Jersey Boys

Jersey Boys
The August Wilson Theatre showing Jersey Boys
Music	Bob Gaudio
Lyrics	Bob Crewe
Book	Marshall Brickman Rick Elice
Productions	2004 San Diego Tryout 2005 Broadway, New York 2006 US Tour 2007 Chicago 2008 Las Vegas 2008 West End, London 2008 Toronto 2009 Melbourne 2010 Sydney 2011 2nd US Tour 2012 Auckland
Awards	Tony Award for Best Musical Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album

Jersey Boys is a jukebox musical with music by Bob Gaudio, lyrics by Bob Crewe and book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice. It is a documentary-style musical, based on one of the most successful 1960s rock 'n roll groups, the Four Seasons. The musical opened on Broadway in 2005, and has since had a North American National Tour, along with productions in London's West End, Las Vegas, Chicago, Toronto, Melbourne, Sydney and Philadelphia. Jersey Boys won four 2006 Tony Awards including Best Musical.

Productions

Jersey Boys premiered at the La Jolla Playhouse at University of California, San Diego, in an out-of-town tryout on October 5, 2004 and ran through January 16, 2005 The musical began previews on Broadway on October 4, 2005 and officially opened on November 6, 2005 at the August Wilson Theatre. The cast starred John Lloyd Young as Frankie Valli, Christian Hoff as Tommy DeVito, Daniel Reichard as Bob Gaudio, and J. Robert Spencer as Nick Massi. The musical is directed by Des McAnuff, the then-artistic director at La Jolla Playhouse, with choreography by Sergio Trujillo. It uses many of the group's hit songs to tell the turbulent story of Frankie Valli and the The Four Seasons' rise to fame. The Broadway production has had 38 previews and 2241 performances as of April 10, 2011. On June 25, 2011 the musical became the 25th longest-running show on Broadway.

The first national tour of Jersey Boys began on December 10, 2006, at the Curran Theatre in San Francisco. On May 3, 2007, that leg of the tour's run ended in San Francisco to prepare for its Los Angeles premiere at the Ahmanson Theatre. The next day, a second company debuted at the Curran and ended its run on September 30, 2007, before transferring for an open-ended run at Chicago's Bank of America Theatre. The Chicago production opened on October 5, 2007, with Michael Ingersoll, a Chicagoan, in the role of Nick Massi. The Chicago opening brought Frankie Valli and Bob Gaudio to Chicago and was promoted prominently, including a December 9, 2007, puck-dropping at a Chicago Blackhawks hockey game.

December 10, 2010 marked the 4th Anniversary of the Tony, Grammy and Olivier Award-winning Jersey Boys National Tour. The Jersey Boys National Tour opened at the Curran Theatre in San Francisco and has gone on to play 38 cities since then. Jersey Boys recently played at the Forrest Theatre in Philadelphia where it broke the box office record 8 times before moving on to a return engagement in Boston.

A special holiday return engagement played at the Curran Theatre from November 20 – December 30, 2007, starring Rick Faugno as Frankie Valli, Andrew Rannells as Bob Gaudio, Bryan McElroy as Tommy DeVito and Jeff Leibow as Nick Massi. The majority of this cast became the original Las Vegas cast, which debuted at The Palazzo Hotel on Saturday, May 3, 2009.

The musical made its West End debut at London's Prince Edward Theatre in February 2008. The creative team were the same that brought the production to Broadway. Principal cast were Ryan Molloy as Frankie Valli, Stephen Ashfield as Bob Gaudio, Glenn Carter as Tommy DeVito and Philip Bulcock as Nick Massi. The production won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical.

The Las Vegas production of the show opened on Sunday, May 3, at The Palazzo Hotel in the newly built Jersey Boys Theatre. The show temporarily closed on January 1, 2012 and will reopen on March 6, 2012 at Paris Las Vegas.

The Australian production opened at the Princess Theatre in Melbourne in July 2009. In particular the Melbourne cast has received high praise from audiences. The Melbourne production closed on July 25, 2010 and opened in Sydney in September. The Sydney production closed in December 2011 and will open in Auckland in April 2012.

The San Francisco/Chicago cast appeared on stage in the 2007 Emmy Awards in a tribute to HBO's The Sopranos.

Due to the success of the First National tour stop at Toronto Centre for the Arts in Toronto, Ontario from August 21 to December 6, 2008, an open-ended run began performances on December 12 with a new, mostly Canadian cast that includes Jeremy Kushnier and Jenny Lee Stern from the First National Tour. This production celebrated its 500th show on February 27, 2010. The production closed on August 22, 2010 on the show's second anniversary.

