Ah, the jukebox musical. A tricky theatrical egg to crack and sustain at the best of times, and doubly so, it seems, when moulded into the vein of a biopic. For every Bat Out of Hell or Mamma Mia which comes along and finds inventive ways to craft an artist or band’s hits into an original story for the stage, there are easily half a dozen or so 20th Century Boys or Lennon ‘story of’ ventures that seek to merge music and history to tell a true story via the artist’s own work.

The problem is, these ‘bio-musicals’ generally seem to struggle to resonate too far beyond any pre-existing fanbase, and creatively speaking, routinely fall into formulaic, familiar structures and tropes. It often seems that telling the factual, historical story trumps the crafting of a satisfying, engaging piece of musical theatre.

So how has Jersey Boys – at face value presenting a similar ilk of history-by-way-of-hits musical experience – seemed to buck the trend and go from strength to strength? The West End production, itself a winner of the Olivier award for Best Musical, recently returned to rave reviews and audience feedback after a four-year hiatus, and this latest touring production is not only the third such Nationwide tour, but one that runs for a stonking twelve months until next November.

Perhaps the simplest answer is that it not only ticks all the prerequisite boxes for a successful jukebox – namely a solid track list to bring to the stage and an impressive cast to embody them – but it also presents a keen eye for the uniqueness of the musical theatre experience. Where many biopics on stage languish and plod through the decades, Jersey Boys is whip-smart and whippet-fast, maintaining a jaunty, vibrant pace as it guides us through the at-times shocking, tragic and occasionally even dangerous, history of the iconic Frankie Valli and the various incarnations of The Four Seasons.

“There’s real stagecraft on show here, and it extends through to every part of this latest touring production, which is every bit as kinetic and electric as its London counterpart.”

There’s real stagecraft on show here, and it extends through to every part of this latest touring production, which is every bit as kinetic and electric as its London counterpart. No beat in the story or moment in time is held on any longer than necessary, and some punchy direction and choreography by Des McAnuff and Sergio Trujillo keeps the whole thing infused with energy and excitement. Even scene transitions fizz with movement, as characters still bathed in darkness strut, dance or even chair-slide across Klara Zieglerova’s kaleidoscopic, pleasing vertical set. Similarly, Howell Binkley‘s lighting and Michael Clark‘s projection work create a funky, slightly heightned and popart sense of time and place.

There is always a somewhat intangible element to why a show does or doesn’t ‘click’, and with Jersey Boys it’s difficult to imagine it clicking any better than this. Credit must go to Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice’s book, too, which excellently balances telling the story of Valli and company in a way which allows the central characters and their dynamics to develop (see the bubbling tension of Tommy DeVito’s financial mismanagement and shady dealings), ticks off the prerequisite key turning points in the ‘Four Seasons’ story, whilst also injecting plenty of levity, humour and general ebb and flow to what could easily have been another plodding documentary by way of discography.

“This latest touring production pulls no punches, with a company positively littered with talent.”

Naturally, all of this rests on the shoulders of the cast assembled, and this latest touring production pulls no punches, with a company positively littered with talent. Even bit parts showcase an impressive calibre of talent, such as Emma Crossley, who is brilliant and absorbing on multi-role duty but most notably as Frankie’s first wife, Mary, or Michael Levi as flamboyant record producer Bob Crewe (“it was the 60s, everyone thought Liberace was just theatrical!”).

But there’s no getting around this being a show resting heavily on the shoulders of its four titular leads. Dalton Wood is excellent as the cocksure, shady Tommy, bringing an impressive degree of restraint and nuance to a role that could easily showboat or tiptoe towards broadness. Lewis Griffiths as Nick Massi mines a lot of both humour and heart from the pensive yet pedantic Nick, particularly come the second act when he steps forward to become something of a co-narrator of sorts (and let’s face it, who doesn’t hate hotel soap bars?!). And Blair Gibson, returning to the role of songwriter extraordinaire and Valli’s right-hand man, Bob Gaudio, fits the part like a glove and stuns from the offset, both in voice and performance, giving one of the standout turns amidst a uniformly excellent cast.

In something of a rarity (but this is theatre, after all), the central role of Valli himself ended up being performed by both principal Michael Pickering in the first half, and his alternate, Luke Suri, who took over in Act II, owing to Pickering being ‘indisposed’. Whilst it did seem Pickering was occasionally hesitant on some of those higher trademark Valli falsettos, pondering the exact reason for his second act absence would be pure conjecture and supposition. What can confidently be said is that whichever ‘Frankie’ you see, you’re in for a treat, as both performers command the stage comfortably and give wonderful turns. It would, however, be remiss not only to send Pickering wishes for a swift return to the stage for whatever reason, and also to credit Suri for delivering such a confident, bravura turn at such short notice and halfway through a press night performance.

It’s a further testimony to the sheer quality of production and performer encapsulated by Jersey Boys that a switcheroo of even its main cast member halfway through did nothing to dampen audience spirits (if anything, there was a palpable sense of getting ‘on side’ and helping cheer Suri on… not that it was needed). It’s part of that ephemeral, crackling energy unique to the auditorium of live performance, and the very essence of what makes this such a corker of a show.

Even those unfamiliar with its four muses will find it hard not to be swept up by the engaging storytelling, the endearing characters and the razor-sharp execution of Jersey Boys, not to mention the sheer breadth and number of classic songs you may not even realise were even Four Seasons originals.

It not only confidently, vigorously smashes aside any preconception of the musical biopic as being some meandering, tepid thing, it goes one quick-step further, and proves itself to be the ultimate poster boy (boys?) for what any future ‘bio-musical’ should aspire to.

December 2021. Oh What A Night!