From stage to screen, walking like men

The Jersey Boys are certainly too good to be true, and audiences can’t take their eyes off of the quartet, both on Broadway and in movie theatres, as the long-running musical gains new traction with a film adaptation.

The musical tells the story behind the US band the Four Seasons founded by New Jersey natives Frankie Valli, Tommy DeVito, Bob Gaudio and Nick Massi. The group gained international fame in the 1960s with hits like “Sherry”, “Big Girls Don’t Cry”, “Walk Like a Man” and “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You”.

The Four Seasons enjoys enduring popularity in the United States and abroad. They were the only band that managed to top music charts at the same time as the Beatles were conquering the world.

The musical, which debuted on Broadway in 2005, has been a favourite ever since, winning four Tony awards including that for best musical.

The film adaptation, directed by legendary actor Clint Eastwood, opened in US theatres in late June garnering fourth place in the box offices soon after launch, which is impressive, given that musicals rarely gain wide audiences.

Both the musical and the film feature many of the band’s greatest hits. However “Jersey Boys” is not only about music – it’s about friendship, heartache and the personal lives of the four singers who defied their fate of being born in crime-ridden New Jersey small towns and achieved world fame.

Peter Gregus, the actor portraying the band’s producer Bob Crewe on stage, has been part of the show even before it came to Broadway and says that “Jersey Boys” has the rare capability to reach an audience which most Broadway musicals can’t grab – men, especially those from older generations.

“This show really gets that audience, it tells a story for them,” Gregus says.

“To be on stage at night and to see these guys around 60 years old weeping over this story, because they see themselves and their friends in it ... it’s one of the most special things about it.”

And the music, of course, brings back memories to many who grew up with the Four Seasons.

“[I see] 60-70-year-old ladies dancing in the aisles, and I come out at the stage door and they tell me, ‘That was my prom song,’ ‘That was my first kiss’,” Gregus says.

The show has gained popularity because many Four Seasons fans, who would otherwise not go to Broadway, attend the show just to hear the music. Once seated, they often find they actually enjoy the theatrical aspects the musical has to offer too.

Gregus said he has definitely seen an uptick in ticket sales for the show since the movie opened.

In fact, the movie and the Broadway show complement each other, as the film version focuses more on the relationships among the band members and a bit less on the music.

On the stage, however, live performance adds a special thrill to the music, moving audiences to be involved in the story in a different way than if they were seeing it on the big screen.

The storyline is very personal, indeed, revealing the struggles and tragedies that the singers dealt with, hidden from the limelight: the break-ups of marriages, families and friendships.

Gregus vividly remembers the first time Frankie Valli, the band’s singer, saw the production.

“He came into the dressing room after the show ... and he just went ‘Thank you’ and turned around and walked out,” Gregus says. “We found out later he was so moved by it ... that he literally couldn’t speak.”