November 21, 2007

What Happens in San Francisco, Stays in Las Vegas!

November 21st, 2007

By Cathi Aradi, Jersey Boys Blog Special Correspondent

Jersey Boys fans got their first look at the Las Vegas company when the show opened in preview mode in San Francisco on Tuesday night, Nov. 20th. Just before the lights went down, director Des McAnuff came out on stage to welcome everyone, introduce the show and let everyone know that this was preview week. He smilingly told the audience that if there were any “train wrecks” we’d–in effect–get to see how they fix them.

Rick Faugno, who plays Frankie Valli, has been the alternate Frankie with the Sherry Tour for some time, so he is a veteran. Lauren Tartaglia, who played Lorraine in Tuesday’s show, and is also the Dance Captain, has been a swing with the Sherry Tour. However, the rest of the cast is new to San Francisco–though Jeff Leibow, “Nick Massi”, is an area native who attended UC Davis.

As with all new Jersey Boys productions, there will be a few kinks to work out–that’s why they do previews! But there were no “train wrecks” of any kind, just wild applause and a standing ovation at the end of the performance. Happy fans who were new to the show lined up afterwards to buy JB CD’s and tee shirts and left humming all the familiar tunes.

After the theater cleared, the cast had “notes” with Des McAnuff, but the die-hard fans who waited at the stage door eventually got the chance to meet and greet the new “stars” who were only too happy to sign programs and pose for pictures. I’m sure they’ll be doing this for many performances to come. The official opening night in San Francisco is Dec. 1st, and the show is currently scheduled to run through Dec. 30th. It’s due to open in Las Vegas in April.

Thank you again to Cathi Aradi for amazing coverage of last night’s Jersey Boys’ Holiday Engagement SF performance!

2 Comments »

  1. Great article and fun first nite. Long wait for the cast to come out but well worth it. How can I add my picture with Rick, which turned out great with the JB signs and marquis lights to the slide show?

    Comment by goodkarmasf — November 21, 2007 @ 9:18 pm

  2. You can email the picture to: [email protected] and we’ll be glad to add it to the slide show. Thanks!

    Comment by Administrator — November 21, 2007 @ 9:29 pm

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