Features
Suing My Way Back To You
The Tony Award-winning “Jersey Boys” is based on the history of 1960s vocal group The Four Seasons. With lead singer Valli, The Four Seasons were a hit-making machine, recording No. 1 songs such as “Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Walk Like A Man” and “Rag Doll.”
But there was more gold to be mined from The Four Seasoins than 40-year-old hits and nostalgia tours. “Jersey Boys,” written by former group member Bob Gaudio with lyrics by Bob Crew and book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, debuted in La Jolla in early 2005, moved to Broadway by the end of the year and won four 2006 Tony Awards including best musical.
Evidently former cast members loved performing the old Four Seasons hits so much they kept it up after leaving the production. They tour under the name “The Boys In Concert.” Needless to say, Valli & Co. are not too happy about it.
The New York Post reports Valli, Gaudio, Brickman and Elice filed suit in a Manhattan federal court, contending “The Boys In Concert” takes so much from “Jersey Boys,” including copyrighted logos, songs and stage elements, that the concert tour might be mistaken as an official “Jersey Boys” road tour.
“Beginning with low-profile performances of songs from ‘Jersey Boys,’ defendants have now increased the scale of their performances as ‘The Boys’ to the point that they now more boldly flaunt their similarity to the production,” plaintiffs claimed in the lawsuit filed last week.
The lawsuit also demands $150,000 for each of the 10 songs performed by “The Boys In Concert” as well as all of the show’s profits plus unspecified damages for copyright infringement and unfair competition.
But it’s not just the show that’s fallen under the “Jersey Boys” legal wrath. Individual performers are also named in the suit, including Christian Hoff, who won a Tony for his work in the Broadway production, and Michael Longoria, who played Valli.
According to the Post, managers of “The Boys In Concert” have yet to publicly respond to the lawsuit.
Click here for the complete New York Post article.