Synopsis

The story dramatizes the forming, rise and eventual break-up of the original four members of The Four Seasons. The musical is separated into four "seasons", each narrated by a different member of the band. Act 1 comprises Spring (Tommy DeVito) & Summer (Bob Gaudio); Act 2 comprises Fall (Nick Massi) & Winter (Frankie Valli); each member has a different perspective on the band and his contribution to it.

Act I

Spring

The show opens with a performance of "Ces soirées-là", a modern pop-rap song that was released in 2000. Tommy DeVito then enters the stage, introducing himself and explaining how the song is a cover of The Four Seasons' "December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)". He offers to tell the story of the band, explaining how he started out with the group "The Variety Band" with his brother Nick DeVito and friend Nick Massi, eventually discovering teenager Frankie Castelluccio and taking him under his wing, teaching him everything he knows. ("The Early Years: A Scrapbook") During these early years Nick Massi helped train Frankie to sing, Tommy went in and out of prison, Frankie changed his last name to Valli, Tommy and Frankie developed a good relationship with mob boss Gyp DeCarlo, and Frankie fell in love with and married Mary DelGado. Musically, the band was still struggling and kept changing their name and sound but without any dramatic success. One day friend and fellow Jersey boy Joe Pesci comes up to Tommy and says that he knows a singer-songwriter who'd make the perfect fourth for their band: Bob Gaudio.

Summer

Bob Gaudio takes over the narration, starting by telling the audience that no matter what Tommy says, he wasn't plucked from obscurity by him, since he already had a hit single with "Short Shorts". Bob goes with Joe Pesci to see the band perform, and is immediately impressed by Frankie's voice. Bob performs a song he'd just written: "Cry for Me" on piano, which Frankie, Nick Massi and then Tommy joining in with vocals, bass and guitar respectively. They negotiate an agreement, though Tommy is at first skeptical that Bobby (then still a teenager) will be good for the band. The band eventually gets a contract with producer Bob Crewe but only to sing back-up ("Backup Sessions"). Crewe insists that the band has an "identity crisis" and needs to make a firm decision on a name and a sound. The band name themselves after The Four Seasons bowling alley, and Bobby writes them three songs that finally propel them to stardom: "Sherry", "Big Girls Don't Cry" and "Walk Like a Man". In the wake of their success, Bob also chalks up a personal first by losing his virginity. ("December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)") The band's success means that they tour a lot more, along the way discovering the girl band The Angels ("My Boyfriend's Back"). Unfortunately, the constant touring strains Frankie's marriage to Mary, and they eventually divorce ("My Eyes Adored You"). The band continues to enjoy chart successes ("Dawn (Go Away)") until after a concert the band is approached by a loan shark out to claim money owed by Tommy ("Walk Like a Man (reprise)").

Act II

Fall

The second act opens with "Big Man in Town". Nick Massi explains that Bob was so focused on the band's musical success and future that he couldn't see that the band had been in trouble for some time. Tommy's been racking up debts, and a forgotten bill during a previous tour lands the band in jail over the weekend, which strains things between Tommy and Bob. Nick observes that Tommy became jealous of Frankie's success and closeness with Bobby, and attempted to seduce Frankie's new girlfriend Lorraine. The two never confronted each other about it, but the old friendship was not what it used to be. When the loan shark approaches the band for the $150,000 owed by Tommy, Frankie approaches Gyp DeCarlo for help despite Tommy's insistence that he doesn't need it. ("Beggin'") The band, Gyp, and the loan shark come to agreement: Tommy is to be "sequestered" in Las Vegas where the mob can keep an eye on him, and the band will willingly cover all of Tommy's debts. The band continues for a while as a trio until Nick declares that he wants out. ("Stay/Let's Hang On!")

Winter

Frankie takes over narration, explaining that though he owes Tommy a great deal, he's aware that their relationship wasn't ideal, and he never understood why Nick decided to leave. Frankie and Bob find replacements to keep the band a quartet ("Opus 17 (Don't You Worry 'Bout Me)") until Bobby announces that he's never been comfortable in the spotlight and that Frankie should be a single, i.e. Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. In his personal life, Frankie's relationship with his daughter Francine is strained and he breaks up with girlfriend Lorraine. ("Bye, Bye, Baby (Baby, Goodbye)") Frankie continues to have success thanks to Bobby's songs, and hits jackpot with ("C'mon Marianne") and the almost-never-released ("Can't Take My Eyes Off You") which Bobby fights to get airplay for. Along with the success of "Working My Way Back to You", Frankie and Bobby finally finish paying off Tommy's debts, and Frankie's life is good until his daughter Francine dies from a drug overdose. ("Fallen Angel")

