Jersey Boys Blog

By Lauren Avila, Jersey Boys Blog Special Correspondent

This week the Chicago cast of Jersey Boys were all over the map like a cockroach. Starting on Saturday, June 28th at the Taste of Chicago in Grant Park, many gathered to see the World’s Biggest Cheesecake. A few prizes were given away to those who knew trivia regarding the cheesecake and Jersey Boys. Guess who the celebrity cake-cutters were? John Michael Coppola, John Hickman, Jake Speck, Tonya Wathen, and John Michael Dias! They sang Happy Birthday in honor of Eli’s Cheesecake and Taste of Chicago and then took the first slice into the 2000lb cheesecake!
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On Sunday, June 29th Broadway In Chicago participated in the Gay Pride Parade in Northern Chicago. Wicked, Mamma Mia, and Jersey Boys represented the Chicago theatre scene. Jersey Boys Production Stage Manager Larry Baker, along with other Broadway In Chicago staff and volunteers stood in support on the float.
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Crowds were entertained with the Broadway In Chicago “Concert in the Park” at the Petrillo Music Shell on Monday, June 30th. It was a showcase of Broadway’s biggest hits starring performers from Wicked, Dirty Dancing, Grease, Spring Awakening, A Chorus Line, Legally Blonde the Musical, and Jersey Boys! The event was hosted by ABC7’s Janet Davies and Wicked’s very own Wizard, Gene Weygandt. Jenny DiNoia and Annaleigh Ashford who play Elphaba and Glinda from Wicked sang “The Wizard and I,” “Popular,” and “For Good.” Karen Burthwright and Kent Sheridan from Dirty Dancing (which will soon have it’s pre-Broadway engagement in Chicago) pleased the audience with familiar songs: “Do You Love Me?” and “(I’ve Had) The Time Of My Life.” Then Derek Keeling of Grease: You’re The One That I Want fame, got everyone dancing the “Hand Jive.” Gerard Canonico and Emma Hunton sang as Moritz and Ilse from Spring Awakening with “Don’t Do Sadness/Blue Wind.” From A Chorus Line, Jenifer Foote as her character, Val, sang “Dance: 10, Looks: 3.” Also, Becky Gulsvig who will play Elle Woods when Legally Blonde the Musical comes to Chicago delivered a strong performance of “So Much Better.”

Jarrod Spector, Drew Gehling, Jake Speck, and Michael Ingersoll thrilled the theatre fans with a wonderful medley: Sherry/Walk Like A Man/Big Girls Don’t Cry/Bye, Bye, Baby. Mike Erickson, Rashad Naylor, and Steven M. Goldsmith accompanied Jarrod on stage for “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You.” Finally, the Chicago cast of Jersey Boys closed the show with “Who Loves You,” and the “Oh What A Night” reprise. The crowd went wild and the show came to an end. The event was a hit!
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As for the show, it is still going very strong. “Phenomenal!” “Amazing!” “Unbelievable!” are comments that continue to buzz in the theatre during and after the show. People are pining for tickets outside the theatre everyday and singing along to the songs every night. Success remains to be the ongoing fate for the company in Chicago. Also with new additions to the cast: Bryan McElroy, Michelle Knight, Tonya Wathen, and Alayna Gallo, it seems this show will keep going and going and going for as long as theatre-goers will keep them at their newly named residence, the Bank of America Theatre.