Jersey Boys Review 6/18/08

[btlm1994]

Posted: 6/20/08 at 12:05pm

I saw Jersey Boys this past Wednesday night in the right orchestra row N seat 6. The show was absolutely phenomenal. Christian Hoff was great as Tommy. He gave so much energy and he was a decent singer. Sebastian Arcelus was good his acting was great but from what i have heard of Daniel Reichard. Sebastian isnt as good a singer. J. Robert Spencer was excellent. He was better then i expected. OK so Michael Longoria ummm this was my 1st time seeing the show and i went with my mom who has already seen it before with John Lloyd Young and Longoria as Pesci. I thought Michael Longoria had a very good voice but Johns was a little bit better. But from what i hear from people I think Michael gives more energy then JOhn lloyd Young. Michael Longoria does splits and it looks like he is having a great time on stage. I also think he looks a lil bit more like Frankie then John did. The great thing about the show was the projections. I thought those added so much to the show. I was lucky because i went with a friend and his 2 parents and my original seats were left orchestra row w seats 9-11 and his seats were right orchestra row N seats 2-6. His mother switched seats with me and it was a really Great View. Other minor characters that stood out were Mark Lotito as Gyp Decarlo and Donnie Kehr as Norm Waxman and Nick Devito i thought they both were very good actors and Donnie Kehr was very good on the drums. Songs that really stood out were Silhouettes,My mothers eyes,Cry For ME, Sherry, WAlk like a man, RAg Doll, and Fallen angel. Overall the show was great i would say 9/10. One last thing. Scary moment at the end of the show. A gay man comes running out of the theatre and into the lobby screaming at an usher to call the police because his partner got assaulted and spat at by another man in the audience. Idk wat happend after that but i hope the manager called 911. Once again Great SHOW !

[MikeMagbaleta]

Posted: 6/20/08 at 12:56pm

I totally agree. I was in the audience last Saturday evening and always enjoy the musical, no matter who is featured. Comparing John Lloyd Young and Michael Longoria to Frankie Valli is easy, because after watching Frankie's concerts (once in the 70's and once last year) and TV/DVD clips from the early days, he does not move much to begin with, and the Jersey Boys casts bring the Four Seasons "to life"!

I've watched the San Francisco cast, Las Vegas cast preview, Chicago cast, Broadway and National Tour casts over 29 times and it's definitely my favorite musical because I grew up with the Four Season's music and love the story they tell onstage. Only if they get the ball rolling on a movie.....

[antonijan]

Posted: 6/20/08 at 2:11pm

Hardcore! Have you done the bus tour?

[MikeMagbaleta]

Posted: 6/20/08 at 3:46pm

I believe Audrey Rockman, who is one of the most passionate Jersey Boys fans in the NY/NJ area is the organizer of the Jersey Boys Bus Tour, but have not yet experienced the tour because I think they had only two so far and is yet permanent until they see if enough interest is out there.

I've been travelling between SF and NY/NJ a lot due to family business, which allowed me to be able to watch more shows at the August Wilson, since our National Tour, Chicago Cast, SF Cast and LV preview cast left the Curran Theatre.

There are more hardcore fans out there (the August Wilson fanbase have a few "diehards" with over 50+ shows attended)..... I've only been able to go to Jim Petrecca's collectible store in NJ which features Jersey Boys and Four Seasons memorabilia. Next week on the 25th will be the street renaming for the Four Seasons where the bowling center once stood in Union, NJ.

[worrell4077]

Posted: 6/20/08 at 4:17pm

I've seen the show seven times, twice with Michael as Frankie and five times with JLY as Frankie and all I have to say is that JLY was the better actor and Michael is the better singer/dancer, but I enjoyed both performances. I haven't been back to see the show since last March due to the suspending of the student rush thanks to those damn scalpers.

[antonijan]

Posted: 6/20/08 at 5:11pm

How long is Longoria's contract and who's the next person in line to be the Broadway Frankie Valli?

CKJ?

[jigblob]

Posted: 6/20/08 at 9:14pm

so i take it longoria isn't having vocal problems? i remember a couple months after he took over for JLY, people were saying that his vocals were already starting to wear down a bit and that he was having a bit off trouble?

[antonijan]

Posted: 6/21/08 at 4:16am

I haven't seen his performance but several people I know have been underwhelmed by his performance.

[joneswright08]

Posted: 6/21/08 at 10:09am

Longoria looks more like Valli? Not to me.

Also, I have seen a few Frankies, no one beats JLY...not vocally, not acting.

I do think Longoria looked and sounded a lot like Joe Pesci, and I loved him in that role. Every time I have seen him as Frankie, I keep thinking, "there's Joe Pesci as Frankie!"

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 6/21/08 at 12:17pm

Longoria looks more like Valli? Not to me.

He does to me as well. Not that I ever saw Longoria as Frankie, but I did see JLY and wondered how a Tony came of that performance. (Same thing with Hoff.) Besides the whole lack-of-resemblance thing. Not that anyone beats Rick Faugno in that dept. It's a bit eerie.

(Hmm, where's JB Fan these days? S/he seems to be slipping.)

[Drunk Chita Rivera]

Posted: 6/21/08 at 12:35pm

Glad you liked it. I saw both John and Michael. I loved John, maybe it's because he was my first or I just loved the show and he was in it or something. But He was great. Then I saw Michael and was also blown away but it seemed like he was stuck with the Pesci voice.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 6/21/08 at 12:43pm

The real Frankie Valli throughout his career:


Michael Longoria and Frankie Valli:


John Lloyd Young and Frankie Valli:

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 6/21/08 at 1:30pm

Your last image is broken.

But before we veer into annoying territory, I really don't care if the Frankie in JB looks like the real thing. It's a nice bonus, but not necessary.

[Greekmusicalfan]

Posted: 6/21/08 at 1:57pm

I went to the show in April, with the highest expectations ! I Love the music and adored all the clips I'd seen with John Lloyd Young ! Me and my friend left the show completely unimpressed and dare I say it, bored ! I soooo wanted to like the show and I really don't know why I didn't, but I think the main problem for me was that, while I liked Hoff and Arcelus, Michael Longoria left me completely cold

[antonijan]

Posted: 6/21/08 at 3:31pm

I love you baby!