Jersey Boys...Oh What a Night

Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to attend the Broadway on Tour performance of Jersey Boys at the Ohio Theatre.  I had heard lots of positive things about the show and was definitely looking forward to seeing what it was all about.

Well, the show and the packed house did not disappoint.  It's the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons and how the group came to be.  The story is told in a very entertaining way from the perspectives of all four members of the group in four segments (seasons) and they use the seemingly endless hits that they produced to do it.  I've been to several of the shows in Columbus the past few years and this was probably the most the entire audience has gotten into the entire performance.

You don't realize how many hits these guys had until they just keep singing and singing.  It was a very interesting look into life on the road for four guys and all the things that go into keeping groups together and watching them fall apart.  The rise and fall of relationships, financial struggles, sacrifices, and successes.

Nick Cosgrove as Frankie Valli really delivered with a voice that you just don't find anywhere.  Jason Kappus as Bob Gaudio, Brandon Andrus as Nick Massi, and Nicolas Dromard as Tommy DeVito were also outstanding.  All four really embraced their roles and seemed perfect for the personality that they were portraying.

If you are looking for a fun evening out, this is a show for you.  There is some language that would not be suitable for children, so just make this a date night and enjoy!

This show will be in Columbus until September 29.  For more information about the show or to purchase tickets, visit the CAPA website at: http://www.capa.com/presentations/current-season-presentations/jersey-boys

What an Oz-some Night....The Return of Wicked

Glinda and Elphaba

Last night, I had the opportunity to take the family to see the Broadway show Wicked at the Ohio Theatre in Columbus.  This was my third time to see it and it seems to get better each time!

The story is basically a prequel to the story of the Wizard of Oz and attempts to explain what all is going on when Dorothy arrives.  However, it's a story like you've never heard with lots of plot twists and turns that you never expected.

The show starts by showing how Glinda, the Good Witch, and Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, met in school.  Like any relationship between strong personalities, their story has its ups and downs, but after a rocky start as rivals they become friends.

Jenn Gambatese, an Ohio native, stars as Glinda and does a great job of portraying the self-absorbed blonde with great vocal range and a flair for the overly dramatic.  She has great comedic timing and provides plenty of laughs with her antics.

The star of the show is Alison Luff, who has only been portraying Elphaba for just over a month since joining the team.  While she may not have been 'greenified' for very long, she pulls off the performance with aplomb.  Her vocal skills were so outstanding that my oldest daughter leaned over to me at one point and said "Dad, she sings better than the Elphaba on the (original cast recording) CD."  That's pretty high praise.  She also did a great job of portraying the misunderstood girl who grew up to wear the label of Wicked Witch.  Of the three different performers I've seen portray the Elphaba character, she was definitely the best.  The young woman has some serious pipes and had the best rendition of "Defying Gravity" that I've heard.

Curt Hansen was strong in his role as Fiyero, the love interest of both of the main characters as well as some of the swooning women in the packed house.  He also nailed his songs including his duet with Luff on "As Long As You're Mine", which is my personal favorite song in the show.

Fiyero and Elphaba singing "As Long As You're Mine"

 Kim Zimmer as Madame Morrible and John Davidson as The Wonderful Wizard of Oz both brought plenty of experience on stage and television to the show and did a good job in their roles.  The rest of the cast was also outstanding and never missed a beat.

This show will be in Columbus until June 23.  If you have never seen it, it's a three-hour journey that will have you on the edge of your seat and ready to cheer as the cast puts on what I personally feel is the most enjoyable Broadway show there is.  For more information on purchasing tickets or even a shot to get great seats for cheap through the nightly Wicked lottery, visit the CAPA website at:  http://www.capa.com/presentations/current-season-presentations/wickedhttp://www.capa.com/presentations/current-season-presentations/wicked

How much do I like this show?  I would go to the performance each night if my schedule and bank account would allow it.  In fact, I need to see if there is a way to volunteer to be an usher because it would be worth it just to hear the show each night.  It's that good!

Memphis...It's Fantastical

If you have followed this blog very long at all, you know that my wife, Carla, and I enjoy checking out Broadway musicals whenever we can. Well, last night, we had the opportunity to attend the opening night performance of Memphis at the Ohio Theatre in Columbus and we were blown away by the show!

