(TOMS RIVER, NJ) -- Doo wop fans lookin’ for an echo make their way inside Toms River, NJ’s Grunin Center for the Arts auditorium this Sunday, August 30, 2026 afternoon for the first of two sold-out Echos of the Street performances by The Doo Wop Project.
The Doo Wop Project is a vocal group dedicated to preserving and expanding the genre of doo wop music. The ensemble is comprised of five talented Broadway performers who have appeared in shows such as Jersey Boys, Motown: The Musical, and Beautiful: The Carole King Musical.
The lights dim and Grunin Center Executive and Artistic Director Heidi Sheridan welcomes the crowd and introduces The Doo Wop Project. John Michael Dias, Russell Fischer, Charl Brown, Dominic Nolfi, and Dwayne Cooper take the stage along with saxophonist Doug DeHayes, bassist Yuka Tadano, drummer Joe Bergamini, and musical director/pianist Sonny Paladino.
Opening with The Del-Vikings’ “Whispering Bells,” doo wop harmonies shine around the song’s “Bring my baby back to me” refrain. Segueing into The Capris’ “Morse Code of Love,” music lovers joyfully clap along with the group as they dance and sing in harmony.
Segueing into the famous “Oo oo-oo, oo-oo oo-oo” intro of Bobby Day’s “Itty Bitty Pretty One,” the quintet exudes non-stop energy before musical director Sonny Paladino plays a rockin’ piano solo and the medley segues back into “Morse Code of Love” where Russell Fischer sings the high part.
After introducing themselves, the members of the Doo Wop Project perform a street corner rendition of The Tymes’ “So Much In Love” which features moving a cappella harmonies.
Fischer’s falsetto voice is featured on “Denise” before Doug DeHayes’ saxophone growls on this upbeat Randy and the Rainbows’ rocker. The guys follow up with a swinging version of Michael Jackson’s “The Way You Make Me Feel.”
Charl Brown chats with the crowd, telling them that he played the role of Smokey Robinson in Motown: The Musical before lighting up the stage singing with style on a soulful interpretation of Robinson’s composition for The Temptations, “My Girl.”
Dominic Nolfi talks about growing up in California where he learned about doo wop from movies and trips to the local music store. Launching into The Moonglows’ “Sincerely,” Nolfi sings lead while his colleagues expertly “Ba-doh, ba-doh” and “Ee-oo” behind him.
Dwayne Cooper explains how one of the major goals of The Doo Wop Project is to “keep doo wop alive” — an objective which inspires the group to “doowop-ify” various types of songs. Here, Cooper sings and comically dances across the stage as the singers share the lead on a doowop-ified version of Taylor Swift’s “Shake It Off.”
The crowd cheers and the ensemble continues with a swinging version of The Del-Vikings’ “Come Go With Me” where DeHayes renders a rollicking sax solo and Paladino plays a boogie woogie piano solo.
On a Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons tribute medley, Fischer’s falsetto carries “Sherry” and Fischer and John Michael Dias — who each played Valli on Broadway — split the lead on “Big Girls Don’t Cry” where the audience happily joins in echo-singing on the tune’s “They don’t cry” lyric.
Brown jokes, “Two Frankies for the price of one!” before Fischer reveals that while growing up in the Garden State he got a large part of his musical education listening to “WCBS-FM radio 101.1’s Cousin Brucie” prior to making his Broadway debut in Jersey Boys. Driving drums and tight background vocals support Fischer’s lead on The Four Seasons’ “Dawn.”
Dias talks about auditioning 13 times for Jersey Boys before being chosen for the Chicago cast of the show and later playing the role of Neil Sedaka in Beautiful: The Carole King Musical on Broadway.
Starting off with the ballad version of Sedaka’s “Breaking Up is Hard to Do,” the arrangement shifts into the upbeat “Down dooby doo down down” rendition to hoots and hollers from the crowd.
Cooper demonstrates his vocal range singing lead on a doowop-ified version of Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky” as the group dances to the groove. The guys continue with a doowop-ified arrangement of Garth Brooks’ “Friends in Low Places” where they execute a country line dance to avid whistles and applause.
Changing the mood, the singers get serious as they perform “Somewhere” from West Side Story, each taking a turn singing lead on this dynamic ballad. Next, rich vocal harmonies ring out on an arrangement of Man of La Mancha’s “The Impossible Dream” which has audience members cheering for the group’s dramatic performance.
Cooper talks about being born in Jersey City and raised in South Carolina before acknowledging, “I love doo wop! Doo wop has brought all of us here together.” Rocketing into an upbeat arrangement of The Marcels’ “Blue Moon,” the guys sing and dance with enthusiasm and Dwayne comedically lays on the floor as he sings.
To conclude today’s performance, the guys introduce the members of their band before launching into an effervescent R&B arrangement of Amy Winehouse’s “Valerie.” The audience stands and cheers as the singers respond, “We love you, New Jersey!”
For an encore, Brown invites concertgoers to turn on their phone flashlights and sway to the music of Kenny Vance’s “Looking for an Echo” prior to shifting into a glittering rendition of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons’ “December, 1963 (Oh What a Night).”
Music lovers stand, clap, and dance along to the infectious arrangement as Cooper exclaims, “Ain’t no party like a Toms River party!” and concludes the show by stating, “We are The Doo Wop Project! Thanks and good night!”
As concertgoers make their way out of the theater, several share their thoughts on today’s performance by The Doo Wop Project. Comments Pat from Howell, “They were wonderful! The guys were very energetic and clearly love what they’re doing!”
Remarks Anthony from Newark, “I’m an old-timer — part of the last generation that actually grew up with this kind of music — and today’s show brought back a lot of memories for me.” His wife, Ellen, agrees, exclaiming, “It was excellent!”
Rosemary from Irvington reveals, “This was my fourth time seeing The Doo Wop Project and they were as great as ever!” Whereas Dennis from Brooklyn, NY, insists, “The show was phenomenal!” Kasey from Staten Island, NY, declares, “This is my fifth time seeing The Doo Wop Project and they were better than ever! They’re great guys who always put on a great show!”
Patricia from Lakewood acknowledges, “This is the first time I’ve ever seen The Doo Wop Project and I’m so happy I came — I’ll be following them!” Her husband, Don, concurs, adding, “The show was fantastic! It was a great way to spend an afternoon.”
Lastly, while Rose from Monroe confesses, “I don’t usually like doo wop, but I liked this concert very much,” her husband, Bob, asserts, “This is one of the best shows I’ve seen in a long, long time — The Doo Wop Project performers are excellent!” prior to concluding, “I’d spend a fortune to see them any day — they were that good!”
To learn more about The Doo Wop Project please go to thedoowopproject.com. For information on upcoming performances at the Grunin Center — including John Pizzarelli on October 2, Veronica Swift on October 15, Magical Mystery Doors on October 24, The Chris Pinnella Big Band on November 6, and Judy Collins’ Sweet Judy Blue Eyes: Farewell Concert on December 9 — please click on grunincenter.org.
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