Finale

The final scene is The Four Seasons' 1990 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, announced by Bob Crewe and reuniting the original four members on stage one last time. ("Rag Doll") Each member takes a moment to address the audience one by one, explaining their pride of being with the band and what they did after. ("Who Loves You")

Charity

The West End cast of Jersey Boys appeared as a guest act for the Royal Variety Performance 2008, which was staged at the London Palladium on December 11 in the presence of senior members of the Royal family. The Royal Variety Performance is a gala event held annually at a major British theatre, to raise money for the Entertainment Artistes' Benevolent Fund. In 2010, The West End cast of Jersey Boys performed a show, with the profits going to Children In Need. The show ended with Pudsey Bear Joining in to sing a medley, and raised £60,150 for the charity. In 2009 the cast also appeared as a guest act for Children In Need.

Jersey Boys Chicago has been honored two years in a row at the Broadway Cares event for being the top fundraiser in the Tour category. In 2008, Jersey Boys Chicago raised $220,000 for BC/EFA.

Jersey Boys Broadway: For every ticket sold for every Broadway performance in the month of October 2010, $1 will be donated to the VH1 Save the Music Foundation. Jersey Boys aims to raise funds to restore one full music education program in a New York City school.

UPDATE: Jersey Boys, the Tony, Olivier and Grammy Award-winning international hit musical, has raised $43,521 to benefit New York Public Schools through the VH1 Save The Music Foundation. The money raised exceeds their goal, helping to restore the instrumental music education program at PS 85 in the Bronx and the additional funds will go toward a second VH1 Save The Music Foundation grant recipient school.

Cast

Original Broadway Cast

• Frankie Valli — John Lloyd Young
• Tommy DeVito — Christian Hoff
• Bob Gaudio — Daniel Reichard
• Nick Massi — J. Robert Spencer
• Bob Crewe — Peter Gregus
• Gyp DeCarlo — Mark Lotito
• Joe Pesci — Michael Longoria
• Norm Waxman — Donnie Kehr
• Hank Majewski — Steve Gouveia
• Barry Belson — Tituss Burgess
• Mary Delgado — Jennifer Naimo
• Lorraine — Erica Piccininni
• Francine — Sara Schmidt

Original London Cast

• Frankie Valli — Ryan Molloy
• Frankie Valli alternate — Scott Monello
• Bob Gaudio — Stephen Ashfield
• Tommy DeVito — Glenn Carter
• Nick Massi — Philip Bulcock
• Bob Crewe — Simon Adkins
• Gyp DeCarlo — Stuart Milligan
• Norm Waxman — Joseph Prouse
• Joe Pesci — Jye Frasca
• Barry Belson — Tee Jaye
• Donnie/Knuckles — Tom Lorcan
• Hank Majewski — Griffin Stevens
• Mary Delgado — Suzy Bastone
• Francine — Michelle Francis
• Lorraine — Amy Pemberton

Original Melbourne Cast

• Frankie Valli — Bobby Fox
• Frankie Valli (alternate) — Nick Simpson-Deeks
• Bob Gaudio — Stephen Mahy
• Tommy DeVito — Scott Johnson
• Nick Massi — Glaston Toft
• Bob Crewe — Daniel Scott
• Gyp DeCarlo — Enrico Mammarella
• Joe Pesci — Bernard Angel
• Mary Delgado — Lisa Adam
• Francine Valli — Katherine Rodriques
• Hank Majewski — Jeremy Brennan
• Norm Waxman — Paul Watson
• Barry Belson — Jason Te Patu

Original Chicago Cast

• Frankie Valli — Jarrod Spector
• Frankie Valli (alternate) — John Michael Dias
• Bob Gaudio — Drew Gehling
• Tommy DeVito — Jeremy Kushnier
• Nick Massi — Michael Ingersoll
• Bob Crewe — Craig Laurie
• Gyp DeCarlo — Jonathan Weir
• Joe Pesci — Steven Goldsmith
• Mary Delgado — Jenny Lee Stern
• Francine Valli — Lyndsey Cole
• Lorraine — Lauren Marshall
• Hank Majewski — Ryan Quinn West
• Norm Waxman — Dominic Bogart
• Barry Belson — Rashad Naylor

