Gareth Gates sings Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons

Last night, Gareth Gates took to The Bridgewater Hall to celebrate all things Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons. Along with Gareth, a stellar cast of West End stars made up the iconic vocal group, creating a fantastic tribute act to the beloved boys from Jersey.

I have to say that ever since seeing Jersey Boys, I’ve become a huge fan of the style of music from this era - it’s classy, upbeat and just so good. Add in Gareth Gates to the mix, which my five year old self would be screaming at (I loved the Spirit in The Sky spiky hair), and we were in for a great Friday evening. 

The show takes you on a journey through the era of Frankie Valli, sharing anecdotes and stories in a similar style to the musical, Jersey Boys. It’s a fantastic mix of music from this era and celebrates the famous artists from the time, including tributes to Elvis and Frank Sinatra. I find that sometimes the word “tribute” doesn’t do the performers any justice, and this was an excellent take on the music and performed in the style of The Four Seasons. The harmonies and voices of the cast were brilliant, so smooth and worked together wonderfully. 

Led by Gareth Gates, the cast included ex-Jersey Boys star Michael Conway (Jersey Boys, Pirates of Penzance, Flashdance The Musical) who absolutely blew the audience away with his incredible voice. And this could be said for the whole cast, it was a real treat to hear them sing. The range of voices meant they could nail those classic high-pitched Frankie Valli harmonies. The banter between the group on stage gave us all a good chuckle in between songs too, they looked like they were having a ball. 

The live band was excellent and the acoustics of The Bridgewater Hall amplified the music even more - you could just see smiles on people’s faces as they relaxed, danced and sang along to the legendary tunes. You can expect all the big hits with songs including ‘Big Girls Don’t Cry’ and ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’ on the set list. In fact, I overheard someone in the audience say “that’s the first record I ever bought” when Gareth took to the stage to perform a stripped back rendition of Elvis’ “Can't Help Falling In Love With You”, so some audience members were really loving the nostalgia of the show.  

For any fans of the Pop Idol sensation, Gareth even treated the audience to a performance of his first number 1 ‘Unchained Melody’ and, my personal favourite, ‘Spirit In The Sky’. You can’t help but clap along and enjoy yourself, particularly during the second act where the audience was getting up on their feet as the upbeat songs kicked in. 

Whether you’re a Gareth Gates fan, Jersey Boys lover or just enjoy the music of this era, Gareth Gates Sings Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons is a great way to spend an evening and you’ll leave the theatre with a huge smile on your face.

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