'Jersey Boys' has 2 shows at Powers Auditorium

By GUY D’ASTOLFO

dastolfo@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

For a lot of people, “Jersey Boys” is love at first sight.

So they see it again.

The landmark Broadway blockbuster tells the behind-the-music story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons.

After winning the Tony Award for Best Musical in 2006 – and a Grammy that same year for Best Musical Show Album – it has toured the globe a few times over.

But it’s still a hot ticket. Witness the back-to-back sold-out performances that will take place Monday and Tuesday at Powers Auditorium. It’s been a while since any show made that claim at the 2,300-seat theater.

Thrill-ride fun from the opening scene, “Jersey Boys” is a jukebox musical that marks time with hits by the vocal group that was the East Coast answer to the Beach Boys. It includes “Oh What a Night,” “Dawn,” “Sherry,” “Walk Like a Man,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Walk Like a Man” and more.

As a money-maker, “Jersey Boys” has long surpassed the band whose story it tells.

The show takes place in the 1960s and ’70s, but it couldn’t possibly be a walk down memory lane for the cast – and much of the audience.

Because despite its age, “Jersey Boys” is about youth.

For Corey Greenan, the show is also the realization of a goal. The California native plays the role of Four Season member Tommy DeVito in the touring company.

In a phone interview in advance of the Youngstown visit, Greenan talked about the eternal appeal of “Jersey Boys.”

“It’s such a slick show, so well-structured and with great music that has a story with real people to it,” said the actor. “I loved it the first time I saw it.”

Greenan has been with the tour for three years, after auditioning for it for nine years. He started as part of the ensemble before taking over the role of Tommy DeVito two years ago.

“No matter where we go, people respond to it and sing along, and it’s such a fun experience to share it with them,” said Greenan.

“We’ve heard so many people say ‘this is my 10th time,’ and some follow us around [from city to city],” he continued. “It’s special to be part of something like that. We’ll hear ‘we had our first kiss to this song,’ or ‘we danced to this at our wedding’.”

While Four Seasons tunes are in many folks’ pop music DNA, Greenan remembers hearing it peripherally while growing up in the Lake Tahoe area.

“My parents had the oldies station on, so I was familiar with it but I wasn’t a big Four Seasons fan,” he said. “But that’s what’s great about it... you realize you know so many more songs than you thought you did. And I always enjoyed singing the doo wop stuff and the early rock.”

Because “Jersey Boys” is so character-driven, the set has always been sparse. The current tour is no different.

“It’s focus is on how great the story and the music is,” said Greenan. “What comes through is the relationships and the struggles and the successes.”