Review: THE BOY BAND BRUNCH Bops and Bounces at The Green Room 42

Hi, my name is Stephen and I listen to The Backstreet Boys. I own the 98 Degrees Christmas cd. I dance around my kitchen to One Direction and I feel no shame. Boy Band lovers it is time to come out of the closet and live in the light. It is time to own our joy, our delight and our Boys with the world around us. And we can enjoy all of them at once, rather than waiting for their individual concerts, courtesy of The Boy Band Project.

The Boy Band Project is the brainchild of Travis Nesbitt, a man who proves that, while some people have brains, some people have looks, some people have talent, and some people have an idea, there are some people who have it all. Heaven knows how Nesbitt came up with the idea for The Boy Band Project, but, just like White-Out, the Pool Noodle, GPS, and the aglet, I wish it had been my idea because it's freakin' brilliant - and audiences can check them out at one of their gigs or at a private function, because a look at The Boy Band Project website shows these uber-talented men are available for your next birthday, office or Christmas party.

I had heard of The Boy Band Brunch but never gone, as a private citizen, because I was a little embarrassed to be a 55-year old man whose heart is (still) made happy whenever Quit Playin' Games With My Heart comes on the Pandora or Spotify station at work. Once I had an official reason to check out The Boy Band Brunch at The Green Room 42, I jumped on it, grabbing my best mate and heading to the Yotel on a Sunday afternoon, there to be met by a room FULL of people. There were three bachelorette parties, tables full of gay men of varying ages, tables occupied by male/female couples, and tables where sat groups of friends, anxious to see these Boyz in action.

And, boy howdy, SO much action.

At the end of the performance, it was clear how these men, the most handsome men you may ever see up close, stay so fit. With this choreography and their expert moves, it's a workout worthy of Barry's Bootcamp, a Dancing With the Stars rehearsal studio, or my class at the Krav Maga Academy. Mind you, the four men on the stage weren't the only ones dancing because for the entire show the people in the audience were chair dancing, arms in the air, singing along. Now, this is usually behavior one might frown on at a nightclub or cabaret, but if there were ever an occasion for such unified abandon, the Boy Band Brunch is just what the doctor ordered. Strangers bounded from their individual tables as our favorite NSYNC, Hanson, Otown and Boyz II Men songs were performed to perfection, and to the delight of all.

The Boy Band on September 15th were The One and Only Travis Nesbitt leading the troops, Bentley Black, Jesse Corbin, and Chris Messina. A look at The Boy Band Project website shows that there are 16 members of the company, and one supposes that they switch out tracks depending on their availability; because each of the members of The Boy Band Project is a highly skilled member of the Broadway theater community. These are all men with real voices, trained to deliver real vocals, without auto-tuning and control booth trickery. To sit in a room and listen to voices sing so big that your heart swells, and so small that your heart melts, is, in and of itself, a treat not to be taken for granted. Add spectacularly synchronized steps, genuinely gorgeous gyrations, sexy smoldering stares, and you've got an hour of blissfully entertaining time away from the harsh realities that await you, on the street, on your phone, on your computer, on your tv screen. What makes the show so good is that these super hot guys bring all the tongue in cheek humor you would hope for in a boy band cover group, spontaneously interacting with the audience from the stage and out in the house (be prepared for the fourth wall to be seriously broken down), and then they hit you with the harmonies, the harmonies, the harmonies. The solos, the solos, the solos. The talent on the stage is simply overwhelming, and even a playful show like The Boy Band Brunch must have talent to justify the money spent on a ticket, a plate of pancakes and a round of Mimosas.

Trust me when I tell you: money spent on a performance of The Boy Band Project, wherever they may be playing, will be money well spent. So put on your backward ballcap, your big-ass chain, and your Kicks, get out your sense of adventure and fun, and hie thee to the next performance of The Boy Band Project, wherever they may be showing up and strutting their stuff.

The right stuff.

The Boy Band Brunch plays The Green Room 42 September 29, October 13, October 17, November 17, Dec 1, Dec 15, Dec 29. For tickets visit The Green Room 42 Website

For information on The Boy Band Project visit their Website

Follow The Boy Band Project on Facebook and Instagram @boybandproject

Jesse Corbin

Bentley Black

Chris Messina

Travis Nesbitt

Photos by Stephen Mosher

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