Photo by Joan Marcus

Jersey Boys burst onto the Broadway scene in the autumn of 2005 and went on to win a total of four Tony Awards in 2006, including the coveted "Best Musical" category. It snowballed into an international runaway success, touring all over the world and picking up the Olivier Award along the way for "Best New Musical" in London in 2008. Along with Mamma Mia! and We Will Rock You, it has become one of the most recognised and celebrated jukebox musicals of all time. So why has this story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, in particular, stood the test of time?

I recall the first time I ever attended a performance of Jersey Boys and truth be told I didn't really know who The Four Seasons were, but the buzz and the word of mouth had drawn me to the theatre. To my surprise, I knew almost every song in the show and it was a strangely unique experience being familiar with a plethora of hits and at the same time not realising they had all come from the same artist and not knowing much about their history. As the years have gone by, I have also met more and more people from my generation or younger who shared that same experience.

I was always a fan of the VH1 TV format "Behind the Music," and Jersey Boys felt like a live, extended version of it, with the volume turned up to the max. I left the theatre not only feeling uplifted by those classic, toe-tapping tunes, but also feeling informed. I felt I had gained an insider's look into the behind-the-scenes workings of the music industry of the early 1960s onwards, coupled with the personal stories of a group of young men from New Jersey who wanted to better their circumstances by any means necessary. Those means also included associations with the mob that the musical does not shy away from. Whereas other jukebox musicals have thrown together weak, fictitious storylines, unsubtly shoe-horning hits into the mix wherever possible, Jersey Boys feels much more honest and authentic. It is not about lavish sets or costumes; it's about shining a spotlight on the music and the triumph of music over adversity.

Even if you aren't moved by the biographies of Frankie Valli, Tommy DeVito, Bob Gaudio and Nick Massi, you can't help but feel a connection to their music. "Sherry," "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Walk Like a Man," "December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)," "Beggin'," and "Can't Take My Eyes Off You," are just some of the classic songs that are performed live eight times a week at Broadway's August Wilson Theatre and have audience members dancing in the aisles every single time.

Personally, one of the smartest motifs in the musical is when each member of The Four Seasons breaks the fourth wall and comments directly to the audience. Each time this occurred I rejoiced at the medium of the theatre and that I was enabled to form a more emotional connection to the musical's protagonists in this way. I can only imagine the intensity of those final breaking-the-fourth-wall confessions on the final performance on 15th January next year.

If you are interested in seeing Frankie Valli himself back on Broadway, then click HERE for tickets. He will be performing a string of concerts at Broadway's Lunt-Fontanne Theatre from 21st to 29th October 2016.

Click here for tickets to Jersey Boys for performances through to 15 January 2017 at Broadway's August Wilson Theatre.

- by Tom Millward