Review: Oh, what a night at ‘Jersey Boys’ at First Interstate Center for the Arts

In an embarrassment of riches, I’ve seen the Tony Award-winning musical “Jersey Boys” at least three times during its headliner residency runs at the Palazzo and the Paris in Las Vegas, so I was greatly looking forward to seeing the latest touring production in Spokane on its opening night Friday at First Interstate Center for the Arts.

This “Jersey Boys” cast and crew didn’t disappoint.

The musical – the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons from their start in New Jersey in the 1960s to their chart hits and stardom throughout the 1970s – includes many of their No. 1 smashes, among them “Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Walk Like a Man,” “Rag Doll” and “December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night).”

The talented cast received thunderous and extended applause throughout the Friday night performance and an immediate standing ovation at the end, and deservedly so.

The acting and vocal performances are top-notch all around.

The two standouts are Jon Hacker as Valli, who astonishes in one of the most vocally challenging musical roles out there for a leading man, and Eric Chambliss as Bob Gaudio, the 1990 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees’ writer and producer.

Chambliss, who was interviewed for a preview of “Jersey Boys” in The Spokesman-Review on Friday,” is handsome, wholesome and charming, and has the voice of an angel, as exhibited in “December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night).”

My evening’s guest, my 14-year-old niece Anya, agreed.

A cautionary note: I was surprised by the amount of profanity in the musical when I first saw it in Las Vegas years ago (and I am by no means a prude), and gasps could be heard from audience members Friday night.

But this is a musical set in New Jersey, after all, and includes a young Joe Pesci (yes, the future Oscar winner for “My Cousin Vinny”), so the bad four-letter words shouldn’t be that much of surprise.

In one unexpected and fun moment, the “Jersey Boys” stars performed Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons’ “Beggin’ ” in the style of Måneskin, the Italian rockers and 2021 Eurovision Song Contest winners who recently remade the song. Both versions rock!

“Jersey Boys” has two more performances this weekend – at 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday.