Chicago Native and Resident JERSEY BOY Nick Cosgrove Returns to His Roots; Visits Former High School
By: Tyler Peterson Jun. 07, 2012
Park Ridge native, Nick Cosgrove, the Frankie Valli alternate in the current national tour of the Broadway hit JERSEY BOYS, went back to his roots late last month in order to connect with aspiring theater students at his former high school, Maine South High School.
At the event, held on May 21, Cosgrove not only sat down with kids participating in the theater deparment as he had, but gave a performance to a packed auditorium.
A few weeks since his visit, Cosgrove's experience has really sunk in.
"I feel extremely blessed that I was given the opportunity to go back to my old high school and speak with the students about my journey since graduating," he said.
After completing his high school years at Maine South, Cosgrove, 24, attended Carnegie Mellon University in which he graduated with a BFA in Drama-Acting/Music Theater in May 2010.
"To see the hope in their eyes, to be able to inspire them just as I was six years ago sitting in those same seats, that's what it's all about. To be able to give back like that is the most fulfilling part for me."
Cosgrove and the rest of the JERSEY BOYS company recently concluded their 9 week stay in Chicago, in which they frequently played to a sold out house at The Bank of America Theater. They have since moved on to play in Tulsa, in which they will remain through June 24th.
JERSEY BOYS played an open-ended run in Chicago from 2007-2010 and continued to break box office records, becoming a resident production after the show opened to rave reviews at the Bank of America Theatre.
JERSEY BOYS opened on Broadway to critical acclaim on November 6, 2005 at the August Wilson Theatre. The show is currently playing in New York; Las Vegas; London; Auckland, New Zealand; in cities across the U.S. on two National Tours and a production will open in Singapore in November 2012.
JERSEY BOYS is the story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons: Frankie Valli, Bob Gaudio, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi, about a group of blue-collar boys from the wrong side of the tracks who became one of the biggest American pop music sensations of all time. They wrote their own songs, invented their own sounds and sold 175 million records worldwide - all before they were thirty. The show features all their hits including “Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Oh What A Night,” “Walk Like A Man,” “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” and “Working My Way Back To You.”
JERSEY BOYS is the recipient of the 2006 Tony Award for Best Musical and the 2009 Olivier Award for Best Musical. The Original Broadway Cast Recording, produced by Bob Gaudio, received the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album and has been certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The Broadway production also won the 2006 Outer Critics Circle & Drama League Awards for Best Musical. The London production also won the 2009 UK People’s Choice and What’s on Stage Awards for Best New Musical. The Toronto production is the winner of three Dora Awards, including the Audience Choice Award for Outstanding Production. The Australian production is 2010 recipient of the Helpmann Award for Australia’s Best Musical and seven Victorian Green Room Awards.
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