TORONTO -- It was enough stress to practically send her into labour.
At 33 weeks pregnant last summer, Canadian theatre star Chilina Kennedy flew to New York to audition for the lead role in "Beautiful -- The Carole King Musical" on Broadway.
Producers taped her performance and sent the video footage to King herself so she could help decide who would get the role.
"I was sitting there fretting at home back in Stratford (Ont.), just waiting for an answer," recalls Kennedy.
"The phone rings on Monday morning and it's my Canadian agent.... He says, 'Hey, do you think you can get me a couple of tickets?' and I said, 'Sure, what do you need tickets for?'
"And he says: 'To your opening night on Broadway!"'
Kennedy, who hails from Oromocto, N.B., assumes the coveted role of King on March 7 at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre.
She's succeeding Jessie Mueller, who won a Tony Award for her stirring portrayal of the singer-songwriter at the start of her career.
This is Kennedy's second time on Broadway, after starring as Mary Magdalene in a 2012 production of "Jesus Christ Superstar," which originated at Ontario's Stratford Festival.
Tony- and Oscar-nominated Douglas McGrath wrote the book for "Beautiful," which features King's hits including "It's Too Late" and "You've Got a Friend." The original Broadway cast recording recently won a Grammy Award.
The show traces King's rise to stardom, from her start as a tenacious teenage in Brooklyn to her struggle through the record industry and her musical/romantic relationship -- and eventual split -- with lyricist Gerry Goffin.
Kennedy calls the role "a dream come true."
"I remember actually as a kid we would take road trips and my parents would play 'Smackwater Jack' on our cassette tape in the car," she recalls with a laugh.
When she read one of the early incarnations of the script for the musical, she "fell in love" with it.
"I was crying by the end of it and I thought, 'Oh my God, this has such potential to be a huge hit show. Even if it's not a hit show, just being able to play that part would be so wonderful,"' says the Stratford Festival favourite, whose last role was the lead in "Mary Poppins" at Theatre Aquarius in Hamilton.
"She's really joyful and it's told with such heart. And it's really a beautiful love story, too."
Kennedy says she's reading King's memoir and "watching a ton of videos" of King and other artists featured in the show.
She's also working on her Brooklyn accent -- more often than she realizes.
"The other day my partner said, 'You've got to stop talking in a New York accent.' I said, 'I'm not doing that!"' she says with a laugh.
Through her research, she's learned King is a humble team player who "never wanted to be a star."
"She lets other people shine. She shares the stage with other people, it's not just about her," says Kennedy.
She is also a "great inspiration" for working mothers, adds Kennedy, whose baby boy is now five months old.
"She had four children and she had an incredible career and she really had that healthy balance of life and work."
