We wrote here not so long ago about Neil Diamond, the song "Sweet Caroline" and the special connection between Mr. Diamond, his song and Fenway Park in Boston. It's a tradition at Boston Red Sox games for the whole stadium to rise and sing along with his record during the eighth inning and at one memorable game in 2013, Neil himself showed up to lead the crowd in his tune, one of the great "sing-along" numbers of all time.
Well now! Though officially retired due to age and Parkinson's Disease, Neil Diamond surprised everyone by appearing at Fenway last Saturday to lead the crowd in the song — his first public appearance in quite some time. It was part of a promotion for A Beautiful Noise, a new Broadway-bound musical based on the life and songs of — who else? — Neil Diamond.
The show opens tomorrow night at the Emerson Colonial Theatre in Boston and the folks you'll see surrounding Neil in the clip are members of the cast, most notably Will Swenson, who plays the youthful Neil Diamond in the show. (Another actor plays him in his later years.)
If all goes well in Boston, the show opens at the Broadhurst Theatre in New York with previews starting November 2 and an opening night on December 4th. I have a strange premonition that after the curtain calls at the end, the cast will lead the audience singing this song…