonds are not forever after all. Producers of A Beautiful Noise, The Neil Diamond Musical announced today that the show, which has been playing on Broadway since November 2022, will end its run at the Broadhurst Theatre on June 30. At that time, it will have played 657 regular performances plus 35 previews—a thoroughly respectable tally.
As written by biodrama specialist Anthony McCarten (Bohemian Rhapsody), A Beautiful Noise imagines two versions of the singer: a younger one rising through the music industry, and an older one reflecting on his life with help from a therapist. The former role, originated by Will Swenson, is now played by 2015 American Idol winner Nick Fradiani; original cast member Mark Jacobi still plays the latter. The show gives fans of Diamond's catalog plenty to sing about.
"A Beautiful Noise extracts as many pop gems as it can from the Diamond mine," we wrote in our 2022 review of the show. "From his early breakthrough as the writer of 'I’m a Believer' for the Monkees to more than two dozen of his later hits (such as 'Cracklin’ Rosie,' 'Song Sung Blue' and 'America, though perhaps understandably not 'Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon'), the show makes its subject’s oeuvre the central focus of attraction and investigation. His most enduring hit, 'Sweet Caroline,' is prominently featured as both the Act I finale and in a final send-’em-out-humming reprise after the curtain call, at which the audience is encouraged to chant in response ('So good! So good! So good!') as though at a sporting event."
Though never a box-office sensation, A Beautiful Noise has had a longer run than many Broadway watchers had predicted, and it will begin a national tour this fall in Providence, Rhode Island. “Neil’s music has brought unadulterated joy to billions of people across the world," says producer Ken Davenport. "Everyone at A Beautiful Noise is proud to say that we had a small hand in telling his inspiring life story on Broadway and sharing in that jubilation with our audiences. As the North American tour prepares to launch this fall, I look forward to A Beautiful Noise spreading the love to countless others.”
You can sign up here for more information about the national tour as it becomes available; meanwhile, you can get tickets here for the final months of the Broadway engagement. And if you're a fan of Broadway jukebox musicals as a genre, don't despair: Alicia Keys's Hell's Kitchen and Huey Lewis's The Heart of Rock and Roll are just around the corner.
