The four stars of the original cast of "Jersey Boys' will perform at Symphony Hall on Friday.
The Midtown MenOh, what a night it promises to be on Friday when The Midtown Men bring their critically-lauded evening of musical nostalgia to Springfield’s Symphony Hall.
The Midtown Men are the four stars from the original cast of “Jersey Boys” – Tony Award-winner Christian Hoff, Michael Longoria, Daniel Reichard and Tony Award-nominee J. Robert Spencer – whose concert tour reunites the four stars from the original cast of Broadway’s “Jersey Boys” as they celebrate the music that defined the 1960s.
“It’s going to be a fun, random, crazy night featuring our favorite songs from the sixties and from ‘Jersey Boys,’ along with stories about our days with the Broadway play,” said Michael Longoria, who played the role of Frankie Valli in “Jersey Boys.”
During their time as part of the hit musical “Jersey Boys,” the four talented artists shared the stage for over a thousand performances and have appeared on the Today Show, The Late Show with David Letterman, and Dick Clark’s Rockin’ New Year’s Eve, among many others. They also performed at Radio City Music Hall, Carnegie Hall, Yankee Stadium and “Broadway on Broadway” in Times Square and are featured on the show’s Grammy Award-winning album.
Now, the four Broadway performers are taking their unique sound and chemistry they developed while on stage during “Jersey Boys” on the road, singing the hits of the Beatles, Beach Boys, Jackson Five, Mamas and the Papas, and, of course, the Four Seasons featuring Frankie Valli.
“During the three years we spent together singing the music of the Four Seasons on Broadway, we couldn’t help but get inspired by other artists from the same time period,” said Longoria.
“We all had dressing rooms where we would do anything to help get us into the mood of the sixties before going on stage. A lot of times we would put music on our iPods….and listening to wonderful groups from that time period that got you into the mood,” he added.
Longoria noted his favorite sounds from the sixties include anything Motown, “especially Smokey Robinson,” while he said Reichard “loves” the Mamas and the Papas, Spencer is partial to Motown’s Marvin Gaye, and Hoff enjoys the Turtles. He also said they will be putting their own spin into the hits they will be singing including the “Broadway tight harmony” style they learned while starring in “Jersey Boys.”
“We find that we are singing to the same audience generation-wise who grew up with these songs. Not a show goes by where someone doesn’t tell us that we brought back so many memories for them, whether sitting in the backseat of the car with their girlfriend or when they heard ‘Sherry’ for the first time. And, that is what music does, it gives identity to a time period in everyone’s life. For example, the song ‘California Dreaming’ by the Mamas and the Papas evokes a certain memory in your mind, but not all songs have the power to do that, and that is what is so special about our repertoire on Friday night,” said Longoria.
Hollywood born but Broadway bound, Longoria trained at the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts before making his way east to attend NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, where he earned a BFA in Drama. He made his Broadway debut in the hit musical “Hairspray,” later creating the role of Joey in the original Broadway cast of “Jersey Boys,” which won a Tony in 2006 for Best Musical. Longoria has also appeared on television in “Broadway Under The Stars: A Tribute To Harold Prince,” and “America’s Got Talent” season nine finale with Susan Boyle and Shakira.
“I’ve always been in the arts and the first year after getting out of school I got into ‘Hairspray’ where I was in the ensemble playing one of the kids who danced on the television show. I did that for almost two years. It’s ironic that ‘Hairspray’ was right across from the theater where ‘Jersey Boys’ opened, so I only had to move my belongings from one dressing room across to another,” said Longoria.
As for the future, Longoria said the Midtown Men are going strong right now and he is committed to touring with them.
“I’m having a great time…..we’re all having a great time….on the road singing all these wonderful songs. I know that at some point I will return to Broadway, it’s just a matter of when the right project comes along,” said Longoria.