Jukebox musicals don’t always make room for sparkling dialogue (why spend time writing witty lines when everyone came for the songs?), but Beautiful is one of the genre’s true greats. With a book by Oscar-winning writer Douglas McGrath (who cut his teeth at Saturday Night Live) and numbers by the queen of songwriting herself, Carole King, the alchemy here is almost too good to mess up. And while there are a few moments when Pitlochry Festival Theatre’s repertory ensemble doesn’t quite do the material justice vocally, they most definitely capture the spirit of the era.

The show takes us back to late 1950s/early 1960s New York, where a 16-year-old King is trying, with equal tenacity, to sell her songs and snag the school heartthrob. Within a year, she’s achieved both, marrying Gerry Goffin and signing a deal with music publisher Donnie Kirshner. Professional success and personal heartbreak follow, but Beautiful also turns the spotlight on King and Goffin’s best friends, fellow songwriters Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, giving the story (and songlist) an extra dimension.

McGrath’s words zing with humour and pathos, and director Sam Hardie squeezes the juice out of every line. With each cast member acting, singing and, more often than not, playing two instruments, there’s a lot of talent on stage. Kirsty Findlay is remarkable as King, embodying her fervent self-belief and Brooklyn wit with ease, as well as her emotional vulnerability. Findlay can also knock out a tune with power and pathos, and sitting at the piano with her long curly hair, she doesn’t attempt to mimic King but certainly conveys her essence.

Also making the most of McGrath’s light-hearted lines are Theo Diedrick and Lola Aluko as Barry and Cynthia, plus Robin Simpson who plays publishing kingpin Kirshner, between them providing more than a few lough-out-loud moments. But, of course, it’s the songs (no less than 30 of them) that take top billing, with tracks like ‘Will You Love Me Tomorrow?’, ‘You’ve Got A Friend’ and ‘It’s Too Late’ hitting all the right soft spots, and beat-driven numbers like ‘I Feel The Earth Move’ getting the crowd suitably clappy.

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Pitlochry Festival Theatre, until Saturday 28 September.