Opened 3 Apr 1930. In 1936 became a restaurant-cabaret (The London Casino). In 1939 became the All-Services Club. Reverted to a theatre. Became a cinema for a while from 1954. 1647 seats. Member of the Society of London Theatre.
Jersey Boys tells the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, the blue collar kids from New Jersey who formed a singing group and became famous. The musical features many of the group's pop hits from the Sixties such as Big Girls Don't Cry, Oh What a Night and Can't Take My Eyes off of You.
The Tony Award-winning hit Broadway musical Jersey Boys, which tells the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, opened at the Prince Edward Theatre last night (18 March, previews from 28 February) starring Ryan Molloy, Stephen Ashfield, Glenn Carter and Philip Bulcock as the original band members (See Also Today’s WOS TV). The production is currently booking to 31 March 2009.
The musical follows four boys on their journey from the wrong side of the tracks in the state of New Jersey to international success as pop music sensation The Four Seasons. The band wrote their own songs, invented their own sounds and sold 175 million records worldwide – all before they were 30.
Amongst their many hits included in the show are “Sherry”, “Walk Like a Man”, “December, 1963 (Oh What a Night)”, “Big Girls Don’t Cry”, “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You”, “Working My Way Back to You” and “Who Loves You”. The musical has been written by Rick Elice and Marshall Brickman and uses the original music written by band member Bob Gaudio.
Following a four month try-out run in La Jolla, California, Jersey Boys opened in November 2005 at Broadway’s August Wilson Theater, where it continues to sell out. In 2006 it won four Tony Awards, including Best Musical. The West End production reunites the Broadway creative team, led by director Des McAnuff. Choreography is by Sergio Trujillo and design by Klara Zieglerova.
First night critics agreed that this “no-frills production” absolutely “deserves to thrive”, though some worried that some questioned its long-term resonance for British audiences and one feared it “may be an American import too many”. Of the cast, Ryan Molloy was repeatedly singled out for his “powerhouse of a voice”, which makes him “sing like a man possessed” as Valli. Nevertheless, it was the myriad Four Seasons hits - “sheer joy from start to finish” - which really had the critics dancing in the aisles despite some “clunkingly awful lines” of dialogue.
Michael Coveney on Whatsonstage.com (four stars) - “’We put New Jersey on the map’ does not carry quite the same rallying-cry punch on Old Compton Street as it does in Manhattan, but this irresistible Broadway import – it opened there in November 2005 – carries a world of New York Italian mob culture on its tuxedoed shoulders. The dynamics in the quartet form the energy for the songs, which are sheer joy from start to finish. Ryan Molloy conveys brilliantly that furtive little bad boy side of Valli; and his voice is a miracle of throbbing, tearful falsetto, some weird manifestation that added pop hysteria to Johnny Mathis and prefigured both the Beach Boys and the Bee Gees. With great backing musicians and good sound arrangements, the second act peaks with the gorgeous staging of that imperishable classic ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’, brass players marching on in the middle eight while Frankie soars to ecstatic fulfilment, and an eerily smoke-filled reunion concert with the boys rising like waxen effigies to discharge ‘Rag Doll’.”
Charles Spencer in the Daily Telegraph - “Jukebox musicals normally get a rough ride from the critics, but Jersey Boys, built on the hits of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, emphatically deserves to thrive here as it has already done in New York. There are a host of excellent gags (I particularly liked Gaudio's delighted realisation when he finally loses his virginity that sex really is better when two people are involved), and Des McAnuff's strong, no-frills production, with its clever use of pop art imagery, is full of heart and humanity. But it is the music most people will go for, and it is delivered with high fidelity, from cheesy novelty numbers to classic smash hits. Ryan Molloy superbly mimics Valli's soaring falsetto, as well as capturing the singer's pain and resilience. Glenn Carter is excellent as the go-getting, recklessly spendthrift Tommy DeVito who finds himself edged out of his own band, and there is fine support from Stephen Ashfield as the honourable, educated Bob Gaudio and Philip Bulcock as the hilariously finicky bass player, Nick Massi. Overpaid, oversexed and over here, it will, I suspect, be some time before London says Bye Bye Baby (Baby Goodbye) to the phenomenal Jersey Boys."
