OTTUMWA — “Oh, what a night!”

That was exactly the right song to perform at the end of “Jersey Boys” now playing in Des Moines.

And, the right song to start the musical.

Wow! What a show!

The story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons comes to life on the Des Moines Civic Center stage now through July 25.

That music, those moves. It’s the late 1950s and early 60s all over again.

The four guys playing The Four Seasons are great. You’d think they had actually lived during those rock ‘n roll days, with their Jersey patter, swaggering walks and, being singers, their inclinations to burst into song around every corner.

That’s what they did, and it was great. So many songs were sung — all of the group’s hits — that it kept the show just popping.

It was interesting, and new to me, to hear the story of the New Jersey kids who became more than just one-hit wonders. They had their not so pleasant moments, from deaths, to jail time, to money struggles.

But, somehow, the group evolved and rode the crest of fame for several years, singing “Silhouettes,” “Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Walk Like a Man,” “My Boyfriend’s Back,” “Dawn,” “Bye Bye Baby, “Rag Doll” and so many others.

When Joseph Leo Bwarie, playing Frankie Valli, broke out with ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” in the second act, the audience roared its approval.

Bwarie’s voice is phenomenal. He has to be as good as Valli ever was.

The show ends telling what the three remaining stars are doing. Valli continues to sing.



q q q



From the “Jersey Boys” Friday night to the “Symphony Blast” Saturday night, it was a wonderful weekend filled with music.

It was my third trip to Burlington’s Crapo Park for the Southeast Iowa Symphony Orchestra’s annual outdoor concert held after the Fourth of July.

But, it celebrates the Fourth, complete with a great fireworks show.

Conductor Robert McConnell said that orchestra members had practiced three hours in the afternoon for the evening concert.

That’s commitment. Especially performing at night in the heat, in the band shell with the lights on.

The music was, as always, very enjoyable from the marches — including my own personal favorite used at my wedding, “Pomp and Circumstance,” to the finale: John Philip Sousa’s “Stars and Stripes Forever.”

In between were other tunes, notably the ever popular music from “Phantom of the Opera,” a crowd favorite.

The best for me is “The 1812 Overture” which included the beginning of the fireworks.

From our perch high on the bluff, we could see the red and blue lights on the pleasure boats idling in the Mississippi River to watch the fireworks show.

It’s the best, with the rockets bursting right overhead.

***

The orchestra next plays in Ottumwa at the annual POPS concert in September.