Chicago Tribune - Highly Recommended
"...I enjoyed this production better than some of the late tours; that’s mostly due to Metcalf, who I think should become a lot better known after people hear him sing here. He’s less polished in the Broadway sense than the many other post-Young Frankies I’ve seen and that’s all to the good. Valli (who still is touring, by the way) always was an emotional guy of quick-changing mood and that is what Metcalf reveals. Vocally, he’s distinctively fascinating and that is exactly as it is supposed to be. A killer performance, all in all, as backed by Aguilar and the other Broadway-quality principals."
Daily Herald - Highly Recommended
"...Already extended eight weeks beyond its initial eight-week run, it's a doozy of a show. Co-directed by Stearns and Libertyville's Brenda Didier, with music direction by Dizon and Linda Madonia, Mercury Theater's "Jersey Boys" has an intimacy the aforementioned Chicago production - which played the much larger CIBC Theatre from 2007 to 2010 - lacked."
Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended
"...Jersey Boys has previously only been seen hereabouts on the palatial Broadway in Chicago houses. On the smaller Mercury stage, the ensemble serves up intensely resonant emotional nuances you never get when there's an orchestra pit and a few dozen (or hundred) people between you and the performers. Watching the Mercury's Jersey Boys is akin to seeing the show in HDTV after years of watching it on a Zenith."
Chicago Stage and Screen - Highly Recommended
"...Mercury Theater Chicago's high energy new production of the Jersey Boys: the Story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons has just the right zing for Chicago's crisp spring: it will warm you up and send you out into the night singing. Mercury Theatre is definitely the place to be to revel in the Four Seasons songbook this particular time of the year."
Let's Play Theatrical Reviews - Highly Recommended
"...The cast of Jersey Boys had better get used to staying at one hotel for a long time because the production should be at Mercury Theater Chicago for a long time. Rest the velvet Valli vocals, Metcalf. You are going to be using it a lot this year."
Around The Town Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...Over the years, we have been privileged to see many productions of “Jersey Boys”, the story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons. The Broadway In Chicago productions have always been on one of the larger theater stages of Chicago. Even the CBIC a/k/a The Schubert Theatre was a fairly large venue when compared to Chicago’s Mercury Theater, where we just witnessed a stylized, intimate version of this musical tale. Under the direction of Brenda Didier and L. Walter Stearns, and styled choreography by Christopher Chase Carter, this version was one to beat the band."
Chicago Theatre Review - Highly Recommended
"...Audiences who've seen this show before, as well as theatergoers attending this Tony Award-winning musical for the first time, are guaranteed to leave the Mercury Theater happily humming the hits of the Four Seasons. There's so much to love in this Broadway calibre Chicago production of their energetic, well-written and slickly-produced musical. The show offers a talented cast telling the backstory of an internationally popular musical group, whose falsetto lead singer and closely blended harmonies made the Four Seasons so unique. The musical's pumping, brassy musical accompaniment recreates their signature sound and keeps toes a-tapping. This joyous, powerful, heartfelt biographical story is sure to bring audiences to their feet clapping, dancing and singing along. It's a not-to-be-missed spectacle and, "Oh, What a Night!""
Buzznews.net - Highly Recommended
"...Co-directed by L. Walter Stearns and Brenda Didier, this production is every bit as good as the Broadway in Chicago sit-down. Mercury’s revival scrubs off all that Broadway gloss and presents a grittier, if not more authentic version of this Italian-American flavored drama. Is it family friendly? Sure, if you don’t mind the ubiquitous use of the F-word akin to the mob wife aesthetic of ‘The Soprano’s’."
Chicagoland Musical Theatre - Highly Recommended
"...There’s plenty sweetness to offset the sourness, for sure. Naturally, these Jersey devils sing like angels, separately and in unison. Metcalf’s Valli, the best-for-last narrator’s spot, rightfully deserves it, but I had a special sympathy for Aguilar’s DeVito, the first narrator who then becomes Mr. “I Was Here First” when his street smarts can’t keep up with the brains behind the music industry."
PicksInSix - Highly Recommended
"...After an electrifying opening on Thursday night at Mercury Theater Chicago, "Jersey Boys," the mega-hit Tony Award-winning musical has officially launched its first regional production in Chicagoland. Get in step, folks. This will be the hot ticket to get in town!"
Life and Times - Highly Recommended
"...Now, for the first time, the show is being produced in Chicago with a Chicago cast. Housed at the Mercury Theater under the direction of L. Walter Stearns and Brenda Didier, “Jersey Boys” is the kind of spectacular that makes your skin tingle, your heart pound, and your spirits soar. Mercury Theater’s “Jersey Boys” is musical theatre ecstasy."
BroadwayWorld - Highly Recommended
"...Mercury Theater Chicago has staged a “homegrown” production of JERSEY BOYS full of Chicago heart. The bio jukebox musical has graced Chicago tour stages over the years (in fact, I had a chuckle looking back at the review of the first national tour I wrote for my high school newspaper), but this is the first staging to showcase Chicago talent — and it definitely accomplishes that goal."
