Four Seasons back for show at Primm

Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons' live show Saturday at Star of the Desert Arena in Primm costs two and a half times less to see than the musical about the group at the Palazzo, and is 45 minutes farther away. Is Valli -- making his first appearance since "Jersey Boys" opened here in 2008 -- being lapped by his younger fictional self?

"I don't feel as though I'm competing," says Valli, 76. "You go see the play and you learn about the life, and the reality is that when you go to see the real thing, you're seeing the real thing -- not somebody imitating him."

As Valli speaks on the phone from his Los Angeles home, there is only the slightest hint of a New Jersey accent and certainly none of the soaring falsetto he imprinted on rock music from 1962's "Sherry" through 1978's "Grease." (The singer charted 29 Top 40 hits with the Four Seasons, nine as a solo act.)

"Every one of those songs has been good for me," says Valli, who plans to perform a good chunk of them in Primm with his group -- none of whom are original Four Seasons members.

Valli last tried his performing luck in Las Vegas in 2005, the year "Jersey Boys" opened on Broadway and became a smash hit. His live runs at Luxor and Flamingo were both cut short.

"Vegas has become a totally different thing," Valli says. "I remember when you'd go up and down the Strip and every marquee had a star. It isn't like that anymore. They're production shows.

"I don't know why anybody would rather see a production show than see a live performer doing all the things he did in his life that created success for him."

Valli, a part owner of "Jersey Boys," doesn't consider it a production show.

"My show is a Broadway play and there's a big difference," he says. "It's the story of a man's life and the people he was with and what they went through to become successful.

"All the other shows are lions and tigers and trapeze, and very few people say anything."

On an off night in town, Valli hints that he might grace the Palazzo's Jersey Boys Theatre for a curtain call.

"Whenever I get a chance to, I go by to see the show," he says. "I think this kid, Rick Faugno, is an incredible performer. I think he's good enough to have success of his own."

After Primm, the Four Seasons have six more U.S. concert dates scheduled through February.

"I think that I probably have nothing better to do," Valli says, laughing. "And I make money doing it and I love to do it. I just love to be out in front of an audience.

"And really, I think about it all the time, what else would I do?"

Contact reporter Corey Levitan at clevitan@ reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0456.