Jersey Boys Plot Summary?

[wickedfan11]

Posted: 6/22/10 at 4:25pm

Could anyone post a plot summary of Jersey Boys (it would help if songs are included in the summary)? I couldn't find any more than a paragraph long online.

Thanks.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 6/22/10 at 4:46pm

Why? Because it's so complicated?

[tking001]

Posted: 6/22/10 at 4:47pm

Basically it's a concert

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 6/22/10 at 4:50pm

Not really.

[MeggilyWeggily08]

Posted: 6/22/10 at 4:50pm

"Why? Because it's so complicated?"

Or because they were interested in a stronger plot summary than what's on Broadway.com. No need for the sarcastic remarks. Sorry, wish I could help.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 6/22/10 at 5:36pm

OK, fine. And yes, I wrote this from memory.

================

The show begins with a French cover of "Oh, What a Night" to confuse the audience. (CES-SOIREES LA). After this, Tommy DeVito starts to narrate the story by bragging that they've even made it in France. (SILHOUETTES) Tommy, his brother Nick and their friend Nicky are in a group with gigs under a street lamp. Scrappy little 16-year-old Frankie Valli enters, but he's still named Frankie Castellucio (APPLE OF MY EYE). Tommy makes him sing in front of some girls in a club, who comment that he's cute and short. (I CAN'T GIVE YOU ANYTHING BUT LOVE)
Tommy gets Frankie in legal trouble, Tommy goes back to jail, and hits on Frankie's mother. (EARTH ANGEL) Frankie goes on his first date with Mary Delgado, Tommy's ex. He changes his last name to Valli after Mary makes some fun grammatical comments.
Frankie and Mary get married (offstage) and a couple years pass. The singing group comprised of Frankie, Tommy, and Nick adds an obnoxious guy named Hank Majewski, who may be a furry. (I GO APE) Tommy fires him and then we get a cameo from Joe Pesci.
The narration changes to Bob Gaudio (WHO WEARS SHORT SHORTS) who is young and generally cast as the tall, dorky whitebread dude. Bob develops a man-crush on Frankie after hearing him sing at a nightclub (MOODY'S MOOD FOR LOVE), debuts his own song (CRY FOR ME) and then joins the group, which is still called The Four Lovers.
Frankie and Bob go to the Brill Building to follow up on some pitches and there is a joke which comments on race relations in the music business of the 1960s.
Producer Bob Crewe is introduced without much context, but that's ok, because he's the "funny gay guy" and the audience loves him.
The Four Lovers are subjected to a year of humiliating backing sessions. (AN ANGEL CRIED/I STILL CARE/TRANCE) Then they quit.
Thanks to a visual joke, the Four Lovers change their name to the Four Seasons.
Bob comes up with a new song and it's a hit and all the old ladies in the audience start cheering. (SHERRY) Then there's another hit. (BIG GIRLS DON'T CRY) Followed by yet another. (WALK LIKE A MAN)
The show slows down a bit to give those pacemakers a rest, and the famous Jersey handshake scene happens.
Bob is set up with a hooker for Christmas and this is all very funny and embarrassing. (OH, WHAT A NIGHT) There are also drugs.
The women of the show, of which there are only three, are finally given their own spotlight. (MY BOYFRIEND'S BACK) Turns out they're still just ditzes.
Frankie and Mary are still married, lest you forget about her, and they argue and the Four Seasons wax rhapsodic about domestic issues. (MY EYES ADORED YOU) They split up, offstage.
But it's okay, because the next scene is the logo. (DAWN)
Oh wait, we're really NOT okay because it turns out Tommy is really, really financially irresponsible. (WALK LIKE A MAN - REPRISE)

Intermission!

The beginning of Act 2 belongs to Nick Massi, and starts out in a concert context (BIG MAN IN TOWN). This is the part where if the Frankie is a bad dancer, you'll find out real soon.
There's a prison joke. (BIG MAN IN TOWN - REPRISE)
Frankie meets/hits on Lorraine, a newspaper reporter. Tommy does the same. This does not end well.
Aaaand we're back to Tommy's fiscal irresponsibility. Frankie calls up his old mob boss buddy (BEGGIN') and then there's an actual scene of about 8 minutes that's nothing but dialog and can be quite gripping/hilarious. Tommy is excommunicated from the Four Seasons.
Nick nearly has a mental breakdown and leaves the group. (STAY)
Frankie and Lorraine break up and Frankie does some foreshadowing. (BYE BYE BABY) He also proves to not be father of the year to his frizzy-haired, converse-wearing daughter Francine. The narration has turned to Frankie now.
Bob decides to stick to songwriting, then convinces Frankie that he should headline the group, so they become Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons. If you listen really hard during this scene, you can hear THE SUN AIN'T GONNA SHINE ANYMORE. Two more random guys show up to fill out the Four Seasons, and sing LET'S HANG ON.
There's another song which just proves as a buffer for a bigger one. (C'MON, MARIANNE) After some major teasing of the audience, Frankie finally sings CAN'T TAKE MY EYES OFF OF YOU, followed by WORKIN' MY WAY BACK, which really just makes me feel bad for the guy and his vocal chords.
Frankie says he's repairing his relationship with Francine, but it wasn't quite enough, because she dies of a drug overdose. (FALLEN ANGEL)
We are magically transported to the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame. (RAG DOLL) There's not much resolution to the Francine thing.
And we get some epilogues. Everyone is still alive except Nick Massi. The show is over. (WHO LOVES YOU)
But not yet! (OH, WHAT A NIGHT - REPRISE)

Updated On: 6/22/10 at 05:36 PM

[wickedfan11]

Posted: 6/22/10 at 6:05pm

Thank you!

[ggersten]

Posted: 6/22/10 at 6:14pm

I thought it was "Hi. I'm Frankie Valli. Me and some friends used to sing. We had a hit. Then we didn't. Then we had another hit. And another. Then a song that didn't do so good. And another. But, then we had a hit again."

[tking001]

Posted: 6/22/10 at 6:21pm

lol
ggersten

[darquegk]

Posted: 6/22/10 at 6:23pm

Plot summary in 10 seconds.

"Hey, you know Frankie Valli? Well, he was in a BAAAAND."