The backdrop for the story is 1950s Memphis, Tennessee where segregation is still a very real every-day issue with a strong line drawn between black and white. Enter Huey, a white man with only a 9th-grade education but a love and appreciation for the rock and roll music of the underground black clubs and a penchant for creating his own words and off-the-wall sponsorship plugs as a radio DJ who plays black music on a white station and the journey begins. The plot explores the racially-charged issues of the day and shows how music has a way of bringing people of different races together.

This show, which won the 2010 Tony Award for Best Show, was high energy from the very beginning with incredible voices, talented and funny actors, and fast-moving, high-flying dance scenes. There was not a weak link in the cast and every one from the lead performers to the ensemble and swing groups contributed to the success of the show.

Bryan Fenkart as Huey was a perfect fit. He has a great balance of comedic timing, strong singing voice, and dance skills to successfully lead the show with pizzaz and humor. Felicia Boswell as Felicia, an undiscovered black singer longing for her big break, has incredible pipes and kept the crowd clamoring their approval on several numbers as she just kept going for more and more as she knocked out several big songs. Quentin Earl Darrington is another incredibly talented performer with a booming voice in the role of Delray, a club owner/music producer and Felicia's brother. Will Mann (Bobby), Rhett George (Gator), and William Parry (Mr. Simmons) are also exceptional in their roles, while Julie Johnson steals the show from time to time as Huey's doting mother, who can sing even better than she can keep you in stitches with her lines and dance moves. Seriously, the entire cast is incredible and I could go on and on writing things about all of them.

I've been to several musicals like Mamma Mia! and Rock of Ages where the crowd really responds to the songs because they are so familiar with them. While I had never heard any of the Memphis songs before, I felt like the crowd really embraced each number and the whole theatre was just waiting to explode as we all had a great time. I've been humming the songs ever since and I can definitely say that now "Memphis Lives in Me".


If you want to enjoy a night out without the kids and watch some incredibly talented performers execute a well-written script and belt out some great songs, then Memphis is the show for you. But, don't waste any time as it will only be at the Ohio Theatre through June 3. For complete ticket information, visit the CAPA website.

Practically Perfect in Every Way

On Friday night, my family and I had the opportunity to take in Mary Poppins - The Musical at the historic Ohio Theatre in Columbus and what a fun evening it was!

For us, the story starts well before Friday night as the Disney movie version of the story has long been one of my favorites dating back to my childhood days. As I grew up and started a family of my own, it was one of the first DVDs that we purchased for our girls. At 9 and 6 years old, they have probably watched the movie close to a hundred times and love the story as much as I do. Their self-created dance routine to "Step in Time" is one that would have even Jillian Michaels gasping for air!

So, when I noticed that CAPA was bringing the show to Columbus as part of their Broadway Across America season, I was quick to purchase tickets and have looked forward for months to taking the girls to their first show. I knew this was the perfect opportunity since it was a story that they loved and everyone who had seen it had great things to say.

Well, the show certainly did not disappoint! As soon as the curtain went up and the main house on the set rolled out like a page from a pop-up storybook with people coming out of it, my daughters watched with eyes filled with awe and amazement for the next two hours and 45 minutes as the story unfolded. My oldest daughter, Ashley, would squeeze my arm tightly from time to time and offer whispered commentary about how cool this or that was, and my youngest daughter, Kylie, just sat still (which if you know her is no small feat) and with eyes as big as saucers soaked it all in.

Steffanie Leigh, who plays the title role of Mary Poppins, was outstanding. She nailed all the songs and played the character every bit as well as her movie predecessor, Julie Andrews. In fact, she might have even had a leg up on Andrews as she busted some moves in the dance routines previously unobserved from a prim and proper British nanny. :)

Nicolas Dromard, who plays Bert, the chimney sweep, also did a great job. I remember growing up wishing that I could do all the things that Dick Van Dyke did in the movie version and Nicolas took the role even farther by tap-dancing his way up the walls and across the ceiling of the Ohio Theatre during "Step in Time". I loved his comment midway through that "it's not as easy as it looks". The girls were on the edge of their seats during this part.

The entire cast did a great job with their roles, the sets and costumes were eye-popping, and the entire performance left the audience on their feet clapping along at the encore wanting more. When I asked Kylie what she thought of the show in one word, she said "Awesome!" And, Ashley summed it up best by saying that it was "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!" The Parsons' family gives it eight thumbs up - a definite must-see for the entire family!



To purchase tickets for Mary Poppins - The Musical which is in Columbus through May 8 or to find out more information about upcoming shows in the Broadway Across America series coming to town, check out the CAPA website at www.capa.com.