Direct from its humble start as a “little musical” at La Jolla Playhouse, “Jersey Boys” conquered Broadway in 2005 and hasn’t looked back. The latest national tour of the musical inspired by Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons returns to Washington for the holidays. Ron Melrose, the music director and vocal arranger, was one of the geniuses behind the production from its beginning. As the one responsible for keeping all six shows on the same page at all times, he rotates between the companies to make certain that every element is intact. During the 12 weeks while the new tour has been forming and rehearsing, he is constantly in hands-on mode.
“There are two aspects of the show that must be done exactly right to maintain integrity,” he said. “First of all, the story-telling must be fresh. Even though the cast is telling the same story night after night, they can’t fall back. Secondly, it’s put together so intricately on every level that nothing varies, not the lighting, sound cues, musical closings or any other aspect. Everything works like a Swiss watch.”
| Onstage |
| ‘Jersey Boys’ |
| » Where: National Theatre |
| » When: Thursday through January 7, 2012 |
| » Info: $83 to $229 at 800-447-7400 or nationaltheatre.org/tickets |
Joseph Leo Bwarie returns to Washington as Frankie Valli, continuing a four-year turn during which he opened the Las Vegas and Toronto shows and toured more than 40 cities. Along the way, he performed on the Tony Awards and Academy Awards shows, released his debut album and appeared in three films, including “Race to Witch Mountain” playing his alter ego, Frankie Valet.
Melrose emphasizes that Bwarie and his counterparts around the world train like athletes. Even though each has a fine traditional singing voice, “Jersey Boys” requires them to sing in an iconic falsetto voice. Constant singing in that register can easily harm the vocal chords, so they work regularly with New York vocal coach Katie Agresta.
As music director, Melrose has prepared 30 of the 45 conductors of the show. While jetting around the world to evaluate each company, he sometimes tweaks the arrangements to suit the personnel. Several of the actors also play instruments on stage. Everything is live, not dubbed, so when the actor cast as Norm in the Chicago company played drums better than the one playing Knuckles, Melrose switched their instruments.
Melrose’s latest success is a follow up to the cast album that went platinum. “I was sitting in the Las Vegas theater watching the ushers go up and down the aisles with the cast albums when I began wondering how it could be topped,” he said. “All of a sudden, it occurred to me that we could cut a ‘Jersey Boys’ Christmas album.
“The greatest reward for me every day is the experience of being a big part of a show that is so well crafted and works for the audience. It’s a good time all around.”
