Jersey Boys

"Jersey Boys," the 2005 juggernaut of a jukebox musical, has descended once again on Boston to give Baby Boomers throughout the city their dose of nostalgia.

The Tony award winning musical provides a sort of live "VH1 Behind the Music" special outlining the career of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. And with over 30 numbers over the course of two and a half hours, it is a night full of music.

There is no way to do a show about the Four Seasons without four men that can truly recreate THAT sound. This is where the production is most successful. Aaron de Jesus as does an outstanding job of capturing Frankie's signature nasal falsetto throughout without ever missing a beat.

The remaining men -- Matthew Dailey as Tommy DeVito, Keith Hines as Nick Massi, and Cory Jeacoma as Bob Gaudio - fill out the quartet nicely. In the couple of moments that Frankie is not singing lead, Mr. Jeacoma really shines on "Cry for Me" and "December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)." And although Mr. Hines lower register is a bit thin, he provides a nice grounding to the quartet.

All of that said; there is really not much else to say about the show. The story is slight and utterly predictable. The characters are nothing more than stereotypes that verge on offensive. (Which is truly concerning since they are based upon real people.) How it won "Best Musical" is entirely baffling.

In the end, it is little more than a very talented cover band performing an overly long amusement park revue.

Yet despite this, the show is a hit with audiences. People LOVE it. Perhaps it is because, in the current turbulence of this world, it is that rare moment of pure escapism. A chance to sit back and enjoy some really great music performed by some really good musicians.

Though some of us would be just as happy sitting at home and putting on the record.

"Jersey Boys" continues through October 16, 2016 at the Boston Opera House, 538 Washington Street, Boston, MA. For further information, the Broadway in Boston website.