Click HERE to watch a fun video clip of the JERSEY BOYS second national tour’s interview with Fox45 in Dayton. In addition to chatting about the hit show, the guys show off their bowling skills.
Talk about a marvelous morning surprise–Jersey Boys Broadway’s Four Seasons–Matt Bogart, Andy Karl, Jarrod Spector, and Quinn VanAntwerp–performing on “Imus in the Morning” on FOX Business TV!
Veda Jo Jenkins provides a terrific recap of the JERSEY BOYS first national tour production in Ft. Lauderdale and notes that the show takes you behind the scenes into the lives of legendary pop stars. Below is a preview:
Since I mostly review live concerts I’ve often wondered if the passion and happiness we see on the stage from performers continues off stage. We, the audience, assume this life of fame and money leads to a trouble-free, easy-going life, but at what price? Truth is, any career we choose to pursue affects all areas of our life and these are the sacrifices we make for the choices we’ve made. So what really happens once the band leaves the stage?The musical Jersey Boys now playing at the Broward Center gives you that insight. Watching the cast reenact situations that occurred in the lives of Valli, Tommy Devito, Nick Massi and Bob Gaudio — the original members of the Four Seasons — you can’t help but be drawn into the drama. Seeing it unfurl on stage makes it seem so much more personal than just reading about it. I was so taken in I shed a tear for Valli when he lost his daughter, but I don’t want to give any more away. This is a musical you just need to see especially if you plan to see him in concert in March.
I guarantee if you see Jersey Boys and then Frankie Valli in concert you will feel a personal bond with the man and admire his determination and ambition over all these years. The only thing the musical doesn’t tell me is how Valli feels today, at the age of 77, singing these songs that are full of emotions and memories.
Visit PBPulse.com to read the full article.
The 2011 BroadwayWorld Las Vegas Award winners were announced this evening with great news for JERSEY BOYS! JB Las Vegas won in the following categories:
Congratulations to the JERSEY BOYS Las Vegas Company, to Deven, and to Sarah!
For full results, visit BroadwayWorld.com.
The Jersey Girls of the 2nd National Tour: Natalie Gallo, Ruby Lewis, and Kaleigh Cronin (Photo Credit: Dayton City Paper)
Brian P. Sharp of the Dayton City Paper has a terrific feature on the three actresses who play over 50 roles in the second national tour JERSEY BOYS company. Here’s a preview:
So, who are these three women — these three women behind the men we know as the Jersey Boys? We’ve heard it before … it’s the woman behind the man. Well in this case, it’s three women behind the men, and those three women play over 50 roles in the production of Jersey Boys now on stage at The Schuster Center through February 5, 2012.I had the opportunity to meet these three amazing young women backstage … in a “quick change” room that measures approximately 8 x 8. Just imagine … three women, six dressers and three hair stylists working feverishly to get these actresses in and out of costumes and changing hair styles, sometimes all at the same time — in split seconds — in only a 64 square foot space! Most women and some men (if they admit it) need more room than that on a daily basis. But … the show must go on … and while there is an amazing show on stage, there’s a whole different show backstage getting these women in and out of character. It’s a show within the show!
These women are truly busy — Ruby Lewis plays over 19 roles including Francine, Frankie Valli’s daughter. Kaleigh Cronin plays over 18 roles including Lorraine, Frankie Valli’s girlfriend, and Natalie Gallo plays over 11 roles including Mary Delgado, Frankie Valli’s wife.
Visit DaytonCityPaper.com to read the entire story.
JERSEY BOYS Broadway grossed $915,982 and had a 92.2% attendance rate for the week ending January 22, 2012. The 28 shows on the boards grossed $19,345,315, slipping 6% from the previous week’s totals.
Below are the Top 10 Grosses from BroadwayWorld.com for the week ending January 22, 2012.
Check out a preview of the first fantastic review of the JERSEY BOYS second national tour production in Dayton by Brian Woody:
It’s reminiscent of a VH1: Behind the Music special, presented live on stage as ‘Jersey Boys’ gives a revealing look into the creation of the Four Seasons. Under all the highs of hit singles were the struggles of deceit, over zealous leadership, gambling debts and more. It all results in a tremendous show with the energy of a rock concert mixed with the drama of a heart pulling musical. ‘Jersey Boys’ continues at the Schuster Center through February 5.‘Jersey Boys’ will leave you saying, “Oh, What a Night,” and the tune will be in your head for days after. Don’t miss this spectacular show which runs through February 5 at the Schuster Center
Visit Examiner.com to read the entire review.
