[The Free Lance-Star] ‘‘An enjoyable ‘Jersey Boys’ takes the stage at Riverside”

GAIL CHOOCHAN - The Free Lance-Star

January 25, 2024

“Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Walk Like A Man,” “Bye Bye Baby” — we’ve all heard these classic songs by the Four Seasons either on the radio, in a commercial or in a movie. Or perhaps for a lucky number of you, live in concert.

However, behind those breezy popular hits was a lot of hustling, hard work, determination and drama. “Jersey Boys,” now playing at Riverside Center for the Performing Arts, charts the successes and struggles of this iconic pop-rock group while also ramping up the nostalgia with an endless parade of musical numbers.

Jukebox musicals come and go, but “Jersey Boys” is one of the best of the bunch having won four Tony Awards (including best musical) and making the rounds around the world almost 20 years later after its Broadway debut. And by the looks of Sunday’s matinee performance at Riverside, the Four Seasons with singing legend Frankie Valli is still charming audiences.

The musical is packed with smash hits, including 'Sherry,' 'Big Girls Don't Cry,' 'Walk Like a Man' and 'December 1963 (Oh What a Night).'

SUZANNE CARR ROSSI

Wonderfully directed and choreographed by Patti D’Beck, “Jersey Boys” has assembled a fine group of triple-threat performers. Making his Riverside debut as frontman Frankie Valli is Gian Raffaele DiCostanzo, with Calvin Malone as lead guitarist Tommy DeVito, Cooper Shaw as bassist Nick Massi and Jarrett Bloom as songwriter/keyboardist Bob Gaudio (who was instrumental in turning the Four Seasons story into a musical).

With a book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, “Jersey Boys” follows these four distinctive personalities and gives each of them the opportunity to share their perspective when it’s their time to narrate. Frank Foster is behind the show’s sleek staging, complemented by Mike Jarett’s dynamic lighting and projection design and snazzy show looks by Erin Welsh.

Organized into “seasons,” the musical delves into the messier side of the band’s roller coaster ride to fame — the infighting among members, the brushes with the mob and the law, and strained family relationships. “Jersey Boys” doesn’t go too heavy with the drama and keeps things light and fun and moving along. (A note to those with delicate ears, the show does contain some strong language.)

As the Four Seasons, the actors portraying them bring a lot of personality into their characters and their voices harmonize beautifully. It’s lovely when the members all come together and find their groove or shimmy in unison.

DiCostanzo is impressive as the singer with the famously piercing falsetto, that makes both the ladies and the crime bosses weak in the knees. He believably conveys the impressionable teen singer’s transformation into a bonafide superstar.

Malone makes a strong Tommy DeVito, a tough-talking hustler who takes a young Frankie Castelluccio under his wing and teaches him a thing or two about women and the music world. While Tommy takes his bandmates through some pretty rough patches, he’s thinking about them and always delivers.

Shaw is wonderfully cast as Nick Massi, the brooding bassist who often wonders if he should start his own group. Opposite of the motormouth Tommy, he is more quiet and reserved, so it’s a fun moment when Nick unleashes years’ worth of pent-up frustration on his frequent and terrible roomie.

The final piece of the Four Seasons is songwriting wunderkind Bob Gaudio, perfectly played by Bloom. Gaudio, who first made it big with “Short Shorts” at age 15, immediately hooks in the three guys — and audiences — when he starts playing at the piano. And when Bloom starts singing “Cry for Me” with such vigor and clarity, and the others join in, everything else is history.

'Jersey Boys' charts the successes and struggles of the legendary pop-rock group.

SUZANNE CARR ROSSI

While “Jersey Boys” focuses on the band’s journey, it also features a few women who helped them along the way, specifically Frankie. Elizabeth C. Butler and Sarah Andersen both turn in strong performances as Valli’s outspoken first wife Mary and loving girlfriend reporter Lorraine. Mary, with whom Frankie had two daughters, convinced the singer to change his stage name Vally to Valli (needs to end with a vowel, more Italian).

The Four Seasons may have started with four guys singing other people’s songs under a street lamp in Belleville, New Jersey, but their reach goes far and wide and crosses generations, as the musical begins with the French rap star Yannick singing “Ces soirées-là (Oh What a Night)” in Paris in 2000. More recent is the group’s irresistibly catchy “Beggin’,” sung by the Italian rock band Måneskin. And who could forget Heath Ledger’s swoon-worthy performance of Valli’s “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You” in the 1999 teen rom-com “10 Things I Hate About You.”

“Beggin’” and “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You” are two of the musical’s biggest crowd-pleasers.

The Angels, the Four Seasons opening act, perform the 1963 hit song 'My Boyfriend’s Back.'

SUZANNE CARR ROSSI

Conductor Carson Eubank and the seven-piece orchestra superbly takes audiences through the band’s lengthy discography, along with a few non-Four Seasons numbers sprinkled in. “My Boyfriend’s Back” by the girl group, The Angels, is a refreshing surprise. Accompanying Eubank on keyboard are reeds player Tony Moran, trumpeter Mike Huffman, keyboardist David Landrum, drummer Kyle Smith and Joanna Smith, Brittany Frompovich and Stephen Hu on bass.

With an engaging storyline and great cast, “Jersey Boys” offers an enjoyable ride through some of the most memorable tunes in rock and roll history.