It's a gorgeous May 20, 2024 afternoon at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, NJ where nearly 6000 New Jerseyans have gathered for a free Garden State Arts Foundation performance starring Jersey Boys’ actor/singer Dominic Scaglione, Jr. and comedian John Pizzi.
Backstage, Scaglione shares his thoughts about this afternoon’s performance, declaring, “I’m overwhelmed to be playing the PNC Bank Arts Center today!” and acknowledging, “Acting was the first thing I did — the music came secondarily for me — so when I heard they ran out of tickets for today’s show, it really said to me that this is something I should focus on and keep doing.”
In talking about his connection to Frankie Valli after playing him in Broadway’s Jersey Boys, Scaglione reveals, “I was born in Belleville, where Frankie Valli lived. I also lived in Bloomfield and West Orange, and now I live in Montclair, so I’m a real Jersey Boy!” prior to recollecting, “When Frankie Valli saw me perform, he told me he loved what I did. He said, ‘Hey man, you sound so good, but you gotta sound a little more like yourself,’ to which I said, ‘But, Frankie, I’m playing you — I’m supposed to sound like you!’”
Scaglione also reminisces about the popular vocal group he co-founded, The Doo Wop Project, recalling, “My friend, Dominic Nolfi, and I created The Doo Wop Project because we wanted to build something together even though, deep down, I always thought of myself as a solo artist. A good thing about that group is that everyone had the capacity to be a soloist, but eventually I got to the point where I wanted to branch off from it and prove this new version of myself.” He concludes by maintaining, “Before I played Frankie Valli I sang a lot of Sinatra, and that’s something I really like to do — I like to swing — so now I get to sing this kind of material with a great band and I’m loving life!”
Inside the PNC Bank Arts Center amphitheater, Garden State Arts Foundation VP Ron Gravino welcomes the crowd and thanks Live Nation Entertainment and PNC Bank along with Cookie Santiago, Bob O’Brien, and GASF founding members George Zilocchi and Pat Horan for their help in putting together 40 years of free GSAF performances for New Jersey residents.
Gravino also welcomes this afternoon’s opening act to the stage, comedian John Pizzi — who jokingly refers to himself as “the world’s greatest comedian in my price range” — and entertains the audience with rapid-fire jokes which elicit giggles and loud guffaws from the crowd.
Pizzi introduces the audience to “the oldest man in the world” — his ventriloquist puppet, Uncle Smiley — who makes fun of concertgoers much to their surprise and the crowd’s delight.
Although Smiley’s comments are based on the age, appearance, and nationality of a variety of audience members, Pizzi presents his humor in such a way that it makes fun of literally everyone so as not to offend anyone.
Pizzi also introduces the crowd to his puppet, Andy, a lovable bad boy with a no-holds-barred response to anything going on around him. The audience is impressed when Pizzi performs “You’re the Best,” a parody of the Disney song, “Be Our Guest,” where he switches seamlessly between his own singing voice and Andy’s singing voice.
Pizzi selects a volunteer from the crowd, Bill, to join him on stage and dresses him up with a special “big mouth” that is manipulated and voiced by Pizzi. Bill is especially funny when he sits on Pizzi’s knee and “sings” with him.
Pizzi ends his performance by acknowledging that although his act insults many different people in jest, everyone can enjoy his humor because, as he reminds them, “You’re all Americans who don’t take any s**t from anyone!”
Following intermission, saxophonist James White III, keyboardist Steve Myerson, guitarist Steve Johnson, bassist Scott Hogan, and drummer Kevin Soffera — take their places on stage and begin to play as Dominic Scaglione, Jr. makes his entrance performing Dion’s “Runaround Sue.”
Singing with style in his rich, full voice, Scaglione croons, “I should have known it from the very start/This girl would leave me with a broken heart” as he dances across the stage to the rhythm of the rocking band.
The audience cheers, and Scaglione says, “How’s everybody doing out there? What an incredible crowd!” before segueing into Little Caesar and the Romans’ “Those Oldies but Goodies (Remind Me of You).”
Exclaiming, “Let’s do a little more Dion!” Scaglione gets toes tapping and hands clapping to the infectious rhythm of Dion’s “The Wanderer” as he struts across the stage while James White III plays a rocking sax solo.
“How about this band behind me?” asks Scaglione as he sails into a pleading rendition of The Duprees’ “You Belong to Me” where he croons, “See the pyramids along the Nile,” and audience members sing along before breaking into large applause.
Scaglione skips across the stage performing Bobby Darin’s “Dream Lover,” prior to asking the crowd, “Do you guys know me from Jersey Boys?” The audience responds in the affirmative, and Scaglione reveals, “We’re gonna do a little more Bobby Darin! Let’s swing this place!” as he sings and dances with style and power on “Beyond the Sea,” a highlight number of his set which features a bebop-style James White III sax solo.
After introducing the members of his band, Scaglione invites the audience to sing along on a delightful interpretation of Dean Martin’s “That’s Amore,” and he and the band follow up with an upbeat rendition of Martin’s “Ain’t That a Kick in the Head.’”
Announcing, “I’m a Jersey guy — let’s swing it!” Scaglione’s resonant voice is on display on a swinging version of Frank Sinatra’s “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” which features a Nelson Riddle-inspired arrangement powered by solid percussion work by drummer Kevin Soffera.
The crowd cheers, and Dominic says, “You like Frank Sinatra? We’ll do more Frank Sinatra!” as he and the band segue into an arrangement of Sinatra’s “The Way You Look Tonight” which features tasteful playing from keyboardist Steve Myerson and guitarist Steve Johnson.
The breeze flowing through the PNC Bank Center amphitheater picks up ever so slightly as Scaglione performs his father’s favorite Frank Sinatra song, “The Summer Wind,” which quickly gets “Old Blue Eyes” fans happily singing along.
The crowd claps along to Dominic’s interpretation of Stevie Wonder’s “For Once in My Life,” and audience members dance at their seats to his version of Sinatra’s “That’s Life,” where, after he sings with power and style, “I’m gonna roll myself up in a big ball and die,” the crowd responds with animated whistles and cheers.
A funky and fast solo by bassist Scott Hogan exemplifies a line-up of instrumental solos on Antônio Carlos Jobim’s “The Girl from Ipanema,” where Scaglione switches things up for the Jersey crowd by changing the song’s lyric to “The Girl from Asbury Park.”
Another highlight of Scaglione’s set is his rendition of Frank Sinatra’s “My Way” where he commands the stage with long, legato vocal lines which inspire audience members to sing along with him before standing and avidly cheering.
Die-hard music lovers join in singing on Frankie Valli’s “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” and happily dance at their seats to Dominic’s rhythmic rendition of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons’ “December, 1963 (Oh What a Night!)”
At the song’s conclusion, Scaglione exclaims, “Oh, what a day it’s been!” and ends his show by taking a seat and crooning Frank Sinatra’s “One For My Baby (and One More for the Road)” before rising and exclaiming, “Thank you so much, everyone. I had a great time!”
For more info on Dominic Scaglione, Jr. please go to broadwaymentorsprogram.com/dominic-scaglione-jr. To learn more about John Pizzi, please click on johnpizzi.com. For info on future Garden State Arts Foundation concerts at the PNC Bank Arts Center please go to gsafoundation.org.
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