Jersey Boys

See it. Now. And again. You must.

I am biased, I admit it. I've been working as a production assistant to Michael Rafter, the associate music supervisor for the last two weeks. We're in rehearsals for the new Toronto company for when they take over for the touring company in December. This review is of the touring company, though my experiences of seeing it on Broadway and watching rehearsals 6 days a week will creep in.

A year ago I saw the original cast of Jersey Boys on Broadway, and the theatre was electric. I sat in the middle of the upper balcony, and it was still the most entertaining piece of theatre I'd seen in ages. Most easily put, it was like a Scorsese film put onto the stage. It moved like no other "musical theatre" piece I had ever seen. It was tight, it was quick, it was powerful and it was entertaining as hell. John Lloyd Young was astounding as Frankie Valli. Christian Hoff was badass as Tommy Devito. The Four Seasons had people dancing in the aisles, brought cheers to the rafters and tears to our eyes as we went through the joys and pitfalls of fame with them.

Then I saw the touring company in Toronto this fall. And call me crazy, but they topped the untoppable. Joseph Leo Bwarie brought a youthfulness to Frankie that didn't exist for me on Broadway, and yet still managed to age with grace and dignity throughout the show as easy as flashing his brilliant smile to win the audience over. His falsetto notes were pitch perfect, seamless and captivating, and as he grew from teenage heartthrob to powerful tenor in the second act, the maturity settled in perfectly as the subtext of his life ran through every word of the songs he sang. "Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You" became an amalgamation of story lines - from finally getting his horn section, to saying goodbye to Nick Massi and Bob Gaudio as fellow performers, t0 his ex wife and daughter troubles. Suddenly, flashing that smile after accepting thunderous applause became much more than "thanks for listening to me sing."

Steve Gouveia brought a huge amount of humour to Nick Massi that didn't resonate in New York. He brought the house down with his sudden and explosive rant against Tommy, his sarcastic and slightly dim-witted way of saying things, and his hysterical physical humour when discovering how much money Tommy truly owes the mob. A treat to watch and a joy to listen to.

Bob Gaudio was played by Andrew Rannells, and while he was wonderful at the character and had a fantastic voice, there was nothing about his performance that resonated as being overly stupendous. I suppose this is because his character is the most "straight man" of the four. Frankie's got the voice, Tommy's got the attitude, Nick's got the slowwittedness, but Bobby is the most reasonable and level headed of the bunch, and therefore perhaps the least of the four to stand out. Rannells was great at what he was supposed to be doing - being the guy who holds it all together. His "Oh What a Night" scene is priceless, but it's written that way. So really, the man's just doing his job, and doing it well.

The real scene stealer, however, is Jeremy Kushnier as Tommy Devito. A native Canadian actor, he made Tommy far more badass than Hoff's in New York. He was absolutely hilarious exactly when he needed to be. His moves with the guitar and as the band leader were flawless. The person playing Tommy has to be secure and confident in absolutely everything he does since he starts the show and sets the pace for the audience. Slow down the pacing one bit in the first ten minutes and the tightness of the show unravels. Kushnier held the audience in the palm of his hand and knew exactly what to do once he had us there. Every nuance of his Tommy was suave, cool and collected even if he knew he was digging himself and the group into a million dollar hole. And on top of it all, you could see that he cared about Frankie and the guys.

At this point, I suppose you could say I'm biased since I'm working on the show and get to watch a new set of performers take over for these roles. Thankfully, Jeremy Kushnier gets to stay in Toronto with his wife Jenny Lee Stern, who plays another badass in the form of seductress/mother to Frankie's daughter - Mary Delgado. Both of their successful stints with the touring company will only serve to help the new Toronto company settle into their respective places, and if what I've seen in these two weeks in rehearsal is any indication of what the show will be like when they take over on the 12th of December, Toronto is in for a real treat.

How wonderful is it that Toronto is finally starting to see some sit-down companies again after the years of Livent? Mirvish has got We Will Rock You, Dirty Dancing and now The Sound of Music happening. Dancap's got Jersey Boys and who knows what else in the near future. The economy may be crumbling around us, but Toronto is still finding a way to have a cultural renaissance.

My only wish is that Toronto audiences would LIGHTEN UP. The audience in the Toronto Centre for the Arts was the most lively, excited and appreciative that I've seen in a Toronto theatre in a long time. In the past year and a half I've had the fabulous opportunity to attend theatre in the world's top three theatre havens - London's West End, New York's Broadway, and Toronto's... well we don't even really have a name, do we? Broadway North? Hardly, although we're getting there. It's amazing to me how audiences in Toronto seem to think that the shows and the actors owe them something. I mean yes, you dish out that kind of money you expect a good evening of entertainment, but really. Give shows a chance. In London, theatre is a way of life. People are allowed to bring drinks and snacks into the theatre. They come in their blue jeans and bring their kids, and their kids love it. Audiences are appreciative over there (from what I've seen, and I saw 7 shows in 5 days, got the full spectrum). In New York, audiences are rowdy, they're anxious and they want to be swept away. They demand quality, and quite frankly, they get it. And the appreciate it. In Toronto, I feel like audiences are always sitting back in their chairs with their arms crossed silently saying, "All right. Entertain me dammit." And if the evening's show doesn't fit into the tiny box that they want to fill, they go on their snobby way.

Maybe it's just me. I don't know. I see a lot of theatre, or at least try to. Maybe I need to see more, get a more full perspective. But this is what I've seen, and this is what I've felt. I don't know why, but it certainly made me happy to see that Jersey Boys was able to bring a Toronto audience out of its shell for once.

I look forward to seeing the Toronto cast when they arrive in December. Jeff Madden is going to be a great Frankie, and the rest of the cast will not disappoint. Jersey Boys is here to stay. It's just too good to be true.