Nicholas de Jongh in the Evening Standard (three stars) – “After those sagging lines of hagio-graphic tribute musicals to old rock 'n' rollers and bland bands, what a refreshing change to meet up with this Broadway triumph. Des McAnuff's slickly animated production takes far too long to reach the glory days, having spent excessive time with Carter's DeVito, the tough-talking, self-admiring founder who recruits Frankie and song-writer, Stephen Ashfield's oddly insipid Bob Gaudio. The show does, however, at last fly high with some of those hit anthems, dynamically staged. Molloy exercises an arresting, powerhouse of a voice that ascends from tenor to falsetto in emotional bounds and scores with ‘Fallen Angel’, sung for Frankie's dead daughter, his back to the audience. It is Frankie, too, who vainly fights to keep the group together, while Philip Bulcock's ironically charismatic yet peripheral group member charts the reasons for the group's break-up with laconic flippancy. Still, I do doubt whether Jersey Boys will make it over here. The life-stories and the songs strike me as being curiously timeless, remote and unreverberative for British audiences. This may be an American import too many.”
Benedict Nightingale in The Times – “Compendium shows, meaning musicals whose plots are usually an excuse to douse the ears of nostalgia freaks with archaic hits, aren’t my favourite tipple. But there’s good reason why Jersey Boys is about to enter its third year on Broadway and is now crossing the pond. It has the character, the narrative interest and the sense of place – as the backcloth indicates, the industrial badlands west of the Hudson River – to rise way above its genre. There’s no doubting the background of Frankie Valli, Tommy DeVito and the other members of a group that had a New Jersey bowling alley and not Vivaldi in mind when in 1962 it changed its name from the Four Lovers to the Four Seasons. In one of several amusing asides, the Beatles are dismissed as invaders whose fans put flowers in their hair and try to levitate the Pentagon. The point about Valli and his chums is that they sang to ‘the guys flipping burgers and pumping gas and the girls behind the counter at the diner’. They had a blue-collar feel as well as the high-octane energy that, last night, movingly ended with a wizened shrimp of a man coming on stage and hugging Molloy, Glenn Carter, Stephen Ashfield and the rest of Des McAnuff’s cast. Yes, it was Frankie Valli.”
Quentin Letts in the Daily Mail (four stars) - “There are two remarkable things about Jersey Boys, the Frankie Valli bio-musical. The first is the fluting voice of Ryan Molloy, who plays 1960s pop canary Valli and sings like a man possessed. The second is the fact that a show with quite so many cliches and such a humdrum plot still manages to elicit a tear or two. I must say I thoroughly enjoyed it, despite some clunkingly awful lines (eg, a girl dumps Frankie with the explanation, 'I gotta get off the merry-go-round, Frankie, it's no fun any more'). The staging is ceaselessly busy with screens whizzing on and off, sometimes filling with Roy Liechtenstein-style cartoons. At one point a huge bank of lights turns blindingly on the audience. Ouch! Frankie's fellow Seasons, led by bad-boy Tommy (Glenn Carter) are an engaging bunch and gel pretty well. It is just about possible to believe that these lads were America's unfussy, working-class answer to the Beatles. Some of the language is unnecessarily bad - the producers should not sell tickets to under-teens. But when the music is this good you can forgive a show almost anything.”
“We put New Jersey on the map” does not carry quite the same rallying-cry punch on Old Compton Street as it does in Manhattan, but this irresistible Broadway import – it opened there in November 2005 – carries a world of New York Italian mob culture on its tuxedoed shoulders, the world that spawned Frank Sinatra, Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi and The Sopranos.
