Daniel Robert Sullivan - Places, Please!

Places, Please!

Becoming a Jersey Boy

Daniel Robert Sullivan

Published by Iguana Books

460 Richmond St. West, Ste 401, Toronto, Ontario, M5V 1Y1

Copyright Daniel Robert Sullivan, 2012

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Editor: Lisa Sparks

Front Cover Image: Andres Alvez, www.andresalvez.com

Front Cover Design: Lea Kaplan

EBook Layout Design: Sharlene Hopwood

Sullivan, Daniel Robert

Places, please! [electronic resource] : Becoming a Jersey Boy / Daniel Robert Sullivan.

Electronic monograph.

Issued also in print format.

ISBN 978-0-9878267-4-9 (Kindle).--ISBN 978-0-9878267-3-2 (EPUB)

1. Sullivan, Daniel Robert. 2. Singers--United States--Biography.

I. Title.

ML420.S949A3 2012 782.1'4092 C2011-907115-0

Visit the Iguana Books website: www.iguanabooks.com

Foreword

I am very honored to be chosen by Daniel Robert Sullivan to introduce this new book describing his most fascinating, behind-the-scenes journey to becoming one of the leads in the smash production of Jersey Boys in Toronto, Canada.

I found that I could not put the book down. Daniel's personal story is tremendously inspiring especially for anyone who wants to become an actor or member of the theatrical industry. I commend Daniel for having the foresight to keep a written journal documenting his experiences and feelings through the grueling audition process and on to becoming selected for his plum role; the type of role that comes around perhaps once or twice in a lifetime.

The honesty in his storytelling is most touching as we witness the personal sacrifices that he makes to be an actor, a profession that is usually more emotionally rewarding than it is financially. I love his passion for theatre. It is so earnest and simultaneously, slightly self-deprecating.

As the Canadian Producer of Jersey Boys , I had the pleasure of working with Daniel when my partner, Dodger Theatricals in New York, selected him to play the lead role of Tommy DeVito. I grew to know Daniel personally as a warm human being who truly loves life and his family. I would drop by his dressing room before the show on a regular basis. We became friends and Daniel would occasionally come over to my office next door to the theatre for coffee or lunch. We would talk about producing shows, as he always wanted to learn more about the business side of things.

After reading this book, my personal admiration increased significantly. His story provides a window into the many aspects of an actors day-to-day life that I was not aware of or appreciated. I learned how challenging it is, and what it really takes to become an actor. There are more downs than ups, but when you've landed a lead role and you are performing on stage in a show like Jersey Boys , you find the ride well worth it.

In Toronto, long before Daniel was offered the role of Tommy DeVito, there was a theatre monopoly in the city that I felt could be challenged. The vacuum created with the demise of Garth Drabinskys Livent, Inc. left the main stage of the Toronto Centre for the Arts virtually dark for ten years, with no Broadway shows, until Dancap Productions was created.

A decade ago, Toronto was ranked among the three most thrilling and vibrant live theatre cities on earth, not that far behind New York City and London. I got to know long-time producer Michael David, founder of Dodger Theatricals, through my experience with Urinetown: The Musical at Canadian Stage. Michael became my ally, partner, and friend in bringing Jersey Boys to Toronto. He, like myself, wanted to make a difference in the Toronto theatre landscape, believing that competition is good for the city and the country. Michael is in his late-sixties and his distinguished, yet bushy, beard makes him look like one of the guitar players from ZZ Top. He has more than a few battle scars from his years on Broadway and the wisdom of Noah. I was a producer who had no producing experience, yet I had the drive and good fortune to see his show become a huge success.

To compensate for my theatrical deficiencies, I put together a first-class team of very experienced people who had worked at Livent. Led by Peter Lamb, my executive vice president, I could not be in the business without this incredible team. They all have a sincere and continuing passion for the business of theatre and a strong desire to participate in the journey, opportunity, and adventure of bringing great theatre to the city of Toronto.

Everyone in the theatre crew at the Toronto Centre for the Arts those in wardrobe, wigs, props, stage management, marketing, sales, the actors, the musicians all had a singular goal in mind: to make Jersey Boys as successful as possible, while still having fun. The talent and the enthusiasm were off the charts! People not only loved their jobs, but their collaboration, performance after performance, was remarkable. It seemed life could not get any better. The relationships and bonds that were made, on and off the stage, will be everlasting. There was no visible hierarchy between the different positions, including mine. I was more than content to be one of the crew! We wanted to perform to the best of our ability and keep the show running as long as we could.

Each performance was unique; as was each audience, and we loved them all.. The entire company wanted to know, Whats the audience going to be like today? Are they going to be excited, happy, quiet? Some came to see Jersey Boys more than a hundred times and seeing the show multiple times became a badge of honor. The actors would always take the time to meet with their superfans outside the stage door or connect with them on Facebook, because they knew that they were the people who helped keep the flame of Jersey Boys alive.

Then came the day in July 2010, when Michael David and I decided that, after one million people had seen Jersey Boys , we had reached the outer ring of what I call the concentric circle of theatregoers in Toronto and had to close the show on August 22nd, 2010, exactly two years after it opened. We both knew that American visitors were no longer coming to Toronto, a passport became required 65% of Americans didnt have one and the Canadian exchange rate was not as favorable as in the past.. Once we had made this decision and started to advertise the show was ending, all those that had been on the fence about seeing it started coming in droves.

The final performance of Jersey Boys in Toronto was like a reverse opening. We had a theatre full of dedicated Jersey Boys fans who knew all the lines of the show, were singing all the lyrics, and were going crazy throughout. The audience went absolutely insane and the standing ovation that night lasted ten minutes. It was the climax of reviving a dark theatre, restoring its purpose and glory, and indeed, having a profound effect on those that worked in it directly or indirectly and especially those that attended.

Daniel Robert Sullivan is now in the history books of theatre in Toronto, having played the role of Tommy DeVito in Jersey Boys . The show holds the record for the longest running show at the Toronto Centre for the Arts, beating out mega-hits Showboat , Ragtime , and Sunset Boulevard . Daniels dream, like mine, became a reality, which is now etched into our mind, body, and soul forever. What an amazing journey for all!