Jersey Boys Blog

By Lauren Avila, Jersey Boys Blog Special Correspondent

San Francisco saw the end of Jersey Boys’ 10-month run last weekend. September 29th was Jarrod Spector’s last show at the Curran Theatre. He did a marvelous job and was very well-praised for it! The entire show was a spectacular hit, with one thunderous round of applause after another. There were extra laughs and deeper sentiment as the cast put on one of their very best performances. At the stage door that night, each cast member was greeted with admiration and affection from new and “regular” fans alike. Jarrod Spector exited the stage door to cheering and applause from the group.

September 30th was the closing show. The house was packed for this emotional farewell. The Playbills acknowledged this special show, marking the end after 348 performances. Fans were out in full force for the last performance, with obvious recognition and applause as each character appeared on stage. John Michael Dias was on as Frankie Valli for the matinee. Along with him, were Jeremy Kushnier, Drew Gehling, and Michael Ingersoll, all of whom seemed grateful for the jubilant standing ovation after “Walk Like A Man.” There was an amazing feeling in the theater as the audience embraced this cast. “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” was a major success once again. The patrons were very expressive when the “whole horn section” entered and there was a deeply poignant standing ovation at the end. “Rag Doll” was a pivotal moment in the show beginning with a touching applause and an extra round after Tommy said “…this is from the people!” Michael Ingersoll and Craig Laurie both received a great wave of affection after their characters had their individual, notorious outbursts. Plus, the ending monologues were perfect!

There was a standing ovation from the end of “Who Loves You” all the way through the musicians’ exiting solos. The crowd went wild for every single cast member, especially our four main guys. Jonathan Smith, our conductor, and the band also received a huge amount of gratitude. Don Bleu from STAR 101.3 came out on stage after curtain call and announced what everyone had been hoping to hear: Jersey Boys is returning for a special holiday run from November 20th to December 30th! Tickets for Opening Night of the limited engagement were awarded to four lucky audience members. Everyone in attendance was gifted with souvenir “Jersey Boys” BART card holders too. For both shows, the audience remained and listened to the band before leaving the theatre, and even cast members such as Drew Gehling looked on.

The stage door was crazy! There was an enormous crowd all waiting to say goodbye to this incredible cast. They are doing well and seem ready for all the success they’ll surely be welcomed with in Chicago. Meanwhile, I was fortunate to meet fellow Jersey Boys’ fan, Mama Lucy, after this show. The stars were in alignment! Anyway, the cast appear excited to open in Chicago and San Francisco wishes them the very best!

Photos featured in this slide show were taken at the stage door on September 30, 2007. Thank you to the cast members for posing and sorry to the cast members I missed.

Thanks once again to Jersey Boys Blog for the pleasure of writing for you. Thank you to this amazing cast and crew for their time, talent, and kindness. Special thanks to Mama Lucy for saying “hi” as well!

Thank you to JBB Special Correspondent Lauren Avila for her amazing Jersey Boys’ coverage during their San Francisco run!