‘Jersey Boys’ offers surprising amount of heart

Jersey Boys" proves the show-biz bio still may have a few surprises in it . The expert production that just opened at the Palazzo -- about, as if anyone still didn't know, the ups and downs of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons -- is, as expected, exciting in its musicianship and staging. The surprise for me is its heart.

The recent popularity of the jukebox musical -- building a plot around a singing group's repertoire -- hasn't resulted in an explosion of memorable scripts. But book writers Marshall Brickman (co-writer of "Annie Hall") and Rick Elice infuse the story with an unusual dose of humanity. Sure, they use the pop songs to slightly mock the time period, but the laughs take a back seat to the emotional tugs of war that are going on between and within the characters. I found myself wanting to argue back. I wanted to say, "Hey, Frankie, couldn't you have forgiven Tommy? Didn't maybe Tommy do more for you than you're willing to admit? Why did you stand him up at his party in the end?"

I don't criticize the show for any of this (though I'd argue the second act bounces past so many traumas that it borders on soap opera). I'm just trying to illustrate how much it made me feel, much to its credit, as if I were in the middle of a family quarrel. I wanted to mediate. Anyone who's ever had a mentor, or been a mentor, likely understands the terrible parting of ways that can occur when the mentoring process is over.

I felt Tommy's pain. I wanted to see more from his viewpoint. And I wanted him and Frankie to sit down and talk. Instead, they just kept on singing. ...

Former University of Nevada, Las Vegas Graduate Playwriting Program chief Julie Jensen has a nifty, easy-to-read book called "Playwriting: Brief & Brilliant." It's for budding writers who don't like to read. It can be devoured in about half an hour, but should be kept permanently for reference. Typical of its common sense approach: "Characters should want something from a scene. And what they should want should be pretty specific and definable. What's more, those wants should be at least slightly at odds with the wants of others." Considering how many original plays I see and read that are short on conflict, this is great advice. ...

Las Vegas Little Theatre is offering two free performances of "Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead" for students aged 16 and above at 1 p.m. Saturday and May 17 at the Fischer Black Box. Tickets are first come, first served, with the box office opening at noon. One ticket per student ID. A discussion will follow the shows.

Anthony Del Valle can be reached at DelValle@aol.com. You can write him c/o Las Vegas Review-Journal, P.O. Box 70, Las Vegas, NV 89125.