Original Las Vegas Cast

• Frankie Valli - Rick Faugno
• Frankie Valli (alternate) - Joseph Leo Bwarrie
• Bob Guadio - Erich Bergen
• Tommy DeVito - Jeremy Kushnier
• Nick Massi - Jeff Leibow
• Bob Crewe - John Salvatore
• Gyp DeCarlo - Ken Krugman
• Joe Pesci - Jonathan Rodriguez
• Mary Delgado - Joyce Chittick
• Francine - Natalie Bradshaw
• Lorraine - Julia Krohn
• Hank Majewski - Kristofer McNeeley
• Norm Waxman - Jason Martinez
• Barry Belson - Michael James Scott

Musical numbers

Act I

• "Ces Soirées-Là (Oh What a Night) - Paris, 2000" – French Rap Star Yannick and Backup Group
• "Silhouettes" – Tommy DeVito, Nick Massi, Nick DeVito and Frankie Castelluccio
• "You're the Apple of My Eye" – Tommy DeVito, Nick Massi and Nick DeVito
• "I Can't Give You Anything But Love" – Frankie Castelluccio
• "Earth Angel" – Tommy DeVito and Full Company
• "Sunday Kind of Love" – Frankie Valli, Tommy DeVito, Nick Massi and Nick's Date
• "My Mother's Eyes" – Frankie Valli
• "I Go Ape" – The Four Lovers
• "(Who Wears) Short Shorts" – The Royal Teens
• "I'm in the Mood for Love" / "Moody's Mood for Love" – Frankie Valli
• "Cry for Me" – Bob Gaudio, Frankie Valli, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi
• "An Angel Cried" – Hal Miller and The Rays
• "I Still Care" – Miss Frankie Nolan and The Romans
• "Trance" – Billy Dixon and The Topix
• "Sherry" – The Four Seasons
• "Big Girls Don't Cry" – The Four Seasons
• "Walk Like a Man" – The Four Seasons
• "December 1963 (Oh, What A Night)" – Bob Gaudio and Full Company
• "My Boyfriend's Back" – The Angels
• "My Eyes Adored You" – Frankie Valli, Mary Delgado and The Four Seasons
• "Dawn (Go Away)" – The Four Seasons
• "Walk Like a Man" (reprise) – Full Company

Act II

• "Big Man in Town" – The Four Seasons
• "Beggin'" – The Four Seasons
• "Stay" – Bob Gaudio, Frankie Valli and Nick Massi
• "Let's Hang On! (To What We've Got)" – Bob Gaudio and Frankie Valli
• "Opus 17 (Don't You Worry 'Bout Me)" – Bob Gaudio, Frankie Valli and The New Seasons
• "Bye Bye Baby" – Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons
• "C'mon Marianne" – Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons
• "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" – Frankie Valli
• "Working My Way Back to You" – Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons
• "Fallen Angel" – Frankie Valli
• "Rag Doll" – The Four Seasons
• "Who Loves You" – The Four Seasons and Full Company

Instrumentation

Jersey Boys requires a small orchestra. The original Broadway production had about nine musicians. The instrumentation requires three keyboards, guitar, bass, drums, two woodwind players, and trumpet. The first woodwind player doubles on alto and tenor sax, clarinet, flute, and oboe. The second part doubles on tenor and baritone sax, clarinet, and bass clarinet. The trumpet also doubles on flugelhorn.

Response

Ben Brantley of The New York Times wrote, "THE CROWD GOES WILD. I'm talking about the real, mostly middle-aged crowd at the August Wilson Theater, who seem to have forgotten what year it is or how old they are or, most important, that John Lloyd Young is not Frankie Valli. And everything that has led up to that curtain call feels, for just a second, as real and vivid as the sting of your hands clapping together."

Charles Spencer from The Daily Telegraph wrote: "Overpaid, over-sexed and over here, it will, I suspect be some time before London says Bye Bye Baby (Baby Goodbye) to the PHENOMENAL Jersey Boys." Benedict Nightingale from The Times said, “Oh What a Night. There were times when I felt that the performers were making even the Beatles sound somewhat lacking in musical texture." Quentin Letts from The Daily Mail said, "I must say I thoroughly enjoyed it. This is a big thumper of a show with fantastic songs."

Recording

An original cast recording was made by Rhino Entertainment, Jersey Boys: Original Broadway Cast Recording (Rhino R2 73271), released in November 2005, and won the Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album. In February 2008, the album was certified Gold, having sold more than 500,000 copies in the US. In October 2009, the cast album was certified Platinum, selling over 1,000,000 copies in the United States.

According to the Who's Who In The Cast section of the Playbill for the Las Vegas production of Jersey boys (www.playbill.com ),"Travis Cloer (Frankie Valli) can also be seen as Frankie Valli in the hit film "The Other Guys" with Will Ferrell & Mark Wahlberg." www.Playbill.com, April 1, 2011, p 9

Feature Film

On October 7, 2010, it was announced that GK Films had acquired the rights to produced the upcoming feature film version of Jersey Boys. GK Films will be partnering with Timothy Headington as producer, and Marshall Brickman and Rick Elise will be returning to write the script for the film. Frankie Valli and Bob Gaudio will both serve as executive producers.

Awards and nominations

Original Broadway production

Year	Award Ceremony	Category	Nominee	Result
2005	Drama Desk Award	Outstanding Musical		Nominated
		Outstanding Book of a Musical	Rick Elice and Marshall Brickman	Nominated
		Outstanding Actor in a Musical	John Lloyd Young	Won
		Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical	Christian Hoff	Nominated
			Daniel Reichard	Nominated
		Outstanding Choreography	Sergio Trujillo	Nominated
		Outstanding Director of a Musical	Des McAnuff	Nominated
		Outstanding Sound Design	Steve Canyon Kennedy	Won
	Drama League Award	Distinguished Production of a Musical		Won
		Performer of the Year	Christian Hoff	Nominated
			John Lloyd Young	Nominated
	Grammy Award	Best Musical Show Album		Won
	Outer Critics Circle Award	Outstanding Musical		Won
		Outstanding Actor in a Musical	John Lloyd Young	Won
		Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical	Christian Hoff	Nominated
		Outstanding Choreography	Sergio Trujillo	Nominated
		Outstanding Director of a Musical	Des McAnuff	Nominated
		Outstanding Lighting Design	Howell Binkley	Won
	Theatre World Award		John Lloyd Young	Won
	Tony Award	Best Musical		Won
		Best Book of a Musical	Rick Elice and Marshall Brickman	Nominated
		Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical	John Lloyd Young	Won
		Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical	Christian Hoff	Won
		Best Direction of a Musical	Des McAnuff	Nominated
		Best Orchestrations	Steve Orich	Nominated
		Best Scenic Design of a Musical	Klara Zieglerova	Nominated
		Best Lighting Design of a Musical	Howell Binkley	Won

Original London production

Year	Award Ceremony	Category	Nominee	Result
2008	Laurence Olivier Award	Best New Musical		Won
		Best Actor in a Musical	Ryan Molloy	Nominated
		Best Theatre Choreographer	Sergio Trujillo	Nominated
		Best Director	Des McAnuff	Nominated
		Best Sound Design	Steve Canyon Kennedy	Nominated
	WhatsOnStage.com Award	Best New Musical		Won
		Best Actor in a Musical	Ryan Molloy	Won
		Best Supporting Actor in a Musical	Stephen Ashfield	Won
		Best Set Design	Klara Zieglerova	Won

Original Chicago production

Year	Award Ceremony	Category	Nominee	Result
2009	Dora Award	Outstanding Production of a Musical		Nominated
		Outstanding Performance by a Male in a Principal Role	Jeremy Kushnier	Nominated
			Michael Lomenda	Nominated
			Jeff Madden	Won
			Quinn VanAntwerp	Nominated
		Outstanding Direction of a Musical	Des McAnuff	Won
		Outstanding Choreography	Sergio Trujillo	Nominated

Original Melbourne production

Year	Award Ceremony	Category	Nominee	Result
2010	Helpmann Award	Best Musical		Won
		Best Actor in a Musical	Bobby Fox	Nominated
		Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical	Scott Johnson	Nominated
		Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical	Lisa Adam	Nominated
		Best Direction of a Musical	Des McAnuff	Nominated
		Best Choreography	Sergio Trujillo	Nominated
		Best Music Direction	Ron Melrose	Won
		Best Scenic Design	Klara Zieglerova and Michael Clark	Nominated
		Best Lighting Design	Howell Binkley	Nominated
		Best Sound Design	Steve Canyon Kennedy	Nominated

References

• Dennehy, Luke (2009-01-03). "The Boys are on song". Sunday Herald Sun: p. 95. 

External links

• Jersey Boys at the Internet Broadway Database
• Official Jersey Boys Website
• Official Broadway Website
• Official Broadway Ticketing Website
• Official Tour Website
• Official London Website

• Official Sydney Website
• Official Vegas Website
• Official Ticketing Website – General Ticketing
• Jersey Boys Blog