The JERSEY BOYS second national tour production runs in Dayton from January 17 through February 5 at the Schuster Center in downtown Dayton. Dayton City Paper’s theatre critic Brian Sharp had the opportunity to talk to Colby Foytik who plays Tommy DeVito. According to Foytik this was one of his dream roles. He says “DeVito is the guy you love to hate – a wonderful character.” Below is a preview:
Foytik, who was born in southern California, spent most of his youth interested in music – playing the saxophone – not in theatre. After high school he attended one year of college and then had the opportunity to get into theatre. Wanting to build a resume he took roles in shows in southern California. Foytik says “nothing fulfilled me as much as being on stage.” Knowing that he wanted to perfect his craft – he enrolled in Ithaca College and received his BFA in musical theatre – graduating in 1999. He moved to New York in August of that same year. He was a non-Equity actor so he took a regional role in Sleeping Beauty that rehearsed at Radio City Music Hall but performed in Virginia. For the next ten years he did regional, summer stock, off-Broadway, cruise ships and even performed in Russia. Then he settled in Cleveland and heard about an audition for the national tour of Fiddler on the Roof. While he felt he was probably just auditioning for a chorus/villager role…he was cast as Perchik. He toured for nearly a year and a half and had the opportunity to work with the likes of Topol, and Harvey Fierstein in the role of Tevye. The Fiddler on the Roof tour was a tough one says Foytik – each of the runs were about one week long – meaning your only day off became a travel day.JERSEY BOYS is a much different kind of tour. Each of the runs lasts three weeks or longer, which allows the cast a little bit of time to get to know the city during their “golden days” – also known as days off.
When asked about his favorite roles – Foytik named three. “George” in Sunday in the Park with George – “Jamie” in The Last Five Years – and this role “Tommy DeVito” in Jersey Boys.
Visit DaytonCityPaper.com to read the full feature.
Preston Truman Boyd (Photo Credit: Broadway.com)
Preston Truman Boyd, who plays Bob Gaudio in the JERSEY BOYS first national tour, gave Braodway.com a peek at his dressing room to see what his must-haves are to “walk like a man” in the hit show.
Here’s a preview: Preston said, “Jersey Boys is full of singing; it’s a vocally heavy show, so it’s important to be healthy. To stay on top of an eight-show week, a cup of tea, some great snacks and vitamin C go a long way.”
Visit Broadway.com to find out more of Preston’s “must haves” in his dressing room.
Marshall Brickman & Rick Elice (Photo Credit: Walter McBride)
Metro’s T. Michelle Murphy has a terrific interview with Marshall Brickman & Rick Elice, who chat about the process of co-writing the book of JERSEY BOYS. Below is a preview:
So how did this collaboration get started?
Elice: A friend of mine had the rights to the catalog of Four Seasons songs, and [he] said, ‘How would you like to write a musical about Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons?’ … I said, ‘You mean the guy with the really high voice?’ He started rattling off these songs titles, all of which I knew, but never associating them with the same group. And he sent me a compilation CD set of all their stuff. I said, ‘Marshall Brickman and I’ve been looking to write something.’ … Not only had we not worked together, but neither of us had ever written a Broadway musical. So I said, ‘Send me the songs, I’ll go over to Marshall and we’ll see what can happen.’
And I went over to Marshall’s apartment, and we went over the songs. And the early songs, the real bubblegum songs, the first flush of their success, are really similar. Over the course of the life of the group, the music begins to change [and] the arrangements become more sophisticated. There’s a style that is separate from other groups of the time. “The Four Seasons” and “The Beach Boys” were the only two American groups that survived The British Invasion in the ‘60s. And then there was one of their big hits, but it was a Frankie Valli solo song, “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You.”
Click HERE to read the whole interview with the guys behind the JERSEY BOYS story.
Ft. Lauderdale loves THE BOYS! Check out excerpts from the two latest rave reviews for JB at the Broward Center:
Roger Martin, MiamiMagazine.com: Good heavens, what are you going to say when you see a show in which everything is as good as or better than you expected? How about, “Fabulous, darling”. “Terrific.” “Truly professional.”
The list could be pretty much endless. If you’re talking about Jersey Boys at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, that is. Click HERE to read the entire review.