Jersey Boys, with a deft and engaging book by sometime Woody Allen co-writer Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, is more than just another jukebox musical. It uses the songs of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, mostly written by Bob Gaudio (music) and Bob Crewe (lyrics), to both shape the outer success story and illuminate the inner tensions.
Thus the breakthrough hit, “Sherry”, arrives as a climactic concert number, the boys in red jackets doo-wapping like crazy and executing those rhythmically tight jive moves – spring-coiled choreography by Sergio Trujillo – that simultaneously launch and corset the song; and Frankie (Ryan Molloy) ruminates on personal tragedy in the plangent heartbreak of “Bye Bye Baby”, “My Eyes Adored You” and the lyric beauty of “Fallen Angel”.
This is one step beyond the slick mix-and-match of song and situation in Mamma Mia!. The Four Seasons songs carry stories of love and yearning that suit this style of theatre to perfection, and the awesome efficiency of Des McAnuff’s production – cast with British performers – can absorb the bumpiness of life on the road and in the recording studio while Klara Zieglerova’s beautiful scenic design of pop art cartoons and fast-moving platforms bring out the expressive, declamatory nature of the material.
Frankie Valli himself, a neat little Al Pacino figure, was in the first night stalls to cheer on his own show: blue collar group is formed, has a few hits, and a few run-ins with the Mafia, splits up, and is later inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame. Within that barebones format, we learn a lot about what went right and wrong, and how much of the group’s impetus came from having to pay off the gambling debts of Tommy DeVito (Glenn Carter).
Another original member, Nick Massi (Philip Bulcock) eventually retires while Gaudio (played with sly, insinuating coolness and aplomb by Stephen Ashfield) steps down to concentrate on writing and protecting royalties and copyrights. DeVito’s replacement, buffs will appreciate, is played by a real dead ringer for Joe Long, while general fans can rest easy that the dodgy disco-dancing phase of the mid-1970s is thankfully ignored.
The dynamics in the quartet form the energy for the songs, which are sheer joy from start to finish. Ryan Molloy conveys brilliantly that furtive little bad boy side of Valli; and his voice is a miracle of throbbing, tearful falsetto, some weird manifestation that added pop hysteria to Johnny Mathis and prefigured both the Beach Boys and the Bee Gees.
With great backing musicians and good sound arrangements, the second act peaks with the gorgeous staging of that imperishable classic “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You”, brass players marching on in the middle eight while Frankie soars to ecstatic fulfilment, and an eerily smoke-filled reunion concert with the boys rising like waxen effigies to discharge “Rag Doll”.
Just seen the show, it was awesome; outstanding singing, acting, stage direction, dancing, lighting had us singing and dancing all the way home....just wish I could have taken Glenn with me!!! - Sarah
02 Mar 10
i have seen jye frasca as FRANKIE VALLI in lodnons west end 5 times... Jye is super as frankie but also is brilliant as joey......
