This isn’t a sponsored post.
BrumHour was invited to see Jersey Boys by Wolverhampton Grand.
By David Fox twitter.com/DavidFoxTheatre
Review: Jersey Boys at Wolverhampton Grand
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐”Truly fantastic”
Directed by Des McAnuff, book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, music by Bob Gaudio and lyrics by Bob Crewe
Jersey Boys – The Tony, Grammy and Olivier Award-Winning Best Musical returns to Wolverhampton’s Grand Theatre as part of a major UK tour. You know the story: Frankie Valli, Bob Gaudio, Nick Massi, and Tommy Devito, – four guys from New Jersey who got together to form a band, sang in the most perfect harmonies and became a mega-sensation!
Off stage, life was not so harmonious and this musical charts the ups and downs of their careers and personal lives – from the streets of New Jersey to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
You know the hits, and this musical is full of them! Big Girls Don’t Cry, Walk Like a Man, Can’t Take My Eyes Off You, Sherry, December 1963 (Oh What a Night!) and many, many others from the legendary band’s back catalogue. There were so many songs I had forgotten The Four Seasons had recorded – one of my favourite parts was ‘Dawn, Go Away‘ toward the end of the first act – which stayed in my head for the rest of the night!
The cast of Jersey Boys were amazing – polished performances and truly talented singers. Blair Gibson as Bob Gaudio, Dan O’Brien as Nick Massi (for this performance), Dalton Wood as Tommy Devito, and Michael Pickering as Frankie Valli. Wood and Gibson were fantastic as Devito and Gaudio narrating the story and evoking sympathy when getting involved with New Jersey’s criminal underworld on one hand and writing a string of number-one hits on the other. Credit has to go, of course, to Pickering who does an amazing job of mimicking Frankie Valli’s distinctive voice and bringing the songs to life!
I really liked the simple yet dynamic set and clever use of video backdrop to evoke different scenes – nightclub, recording studio, concert, TV studio, and the rapid set changes were smooth, slick, and professional – clearly, this production is meticulously timed and rehearsed. It was also quite a moment when the boys turn and see the sign that gives them their name and become the Four Seasons we know and love.
At times the production certainly shows the dark side of 1960s New Jersey (think Mafia and The Sopranos) and so comes with a warning: “Jersey Boys Contains genuine New Jersey language which may not be suitable for younger audiences – parental guidance advised.” That said however the story is at times dark and gritty, at others exciting and funny – a real-life fairy story of success, and the problems fame and fortune bring.
This musical is truly fantastic – entertaining, funny and containing great songs. You can’t help but sing along. If you have never seen Jersey Boys before, you are in for a treat. If you have seen it before, go and see it again!
Jersey Boys is at Wolverhampton Grand until 18th March. Book tickets here: grandtheatre.co.uk/whats-on/jersey-boys.