Phyllis Green, ENV Magazine: But it wasn’t just the songs; the story of the highs and lows of traveling on the road, the accusations, getting along with each other, plus their own personal lives, interwoven through compelling narratives told by each of the principals, created a plot that held together in riveting fashion. The highlighted scene for this writer comes late in the first act when Frankie and his wife cannot stay together; she exits up the small circular staircase, leaving him alone on the stage to chant the lilting “My Eyes Adored You”. Ciick HERE for the full review.
From BroadwayWorld.com: The New York Times is the first to report today that producers of Peter and the Starcatcher, the acclaimed new American play, written by JERSEY BOYS co-author and Tony Award nominee Rick Elice, have announced that the show will open this Spring at Broadway’s Brooks Atkinson Theater, with previews beginning on on March 28 and opening on April 15.
No casting has yet been announced, though it’s expected that due to SMASH, Christian Borle is unlikely to reprise his role, while Adam Chanler-Berat is expected to do so.
Addition to Elice as writer, the play is directed by Tony Award-winner Roger Rees and Drama Desk Award-winner and Tony Award nominee Alex Timbers (Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson). It is based on The New York Times best selling Disney-Hyperion novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, Peter and the Starcatcher will be produced on Broadway by Nancy Nagel Gibbs and Greg Schaffert.
In this innovative and imaginative new play, a company of twelve actors plays some 50 characters, all on a journey to answer the century-old question: How did Peter Pan become The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up? This epic origin story of one of popular culture’s most enduring and beloved characters proves that an audience’s imagination can be the most captivating place in the world.
Peter and the Starcatcher opened to rave reviews last March in its premiere Off Broadway at New York Theatre Workshop. The sold out run was extended by popular demand and set a record for the highest grossing single day in NYTW’s history. The production went on to receive five Drama Desk nominations (and a win for Outstanding Music in a Play); two Obie Awards (for Direction and Design) and two Lucille Lortel Awards (for Outstanding Lead Actor and Outstanding Choreography).
Congratulations to Rick on this exciting news!
From WSVN, FORT LAUDERDALE: A South Floridian cast member is back in town as ‘Jersey Boys’ hits the stage in Fort Lauderdale.
Miami native Mauricio Perez is among the cast of the Tony Award winning musical ‘Jersey Boys,’ now showing at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts in Fort Lauderdale.
Perez is the back-up for Frankie Valli and three other characters in the musical. “I’m so happy to be here. I’ve been on the road four months now with the show,” said Perez.
But he isn’t necessarily guaranteed to be on stage. “If anything happens to anyone during the show, has to leave or anything, I jump in or if anyone gets sick one day, I jump in.”
Other cast members are excited to bring the show down to warm South Florida. “Miami in January, and I’m a Torontonian,” said Michael Lomenda who plays Nick Massi. “Come on, I can’t get much better than this.”
The show is about rock ‘n’ roll hall of famers Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons features songs from the sixties that are still popular today.
According to cast members, the music isn’t the only thing spectacular about the show. “The music’s great, but I think the story is what makes this thing as fabulous as it is,” said Preston Truman Boyd who plays Bob Guardio.
‘Jersey Boys’ runs at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts until Jan. 23.
Read more: http://www.wsvn.com/news/articles/local/21006402707250/local-cast-in-jersey-boys-comes-to-south-florida/#ixzz1joypU1qv
BroadwayWorld.com’s Beau Higgins sings some of the highest praises for the JERSEY BOYS first national tour production at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts. Check out this sneak peek to his rave review:
JERSEY BOYS demonstrates what a juke box musical can be when all the stars align just right and all the professionals are at the top of their game. The audience at the Broward Center last night received JERSEY BOYS with the wildest pandemonium, seemingly endless cheering, and simply bravo’d the show within an inch of its life. Oh, What A Night, as one of the classic Four Seasons songs of JERSEY BOYS sings. Oh, what a night, to say the least. Anyone able to attend JERSEY BOYS and misses it, does so at their own risk. JERSEY BOYS is one of the greatest musicals of anyone’s lifetime.
Visit Broadwayworld.com to read more about why Higgins “triple loves” JERSEY BOYS!
For the third week in January, JERSEY BOYS Broadway grossed $960,761 with an 88.7% attendance rate. The 29 shows on the boards grossed $20,901,347,
slipping 8% for the previous box office week totals
Below are the Top 10 Grosses from BroadwayWorld.com for the week ending January 15, 2012.
Posts Via RSS:
