‘Jersey Boys’ Rocks NSMT

Reviewed by Tony Annicone

The latest blockbuster musical at Bill Hanney’s NSMT is the 2006 Tony Award winning musical “Jersey Boys”, about the lives and career of the pop group, The Four Seasons. The Broadway show opened on November 6, 2005 and ran until January 15, 2017 after 4,642 performances. The show is set in the 1950’s to a dozen classic rock tunes by Bob Gaudio and Bob Crewe. Authors Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice wrote a book from the real life stories of the original Four Seasons, Frankie Valli (Castelluchio), Tommy DeVito, Nick Massi and Bob Gaudio. They started out as four thugs, but could also sing fabulously. They seemed to get along for many years but then hidden secrets emerge including gambling debts to loan sharks that had to be paid off or else. It became a totally different story because through all the adversities they became one of the greatest successes in pop music history.

Director/choreographer Kevin Hill and musical director Milton Granger create a sensational Las Vegas style musical entertainment that is a winner. Jonathan Moussett Alonso who plays Frankie Valli, gets a standing ovation during the show when he sings “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” which became his highest grossing song ever. Their combined expertise wins the whole cast a standing ovation at the end of the show. “Jersey Boys” leaves the audience cheering this cast who deliver an exuberant and thrilling performance. This is definitely one of the must see show of the summer season.

Hill directs the cast splendidly, eliciting high energy performances from the well-drawn characters, and gives each of them their moment to shine in this show. The power of this cast makes you feel as if you are at the actual performance of The Four Seasons. Hill’s magnificent choreography shines through in each and every number. The musical direction by Milton Grainger is also spectacular with his 10 piece orchestra. The dancing is breathtaking and performed in perfect unison by the talented 15 member cast. I have been reviewing Kevin since he directed “Hello, Dolly” at Theatre by the Sea in 2010 and just when you think he can’t top his previous show, he tops it every time. He sometimes doesn’t get the credit he so richly deserves. The incredible two story revolving set by Kyle Dixon is magnificent as are the neon signs of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. The multitude of gorgeous costumes are by Dana Pinkston and especially impressive are the Four Seasons outfits. Bill Hanney spares no expense in bringing this Broadway style production to the enthusiastic audiences of the North Shore. The harmonic sound of the Four Seasons is absolute perfection.

The Four Seasons are excellently played by Jonathan Mousett Alonso as Frankie Valli, Luke Hamilton as Bob Gaudio, Alex Puette as Nick Massi and Andres Acosta as Tommy DeVito. The show consists of vignettes about how the boys met, their shady dealings along the way and finally how the group came into being with Tommy DeVito taking all the credit constantly. The show is written with each of the Four Season’s narrating it and letting the audience observe it from their point of view. Andres narrates the first half of Act 1 while Luke narrates the second half of it. This musical finally comes alive and gets the crowd cheering when they finally transform themselves into the Four Seasons. Their first big hit was “Sherry” then “Big Girls Don’t Cry” and their third hit was “Walk Like a Man.” The harmonies soar in all these numbers.

We learn that most of all that they are flawed human beings with incredible talent. Alex narrates the first half of Act 2 while Jonathan narrates the second half. When a mobster appears it’s revealed that Tommy had a gambling problem which almost bankrupted the group by putting them in debt for over a million dollars. Shortly thereafter, we learn Nick had a drinking problem and quits the group. Then Bob decides he only wants to write and produce for Frankie and not perform anymore. Frankie continues to perform to pay off the debt on and becomes the front man for the new Four Seasons. Years later they finally reunite at the Record Hall of Fame in Nashville for a final and poignant farewell.

Jonathan runs the gamut of emotions in this role playing both comic and dramatic moments perfectly. His comic moments include “I Can’t Give You Anything But Love” when Tommy hires him as well as when learning to become a hoodlum and have sex with women. Jonathan has many solos but his dramatic ones are  “My Eyes Adored You”, a heart breaking number in Act 1 when he gets divorced from his wife, Mary Delgado and “Fallen Angel”, a tear jerking song about the loss his beloved daughter, Francine in Act 2 who died from a drug overdose. Keep your eye on this actor because he’s definitely got star quality. Luke as Bob displays his strong acting ability by keeping his eye on the goal of being successful without robbing stores and being a hoodlum. He gets to sing “Oh What a Night” which stops the show with power and punch. Luke delivers a strong and commanding stage presence in this role. His meltdown when he gets arrested in Ohio for the first time since Tommy didn’t pay the $120 bill is stunning to behold and it signals the Four Seasons are headed for their eventual break up. Luke originally hails from Calgary, Canada and makes New York City his home with his lovely wife.

Alex does a great job in the role of Nick who doesn’t get to talk much until his narration scene because Tommy is a big mouth who runs roughshod over him. Alex’s most comic moment comes when he reveals Tommy is a slob and his description stops the show with laughter.  He also tells a poignant story about leaving his children and pretending to be their uncle at the end of the show. It also leaves a lump in your throat as he leaves the stage after Frankie says Nick passed away on Christmas Day in 2000. Andres shines as Tommy who discovers Frankie, taught him how to steal and break into banks. He also takes $150 while paying Frankie a pittance of $12 a gig when they first start out. Andres captures the overbearing attitude and domineering personality when he commands the others to do his bidding. He makes Tommy into a three dimensional character with his strong acting ability. His final speech when he explains to the audience he was a prick and took advantage of the others is very well done. This is Andres third show at NSMT, having appeared previously in “Saturday Night Fever” in 2015 and “Evita” in 2017.

The other performers all play multiple roles in this show. Some of the comic roles include Alaina Mills as Mary Delgado, a tough brunette who is Frankie’s first girlfriend and also gives him the stage name of Valli,  (she returns to NSMT having played Gertie in “Oklahoma” in June) Barry Anderson as the gay Bob Crewe who produced their early recordings and has an hilarious fit about getting airtime for “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You” near the end of the show which won much laughter and applause, (He played this role on Broadway and in the National Tour for six years.) Josh Greenblatt plays Joe Pesce, who introduces Bob Gaudio to the other boys to form The Four Seasons, (A comic moment occurs when Tommy tells the crowd he now works for Pesce, who he treated like dirt when they were younger), Luke Darnell as Gyp DeCarlo, a loan shark who wants Frankie to sing “My Mother’s Eyes”  and also takes Frankie under his wing, Michael Allan Haggerty as Norman Waxman, a loan shark who demands that Tommy pay off his $150,000 debt and David LaMarr as a cop from Ohio who arrests the boys for skipping out on a $120 hotel bill from the year before, and asks for Frankie’s autograph only to have them thrown into jail anyway. (David also does a scat section during the last song of the show.) So for a rip roaring sure fire hit musical extravaganza, be sure to catch “Jersey Boys” at North Shore Music Theatre. It will leave you dancing and singing in the aisles after you give it a well-deserved standing ovation at the close of the night. It is a definite nostalgic night for those folks that grew up with The Four Seasons. The show runs for four weeks and the first two weeks are sold out. So run do not walk to the box office before they completely sell out the entire run. Next year shows include “Mamma Mia”, “Thoroughly Modern Millie”, “The Buddy Holly Show” and “Kinky Boots” to name four of the five!

JERSEY BOYS (6 August to 1 September)

North Shore Music Theatre, 62 Dunham Road, Beverly, MA

1(978)232-7200 or www.nsmt.org