For fans of Jersey Boys, the opportunity to see the original Australian quartet back together on stage was a reason enough to make the trip to St Kilda’s Palais Theatre. Jersey Forever reunites Bobby Fox, Glaston Toft, Scott Johnson and Stephen Mahy for an evening of Four Seasons favourites, familiar stories and the songs that made their 2009 Australian production such a success.
Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons (Valli, Bob Gaudio, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi) were among the defining American vocal groups of the 1960s, distinguished by their tightly constructed harmonies, polished arrangements and Valli’s distinctive falsetto.
Their remarkable story was brought to the stage in Jersey Boys, which premiered on Broadway in 2005. The musical charted the group’s journey from working-class New Jersey to international success, while exploring the relationships and tensions behind the music.
The Australian production, which opened in 2009, became a major theatrical success, with the original quartet eventually performing to more than one million people. Jersey Forever provides an opportunity to revisit that era, with the four performers themselves at the centre.
Backed by an eight-piece band led by musical director Jack Earle, the smartly dressed Fox, Toft, Johnson and Mahy move comfortably through a selection of Four Seasons favourites, including Sherry, Big Girls Don’t Cry, Walk Like a Man, My Eyes Adored You, Can’t Take My Eyes Off You, Let’s Hang On! and Working My Way Back to You.
The strength of the evening is the vocal interplay between the four. Having performed this repertoire extensively, they have an instinctive understanding of the arrangements, with the individual voices coming together particularly well in the familiar four-part harmonies.
There is also plenty of room for personality. Between songs, the performers share anecdotes from their time in Jersey Boys, including their audition experiences, meeting Frankie Valli and encounters with some of the high-profile figures they crossed paths with during the production. These stories provide a relaxed connection between the songs and offer some insight into what it was like to be part of a production that became such a significant Australian theatrical success.
The repertoire extends beyond Jersey Boys, with the quartet taking on Grease, written by Barry Gibb for the 1978 film and recorded by Frankie Valli, as well as the Bee Gees’ More Than a Woman. Billy Joel’s Uptown Girl, deliberately written in the style of the early Four Seasons sound, is another natural fit.
One of the more enjoyable departures is Earth Angel, the 1954 doo-wop classic, performed a cappella. Without the backing of the band, the arrangement puts the focus firmly on the four voices and their ability to blend (though it was evident, some in the audience were not used to this style of performance).
Opening the evening is Ruva Ngwenya, whose powerful vocals are familiar to audiences from her performance as Tina Turner in TINA: The Tina Turner Musical. Accompanied by Earle’s band and dancers Mikhaela Schreuder and Emily Lodge, Ngwenya launches the evening with River Deep, Mountain High, Proud Mary and (Simply) The Best. It is a confident set that establishes the concert atmosphere before the Jersey boys take over.
The production is supported by strong technical elements. Jason Bovaird’s lighting design is spectacular, shifting from atmospheric washes to full concert brilliance, adding considerable energy to the performance. Tim Lonergan’s sound ensured the vocals remained crisp and prominent while allowing Earle’s eight-piece band to provide a suitably muscular foundation.
The evening concludes, appropriately, with Oh, What a Night (December 1963), the Four Seasons’ 1975 hit written by Bob Gaudio and Judy Parker. It provides a fitting finale to a concert built around songs that have remained remarkably durable.
Jersey Forever
Palais Theatre, Lower Esplanade, St Kilda
Performance: Friday 7 August 2026
Information: www.jerseyforever.com.au
Jersey Forever will also be presented at the Coliseum Theatre, Western Sydney, on Saturday 12 September 2026. Further dates to be announced.
Images: Bobby Fox, Stephen Mahy, Scott Johnson and Glaston Toft in Jersey Forever – photo by Grant Alexander | Glaston Toft, Scott Johnson, Stephen Mahy and Bobby Fox in Jersey Forever – photo by Grant Alexander | Scott Johnson, Glaston Toft, Bobby Fox and Stephen Mahy in Jersey Forever – photo by Grant Alexander | Ruva Ngwenya and Dancers (Mikhaela Schreuder and Emily Lodge) in Jersey Forever – photo by Grant Alexander
Review: Rohan Shearn