In an anemic Broadway season for new musicals, there was high hope that Beaches might tug at our heartstrings—a familiar IP that combines showbiz glitz with the resilience of female friendship. But the riptide that’s struck the Majestic Theatre may leave you gasping for air.
“What’s your name, toots?” It’s Atlantic City, 1951, and bawdy pre-teen Cee Cee Bloom (a chutzpah-filled Samantha Schwartz) introduces herself to a lost little Bertie (Zeya Grace) on the beach. Their brief exchange is the start of a beautiful, fraught friendship spanning three decades. So strong is this bond that when adult Cee Cee (powerhouse Jessica Vosk) learns of Bertie’s (Kelli Barrett) failing health, she leaves a studio taping of her hit variety show for the first flight out of LAX to be at her side.
Familiar friends, forgettable songs
Beaches: The Musical adapts Iris Rainer Dart’s 1985 novel and elements of the 1988 hit film starring Bette Midler and Barbara Hershey. Still, the show can’t overcome Mike Stoller’s schmaltzy score. Dart’s simple lyrics (“Holy moley matrimony!”) and mostly humorless, cringe-filled book (co-written with the late Thom Thomas) don’t help.
James Noone’s Tetris-style scenic design and David Bengali’s video projections capture Cee Cee’s glitzy, coast-to-coast showbiz life, yet fail to evoke anything resembling a beach. Instead, an impressionistic painting frames the best friends in the musical’s climactic scene.
Vosk’s effort to elevate the material is herculean, her charisma and humor often rising above Lonny Price and Matt Cowart’s flat direction. In one scene, Cee Cee auditions for a New York casting director and declares the song “A Real Woman” terrible, rewriting it on the spot. Her director and future husband, John (Brent Thiessen), tells her, “You can’t go telling some Broadway guy his song stinks and then rewrite it.” If it were only that easy.
In the musical’s final moments, Vosk belts the show’s one film holdover—Grammy-winning tearjerker “Wind Beneath My Wings”—and the sound of tissues rustling is palpable. You may not be sure why you or your neighbor is crying. Emotional recall? Vosk’s soaring performance? For some, it won’t matter. The catharsis is as fleeting as the tide.
It wants better content.
Is ‘Beaches’ worth seeing?
Jessica Vosk does herculean work, but even a powerhouse performance can’t pull Beaches past a forgettable score and a book that both need a major overhaul.
- Majestic Theatre, 245 W. 44th Street, New York City
- Notable performers: Jessica Vosk, Kelli Barrett
- Running time: Two hours and 20 minutes, including one intermission
- Performances through September 6, 2026
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