Jersey Booys II.jpg cutline: The Jersey Boys are from left Derek DeVlieger as Frankie Valli, Titus Miller as Bob Gaudio, Michael Correy as Tommie Devito, and Jeremy Fuller as Nick Massi. Submitted photo

Growing up, Derek DeVlieger listened to, and was a fan of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, so much so, when he learned of “Jersey Boys” auditions, he didn’t hesitate to sign up.

He landed the part of Frankie Valli, complete with the clear falsetto, for which Valli is known.

“I pursued the part of Franki Valli because pretty much my entire life I’ve been a Frankie Valli fan,” DeVlieger said during a break from show rehearsals at The Lucille Ball Little Theater.

“I am kind of an old soul a little bit when it comes to my musical tastes. As soon as I heard about the show, I had to come down and audition for it. I am a huge, huge fan of the music. I can’t state that enough,” DeVlieger said.

He is attracted to the show not only because of the music, but how the songs and scenes are intertwined with each other where the scenes rely on the songs and songs rely on the scenes to tell and move the story along.

According to the theater’s website lbltj.com, Jersey Boys takes you behind the music of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons to discover the secret of a 40-year friendship as the foursome work their way from the streets of New Jersey to the heights of stardom. They had a look, an attitude, and a sound like no other. Sure, they were born in Jersey. But they were made in America.

Jersey Boys I.jpg cutline: From left, Jeremy Fuller, Steve Wendell, Titus Miller, and Derek DeVlieger rehearse a scene from “Jersey Boys” at The Lucille Ball Little Theater Of Jamestown.
P-J photo by Michael Zabrodsky

DeVlieger said all of the band’s popular songs are played throughout the show, and many people who will come and see the show also have grown up with the music or have heard it throughout their lives.

Theater President Holly Weston said that going into a full season that is not hampered by COVID-19, her goal is to make people comfortable again going to live theater.

“We needed something really exciting, and name recognition to really get people out, and remember why they love coming to see theater, and that was a big motivator behind the shows that we selected for the whole season,” Weston said.

Weston said one aspect that drew her to “Jersey Boys” is that with each show, each actor becomes someone else, but it is very rare that in a show actors portray people who are so well-known. “Those are very well-known figures that our actors have to become, outside of who they are and perform as through the show, so that’s an interesting piece that you don’t always get,” Weston said.

Weston said a pre-recorded performance track will be used during the show, but is very rare that shows at the theater use the tracks. With performance tracks, there is a predertimined pace that the actors have to stick to because there is no time during the show that it can be slowed down or sped up to accommodate timing issues.

“That is the hardest thing about using performance tracks,” Weston said. “It is very rare for us to do it (use performance tracks). It was just sort of the situation we were in with conflicting schedules for a lot of our local musicians, and it’s one of those shows where you really have to have it (the music) spot on,” Weston said.

Weston noted that the rags to riches storyline still resonates with the current culture. “The timeless nature of this story of rags to riches, (shows) the challenges that we all face in the day-to-day, whether it’s with our co-workers or with our family members. We all experience those moments where you have to find a way to compromise and move on, and if you can’t, unfortunately, things fall apart, but more often than not, you really do have to learn how to compromise in life, and this really shows that with sing and dancing along the way,” Weston added.

Assistant Producer Kris Johnson said she is part of the show because she loves helping out the cast, but it’s mostly her love for musicals. “We block everything,” Johnson said about preparing for the show with Director Adam Owens. Blocking is working out the details of the actors’ moves in relation to the audience.

Here is the list of the rest of the cast members and who they portray:

Titus Miller as Bob Gaudio; Michael Correy as Tommy Devito; Jeremy Fuller as Nick Massi; Tristan Spillane as Joey (and others); Kate Meszaros as Mary (and others); Claire Johnson as Lorraine (and others); Ayri Brady as Francine (and others); Vince Joy as Gyo Decarlo (and others); Steve Wendell as Bob Crewe (and others); Victor Fernandez as Norm Waxman (and others); Colette Bonavita as Frankie’s Mom (and others); Allison Johnson as Nurse (and others); Holland Isaacson as French Rapper (and others); Noah Goodling as a cop (and others); and Robbie Martiny as Donny (and others)

Performances are scheduled for Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m.; Sunday at 2 p.m.; May 26 and May 27 at 7:30 p.m. and May 28 at 2 p.m. The theater is located at 18 E. Second St., Jamestown. For more information on tickets please email boxoffice@LBLTJ.com.