Did some time in old Ohio

Well, I’ve now spent 9 weeks in Ohio (4 in Cincinnati, 4 in Cleveland, with a week of vacation in there somewhere), and I can now safely say I’ve escaped the midwest. I’m writing to you from 36,000 feet somewhere above Tennessee, on my way to our next stop: Dallas, Texas.

I use the word escape specifically. Ohio was not a cakewalk. Sure, our audiences were fantastic there, and especially got excited and vocal every time we mentioned “Ohio” (See “Welcome to Cleveland, you’re under arrest” and “The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame”). But the downtown areas of Cincinnati and Cleveland are a bit, barren, so to speak. These areas almost remind me of Downtown LA. A lot of concrete, but not a lot of action.

Cincinnati is the lesser black hole of the two, with some decent food and bar options in walking distance, as well as exciting things like “The Taste of Cincinnati”, which is a food festival downtown. Also, don’t forget the monumental Grater’s Ice Cream (I did not try the Sky Chili because I am not partial to chili or mountains of cheese). But try to venture out of a 4-5 block radius downtown, and you’re in a more dangerous area.

Cleveland was a bit more barren, where as the only thing around was the theater district. Sure, there’s the Warehouse District, and the House of Blues area, but it wasn’t as accessible as in other cities. Otherwise, Cleveland is going through a bit of restructuring. There’s constant construction on the main street, which has forced almost all commerce and people away from that community. So, most of us stayed at The Reserve Square, which many of us called “The BioSphere” because almost everything you would need was in the same building: doctors, a grocery market, a bar, a Subway, a [dirty] gym, and a free, thrice weekly yoga class (Thank you Jane!).

The real action in Ohio exists outside the downtown areas, in the suburbs. I got to see a lot of suburban Ohio, but I’ll leave that for later in the post.

So, there isn’t much to report on the cities of Ohio. Most of the action was happening in Jersey Boys itself. The first of which was the loss of our Lorraine, Holly Anne Butler. She gave her notice, and left at the end of Cincinnati. She had a great run, and we will miss her energy and spark. The second was our original Frankie, Chris Jones. You sir, are a warm, friendly spirit, with the work ethic of a freight train (the guy hardly ever called out!), and was always a pleasure to work with. I’ll miss you a lot, and I’ll see you both when I get out to New York. For those of you who don’t know, Chris Jones is now doing “Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” with his Amazing, Technicolor wife Jenna Coker-Jones at Stages in St. Louis.

Holly Anne was replaced by our very own Sarah Darling (formerly Francine), and Chris Jones was replaced by our very (relative - see Vegas) own Joe Bwarie. They both have embraced the roles, and are wowing crowds with their new takes on the characters. To replace Sarah is a new hire, Miss Denise Payne. Denise is a great addition, and is a fun, bubbly energy on stage. You will all adore her.

And then, in Cincinnati, Miles got “the call”. The role of Norm “The Bag” Waxman on Broadway was played by Donnie Kher. But Donnie found a new job. So they called Miles “The Guitar” Aubrey to replace him. And we couldn’t be more excited for the guy! He’s off to join his wife in New York, and start a fantastic new life. And by wife, I mean Eric Gutman.

Just kidding. But Joe and Charlie are back together again. Hooray!

So, the reshuffling continues. To replace Miles, we have none other than our resident jokester-du-jour Buck Hujabre (who formerly played Knuckles) to take the mustache, collect the vig, and jam it up on guitar as Charlie Colello. To replace Buck, we have the new John Gardnier, who is a fantastic Knuckles, and a bright spirit. Congrats to everyone!

So, it’s a bunch of new faces, which is good. And Dallas won’t know what hit it when we blow into town!

This is getting long. Shall we continue?

To fill my time in Ohio, I booked a bunch of teaching gigs, including dance classes and improv classes (I’ve been doing improv for about a decade. Great to learn, and in my opinion, essential training for actors). So through my teaching gigs, I got to see the suburbs of Ohio, and work with the up-and-coming creatives. This included a week long session in Cleveland with the kids of the “Jersey Boys Camp”. Almost all the Jersey Boys Cast members came in and taught a class to the high-school aged students. The students were fantastic, and always surprised us with their creativity, warmth, and skill. And Dallas, if you want to book a class with us, contact our teaching agent at Broadway Connection. I love to teach, and it’s a great way to share what I’ve learned throughout the years.

I also made a venture to my family in Columbus, Ohio. My mother’s side of the family has roots there, and almost all of them are still there. My mother’s cousin was my proverbial “ship-director”, and we had a great time together having family dinners, visiting with relatives, and even taking a yoga class together. She also invited myself and a few cast members up to Catawba Island for some July 4th festivites. I couldn’t have asked for anything more!

Well, I think that’s all to report, other than, on my way out, quickly seeing a midnight screening of The Dark Knight (great), and a day later, Mamma Mia (make your own opinions on that one).

Time to head to Dallas for some heat, good-ol’ southern cookin’, and mechanical bull rides!

Did I misspell anything? I think so.