The McAninch Arts Center (MAC) welcomes the return of The Midtown Men for a special holiday concert at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2. The four stars of the original cast of Broadway’s smash hit “Jersey Boys” celebrate “this most wonderful time of the year” with holiday classics including “Winter Wonderland,” “Let It Snow” and “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” plus signature renditions of some of the greatest rock ’n’ roll hits of the ‘60s. (Note: This is not a performance of and is not affiliated with the show “Jersey Boys.”)
“The Midtown Men sound as crisp as their Rat Pack-inspired suits,” says New York Daily News and The New York Times writes, “Sliding up to the microphone, the singers had the air of Rat Pack, Motown, and a nightclub act rolled into one.” The quartet has won over audiences of all ages in nearly 2,000 live shows. Their self-titled debut album, “The Midtown Men: Sixties Hits” (2011) garnered 5-star album reviews across iTunes. It was followed by their first radio single “All Alone on Christmas” (2012) with producer Steven Van Zandt and members of Springsteen’s E Street Band. In 2018 the men raised the bar once again with their explosive live record “The Midtown Men: Live in Concert!” and companion DVD/Blu-ray.
The Midtown Men are as follows:
• Christian Hoff. He won a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his performance as Tommy DeVito in “Jersey Boys,” and received Drama Desk, Drama League and Outer Critics Circle nominations. Hoff was named “The Master of Mimicry” by Entertainment Weekly.
• Michael Longoria. Longoria has starred in many productions throughout his career, including playing Frankie Valli in the Tony Award-winning “Jersey Boys.” Additional theater credits include Peter Pan in “Peter Pan & Wendy,” Chino in “West Side Story” and Baby John in the German tour of “West Side Story.”
• Daniel Reichard. After he appeared as Bob Gaudio in “Jersey Boys,” Reichard went on to play Candide in the critically acclaimed production of “Candide” at New York City Opera and appear in the original cast of “Forbidden Broadway.”
• J. Robert Spencer. He originated the role of Nick Massi in the Tony Award-winning musical “Jersey Boys.” Spencer is also an independent film director, producer and writer, and originated the role of Dan Goodman in the critically acclaimed Broadway production of “Next to Normal,” for which he was nominated for the Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Lead Actor.
Tickets
The McAninch Arts Center, located at 425 Fawell Blvd. on the campus of College of DuPage, presents The Midtown Men at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2. Tickets are $62-$72. For tickets or more information visit www.AtTheMAC.org or call 630.942.4000. The Box Office is open from noon–6 p.m., Tuesday–Saturday and two hours prior to performances.
About the MAC
McAninch Arts Center at College of DuPage is located 25 miles west of Chicago near I-88 and I-355. It houses three indoor performance spaces (780-seat proscenium Belushi Performance Hall; 186-seat soft-thrust Playhouse Theatre; and a versatile black box Studio Theatre), outdoor Lakeside Pavilion, plus the Cleve Carney Museum of Art and classrooms for the college’s academic programming. The MAC has presented theater, music, dance and visual art to more than 1.5 million people since its opening in 1986 and typically welcomes more than 100,000 patrons from the greater Chicago area to more than 230 performances each season.
From Nov. 24 through Dec.17 the MAC Giving Tree is accepting food donations for COD Fuel Pantry, and books, candles, board games, socks/slippers and more for Metropolitan Family Services DuPage. Bring items to the MAC lobby.
The mission of the MAC is to foster enlightened educational and performance opportunities, which encourage artistic expression, establish a lasting relationship between people and art, and enrich the cultural vitality of the community. For more information about the MAC, visit www.AtTheMAC.org or @AtTheMAC on Facebook and Instagram.
Support for the McAninch Arts Center is provided in part by Bank of America, Brookdale Senior Living Glen Ellyn, the DoubleTree by Hilton Lisle/Naperville, Anonymous, Sullivan Taylor Family Trust, The DuPage Foundation, Ball Horticultural, Clayco, Enjoy Illinois, Illinois Arts Council, a state agency; JCS Arts, Health and Education Fund of the DuPage Foundation; Wight & Company, WDCB 90.9 FM and College of DuPage Foundation.
Established as a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit charitable organization in 1967, the College of DuPage Foundation raises monetary and in-kind gifts to increase access to education and to enhance cultural opportunities for the surrounding community. For more information about the College of DuPage Foundation, visit www.foundation.cod.edu or call 630.942.2462.