Jersey Boys

Although they haven't had a hit single since the mid-1970s, the music of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons is everywhere—songs such as "Sherry," "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Oh What a Night" and "Can't Take My Eyes Off of You" are American staples. So it is only fitting that the group's tunes be heard on Broadway, as it will in Jersey Boys, a bio musical about the Jersey natives, using the group's song catalog.

"We hear all the time the phrase 'based on a true story,'" explains Rick Elice, who co-wrote the Jersey Boys libretto with Marshall Brickman. "What appealed to me instantly about these guys and everything they went through was the notion that we would, very honestly, be able to say 'based on a good story.'"

Jersey Boys centers on a bunch of street-wise guys who rose to the top of the pop charts. Characters do not sing to each other—songs are presented in realistic settings such as a recording studio or nightclub. "While our show tells the story of this particular band, it's hard not to be touched by those eternal issues of wanting to belong, wanting to achieve, wanting to be respected, wanting to find home," Elice adds.

The tuner was one of the biggest hits in the history of La Jolla Playhouse during its premiere there last year. "I've never been in a show that has been received with such enthusiasm," Jersey Boys cast member Daniel Reichard who plays Bob Gaudio, the songwriter of the four says. "From the first performance [at La Jolla], we were getting huge ovations in the theater, but by the end of the run, we were getting ovations in the lobby after the show. People who have seen the show seem to identify with it a lot. This is a story that deserves to be told."

JERSEY BOYS WHERE: Virginia Theatre, 245 West 52nd Street WHEN: Starts October 3, opens November 6