Sinatra, Carole King and more: Here's what's coming to Theatre By the Sea this summer

SOUTH KINGSTOWN — Summer at the Rhode Island shore means wave riding, seafood feasts and catching a play tinged with salt air at the state’s only summer stock theater.

Theatre By The Sea celebrates 90 years in Matunuck with four lively musicals, sweet children’s matinees and the return of its popular late-night cabaret, according to owner Bill Hanney.

“We’re still recovering from the pandemic,” says Hanney in a call from Cape Cod, where he operates another theater. “We reopened the gazebo bar at the beginning of last season, and the new restaurant, Bravo by the Sea, opened at the end of July, but we were still missing the cabaret. We’re happy it will be back after select shows this year.”

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Theatre By The Sea bills its productions as “Broadway quality,” and the 2023 lineup boasts audience favorites from New York that Hanney assures will give the summer a musical backbeat.

Here's the lineup for this summer:

“My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra,” May 24 through June 11

The first of three biographical shows on the company’s calendar, this walks audiences through the life of Ol’ Blue Eyes against a score of such hits as “I’ve Got the World on a String,” “Fly Me to the Moon” and “New York, New York.”

“I love Frank Sinatra, and this review of his life story is not to be missed. Even if you’re not a fan, you will be,” Hanney promises. “I always like to start with a smaller show, to ease into the season.”

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“Beautiful: The Carole King Musical,” June 14 through July 8

This shows shifts gears to a different era and musical style that Hanney predicts will appeal to all ages.

“It’s great when they put together a great body of music with a great story,” he says of the production, which focuses on King’s ascent from teenage Brooklyn songwriter to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Songs in the Tony- and Grammy award-winning production — ones she and other artists popularized, including “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” “Take Good Care of My Baby” and “Up on the Roof” — tell her inspiring personal story.

“The Bodyguard,” July 12 through Aug. 5

"The Bodyguard" brings back the power ballads Whitney Houston infused into the 1992 hit film, telling the story of a former Secret Service agent turned personal bodyguard who falls in love with the superstar he’s hired to protect. The romance is marked with frightening moments and performances of such songs as “Saving All My Love,” “I Have Nothing,” “I Wanna Dance with Somebody” and one of the biggest-selling songs of all time, "I Will Always Love You."

“For some reason, people don’t do this show more often,” Hanney says. “The trick is, you have to get certain things right. You need to nail the Whitney Houston role, and I think we have.”

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“Jersey Boys,” Aug. 9 through Sept. 10

Theatre By The Sea rounds out the season with the sounds of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. With songs like “Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry” and “Walk Like a Man,” the show transports audiences back to the Jersey stoops where the group got its start, through the challenges they faced when building careers that still endure today.

“We’ve been waiting on ‘Jersey Boys’ forever!” Hanney says, noting that his biggest challenge is getting the rights to shows he wants to produce. “People never get tired of the music in this show. They always want to see it.”

With the cabaret after some weekend shows, Monday night concerts when the actors have a day off, a physical facelift in the form of new carpeting and paint, and the lure of the musical lineup, he says Theatre By The Sea has “something for everybody.”

“We do all musicals, no plays. I want everything to be happy, happy, happy,” Hanney says.

Get information on subscriptions and tickets to individual shows at the box office, 364 Cards Pond Road, South Kingstown; by phone at (401) 782-8587; or online at theatrebythesea.com.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Sinatra, 'Jersey Boys' and more: Theatre By The Sea's 2023 lineup