if you want a great night out go jersey boys is amazing - JYEFRASCAFAN
03 Oct 09
It was fantastic loved every minute - christine
15 Aug 09
We were privileged to listen to Jye Frasca as Mr Frankie Valli, and even now 2 days after the performance Iam still in a state of euphoria at not just the wonderful production but to stress how fantastic Jye Frasca was in the lead role (ask anyone in the audience who gave him the standing ovation he greatly deserved) I closed my eyes and it was just like listening to the man himself.Thank you all for such wonderful entertainment - Mel Ruck
09 Aug 09
I was always told about how good Jersey boys is and actually never really got into it until I saw the cast perform on the royal variety performance. I then began to listen to the music and being quite young I have never heard most of the music. I instantly fell in love with the music and then have been wanting to see it ever since. I sat in the Stalls Row G about centre which was absolutely amazing seats and I recommend getting good seats as it is really worth getting the most out of the show. You may find that if you get sounds further back that the more intimate quite scenes are not as good. The sound was absolutely perfect from where I was and the atmosphere in some of the more concert like performances of songs such as Ce Soiree La, the opening number, Can't take my eyes off of you and Who loves you the sound is exquisite and you really the power of the falsetto from Ryan Molloy (it is definitely worth going on a night he is performing (Check out his website)). From the instant the show started with it powerful rap number Ce Soiree La I was instantly thrown into the concert like experience of some of the songs. The opening number is very loud and the base will really rattle you chest but this is the loudest the show gets. The set design is ingenious and the quick changes of set and indeed costume are executed amazingly and keep the piece flowing well. The lighting design is also extremely good and really sets the scene well whether its a sad poignant moment or indeed one of the happier concert performances. The band were also top notch and all very talented. The beginning of the play up until Sherry is mostly dialogue and features a few short song excerpts though there are some really good harmonies building up as the band get together. Throughout these parts the script is well written, witty and funny, and from the moment Ryan Molloy (Frankie Valli) skips on stage singing his heavenly Falsetto you know that he is an actor you'll want to see again and again. His vocals were absolutely excellent, especially his rendition of Can't take my eyes off of you which after the band march on stage for the chorus the entire audience were on their feet before the night had even finished. Stephen Ashfield (Bob Gaudio) was also tremendous and his performance's of Oh what a night and I cried for you were musically perfect. Glenn Carter (Tommy Devito) was definitely the perfect choice for the antagonist in the play and acted extremely well as being a key part of the vocal harmony as well as Philip Bulcock (Nick Massi) who played the quiet one that never really seems to want to be in the band. They all are amazing actors as well which holds together the dialogue. There harmony is also absolutely sport on making them in my eyes the best ever cast to play the Jersey Boys and I would pick them over the Broadway cast's any day. The supporting roles are all filled excellently with Simon Adkins (Bob Crewe) and Jye Frasca (Joe Pesci) filling their roles suitably. It was an absolutely amazing night out and to top it off all of the members of the cast were willing to sign and have pictures taken outside the stage door(although if you want to see Ryan Molloy you may have to wait quite a long time due to his extensive vocal warm downs). A Wonderful evening, definitely worth going to see. Oh What a Night!
- Daniel
29 Jul 09
Fantastic show. I was a little disappointed at first when I realised tha Ryan Molloy was not playing Franki at the performance but my misgivings proved to be totally unfounded. Scott Monello was excellent. Whilst Ryan is fantastic and, I believe, produces a very authentic Valli sound, I suspect that Monello actually has a better, more mellow voice while covering the "range" with ease. Glenn Carter, Stpehen Ashfield & Philip Bulcock were great too. The story, sets, cast, musicians were all fantastic. An excellent show which made me laugh, sing & cry. Would highly recommend if you want a real feel-good experience, fabulous music and great entertainment. - Joan
23 Apr 09
Best show I have seen, was blown away with by it and cant wait to go again in April. All the cast members were excellent, both the music and acting was fantastic. Would recommend a evening with the Jersey Boys to anyone. Ryan Molloy is the icing on the cake he is fabulous.xx - paula kavanagh
16 Feb 09
Excellent entertainment. Great cast,great music, great theatre,great time!!!!! - RM
21 Jan 09
I was pleasantly surprised by Jersey Boys. I feared I may have been in for one of those terrible jukebox musicals where the performances come from the audience rather than the stage but by the time the boogie-woogie brigade have got on their feet the number is over and they sigh in unison as they have to sit down again. After half an hour, they are worn out and give up. What a blessing for the rest of us! Jersey Boys is more of a musical play and deals with tough issues like the mob, infidelity and the price of fame. Judging by the huge crowds outside the theatre it is doing very well but, alas, I wonder if they are expecting something rather different. - DJ
19 Jan 09
Brilliant! Absolutely loved it. What a talented cast. Definitely going again. - MM
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