(AD – PRESS NIGHT) JERSEY BOYS UK TOUR REVIEW
HULL NEW THEATRE
MONDAY 28TH SEPTEMBER 2026 @ 7.30PM
4.5/5 ****
Although I have a love-hate relationship with jukebox musicals, I can appreciate them when they incorporate a storyline, specifically if it’s more of a biopic. Jersey Boys is up there in my top five shows, so I had to see it when it came to town on the latest UK tour. Here’s my Jersey Boys UK tour review.
PRE-SHOW THOUGHTS
As I said above, it’s one of my favourite musicals in the world. I’ve always enjoyed how the show introduces us to all four members in turn, as well as a chronological look at their discography. I’m sure I’ve seen it more than a few times live now, but it never gets old. I was slightly cheating with this tour, as I did see it back in July, with alternate Ellis Kirk playing Frankie Valli.
THE CAST
This cast is stacked for such a small company. In fact, I think we only get into double figures of actors, with a few additional members of the band. Luke Baker leads the cast as Frankie Valli, and his voice is powerful. I think Valli is one of the hardest roles in musical theatre, not only for the vocals, obviously, but for the sheer amount of stage time! Baker more than fills Valli’s shoes with such a presence on stage.
The show kicks off with Carlo Boumouglbay as Tommy Devito, the group’s de facto leader. I’ve always been a fan of this character despite his many flaws, and Boumouglbay’s performance is strong throughout. You get vocals, humour and dramatic acting, and he embodies, for want of a better term, Devito’s asshole character. That’s great acting!
Toby Miles is our Bob Gaudio, who really is the one who makes the Four Seasons what it is. He has a beautiful singing voice, which is often underutilised, and he has a real naivety to his character.
However, Nick Massi, played by Lewis Kennedy, is hands down my favourite character. He’s the glue of the group, despite what others might say, and Kennedy’s talent is exceptional. He’s the quiet one of the band, but he’s probably the one who gets the loudest laughs from the audience! A lot of that is down to Kennedy’s delivery.
It’s a small ensemble, with a trio of women (Artemis Chrisoulakis, Sydnie Hocknell and Olivia Mitchell), who all cover various characters throughout the musical. Each one of the cast is a triple threat, some even quadruple threats by playing their own instruments too. I particularly love Michael Levi’s portrayal of Bob Crewe, arguably one of the most successful people in the music industry.
THE PRODUCTION
The highlight of the production is easily the music. The Four Seasons have a back catalogue of songs to rival any group, with hit after hit coming right at you. The only downside is that you don’t hear all of their hits, nor do you get to hear many of them in their entirety. Some scenes work with the interjection of dialogue, whereas other scenes would be beneficial with the full song sung.
I’ve always loved the set design of the show, featuring industrial-style metal around the stage, including a platform and two sets of stairs. It gives the prison scenes some realism, but also gives it a gritty tone throughout. I do think the use of a proper backdrop would work, so you don’t always see the main staging. However, I know they’re limited with space.
There were a handful of lighting issues, with spotlights not being on the main performer for a couple of seconds, but that’s fixable. Once again, Hull New Theatre’s sound issues continue to bug me. It was difficult to hear certain performers during the show, especially Boumouglbay and Miles. However, both performers’ acting and voices mean you can let that slide.
FINAL THOUGHTS
For my sixth(?) time seeing the show, it’s timeless. Sure, I’m usually one of the younger ones in the audience, but I appreciate good music and a good musical. It’s far from perfect (more music would always be a plus for me), but this tour is solid. Every actor and musician is up there with the best; the characterisation is particularly strong, and their voices blend beautifully.
If you enjoyed this post about my Jersey Boys UK tour review, you can catch the show on tour until next August. I already have Leeds and Sheffield dates booked!
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