Full disclosure: I’m no theatre reviewer. Further disclosure: Prior to attending a performance of Jersey Boys at the Toronto Centre for the Arts, I couldn’t name two songs by Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons. Now, I’m not about to say that I was dragged kicking and screaming to the performance by my very much better half, but musical theatre is far higher on her list of priorities than it is on mine. Now, I may have to reevaluate.

Right from the opening number, a French hip-hop mash-up of the group’s hit “December, 1963 (Oh What a Night),” the performance rolled along with incredible energy. In fact, for someone whose attention span has been whittled down to nothing by the Internet—I have a hard time maintaining interest in hour-long dramas on TV—this show was just the ticket.

First of all, I’m not sure what lead actor Jeff Madden (“Frankie Valli”) is on, but I want stock in the company. Throughout the entire performance, his level of energy had just two settings—10 and 11.

From the character’s hardscrabble beginnings through the early struggles in show business to the heights of international stardom and the depths of personal tragedy, Madden tackled each stage of life with fervor and intensity. Couple these qualities with no small amount of ability when it came to the songs and the dance numbers, and you have all the makings of a genuine star performance. No wonder, then, that Madden grabbed this year’s Dora Mavor Moore Award for best performance by a male in a principal role.

But even though Frankie Valli was the headliner for the group, other members of the foursome certainly deserved their time in the spotlight. For my money, Quinn VanAntwerp was even more engaging as Bob Gaudio, the master songwriter of the group. Nominated for the same award his cast mate captured, VanAntwerp gave a measured yet multi-layered performance and wowed this neophyte reviewer with his vocal abilities.

The other two main actors—Daniel Robert Sullivan (“Tommy DeVito”) and Michael Lomenda (“Nick Massi”), another award-nominee—were not far behind in terms of sheer wattage. In particular, the character of Tommy was key to the story; he started the group, recruited Valli and the others, and continued to drive the group’s decisions, somewhat unintentionally, through his financial burdens. (He was also the roughest around the edges, which made him the most interesting of the four characters.)

Beyond the individual actors and their rousing performances, there were two aspects to Jersey Boys that resonated most: the sheer number of popular songs the group produced during the heyday and the very skilful way in which their story was adapted for the stage.

The net effect of hearing snippets from songs such as “Walk Like a Man,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry” and “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,” and watching close to 50 years of history (told from four different perspectives) flash past in less than three hours is the equivalent of watching a six-episode arc of VH1’s Behind the Music on fast forward.

By the end of the performance, the audience—particularly those old enough to remember the songs when they first received airplay—was completely hooked; they were standing, clapping hands, singing along, you name it. Being the theatre reviewer, I played my cards much closer to the vest…although that vest was bedecked with sequins.