THEATER PREVIEW
“Jersey Boys”
7:30 p.m. Oct. 6-8; 8 p.m. Oct. 9; 2 and 8 p.m. Oct. 10; 1 and 6:30 p.m. Oct. 11. $40-$150. Fox Theatre, 660 Peachtree St. N.E., Atlanta. 1-855-285-8499, www.foxtheatre.org.
Most fans of the Four Seasons know that Frankie Valli is the Voice.
But who knows what would have happened with Valli, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi if they hadn’t shaken hands with Bob Gaudio, the New Jersey-bred songwriter, musician and keyboardist in the group, one night in 1960?
Gaudio, now 72, is responsible for writing the group’s parade of hits (often with longtime producer Bob Crewe, who died last year).
“Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Walk Like a Man,” “Rag Doll,” “Bye Bye Baby” and Valli’s solo hit “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” formed the cornerstone of the Four Seasons’ career — and still, five decades later, continue to engage new fans thanks to the immense success of “Jersey Boys.”
The musical, which won a slew of Tony Awards in 2006, returns to the Fox Theatre Oct. 6-11.
Gaudio, who has lived in Nashville, Tenn., for 22 years, said he might venture a few hours east to check in on the show during its Atlanta run.
“I vowed to come see it at the Fox. It’s a beautiful, beautiful theater and I’ve not seen the show in a bigger venue,” he said last week from his home. “I’m dying to see the road cast since I haven’t in a while.”
The engaging Gaudio chatted amiably about his involvement with the musical, his continued friendship with Valli and the parts of the show that still give him chills.
Q: So how many times have you seen “Jersey Boys”?
A: I would say I'm probably at the top of the list of the people who have seen it. I ran into a couple of people who saw it 100 times, but I surpass that. A lot of it is just for fun, but sometimes it's to keep an eye on the production.
Q: Can you believe it’s almost been a decade since the show debuted?
A: No, I can't! Nov. 6 is the 10th-year anniversary, and I'm still here and Frankie is still here and he's out there performing and he's 80-something. He was here (in Nashville) and we hung out together and I'm hobbling to get up the stairs and he's running up there. I'm gonna find out what he's taking!
Q: So that answered my next question of whether or not you stay in touch.
A: We talk a couple of times a week. I'm trying to do some things for him with his concerts, but I try to stay away because it's his world. I'm just putting my ears to what he's doing and making some suggestions.
Q: How involved are you with “Jersey Boys” at this point?
A: Whenever there is a new Frankie or we're changing current Frankies, they will send him to Nashville. I'll spend a few days with him in the studio and try to bring the new Frankies to an understanding of where it started, how it started and what Frankie is all about as opposed to, here's how five Frankies before you have done it. This is home base.
Q: Even though you wrote the hits, I guess Frankie will always be in the spotlight.
A: It was a group effort, but the truth is, without Frankie on top of the vocals, it would have been a different group; his voice is so significantly different — that's the key. There are a lot of guys who can sing like me or Tommy or Nicky, and there was a uniqueness about our individual voices, unlike the Beach Boys who were family and there was a camaraderie vocally because they came from a similar place.
Q: Why do you think the live show has worked so well, but the movie (released in 2014 and directed by Clint Eastwood) didn’t?
A: The film had a high mountain to climb. Clint, we loved the idea of working with him, he's made great movies. But the only musical he made was "Bird," which was more documentary style. It was dark and foreboding and he makes great films like that. We thought with the pop world he could find that happy medium and I think he came close, but I don't think he was able to do it as well as the Broadway show. But hey, we're still batting .500 and that's OK. You can't get them all. In many respects, (the movie) did a lot for the Broadway show because people saw the movie and then wanted to see it live.
Q: I won’t ask you to pick your favorite Four Seasons song because I know that’s impossible for a composer. But is there a moment in the show that still gets you?
A: There are a lot of moments, as you might expect. But I'm in awe of what ("Jersey Boys" show director) Des (McAnuff) did to take a moment so dark, to lose a daughter or son (the scene when Valli learns of the death of daughter Francine) and then bring the show back to an uplifting, "Rocky" ending. That's an astounding achievement. The moments for me that are passionate are vast; when "Who Loves You" comes in, that's a big jolt. With Frankie's speech and then the music coming in from the background, when you combine that, it's lethal.
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