The Tony Award nominations for the 2024-25 season have already been announced, and the immersive metatheatrical jukebox bio-musical Just In Time, about the life, career, and music of singer, songwriter, and actor Bobby Darin (1936-73), has garnered six well-deserved nods, including Best Actor in a Musical for last year’s winner Jonathan Groff (Merrily We Roll Along) in his sensational return to the Broadway stage at Circle in the Square. Developed and directed by Alex Timbers, with a book by Warren Leight and Isaac Oliver, the new show, which previewed as a benefit concert at Arlington, VA’s Signature Theatre in 2024, is based on an original concept by Ted Chapin, first presented as The Bobby Darin Story – a series of five concerts in 2018, at the 92nd Street Y, in which Groff also starred as the short-lived mid-century teen idol.
But in a unique framing device, it’s made clear from the opening introduction that he’s Jonathan Groff, who’ll be playing Bobby Darin, as he appears on a riser platform from beneath the floor and launches into two of his real-life character’s biggest hits, “This Could Be the Start of Something Big” and the eponymous “Just in Time,” holding a vintage hand mic, moving around the stage and through the aisles with the Sirens (backup singers and dancers Valeria Yamin, Christine Cornish, and Julia Grondin) in an array of fabulous period-style costumes, hair, wigs, and make-up (respectively by Catherine Zuber, Tom Watson, and Suki Tsujimoto), inviting the theatergoers to dance, and warning those closest to him that they’ll likely be spit on (a self-referencing reminder of the saliva that famously flies from his mouth when singing), as he transitions into “Beyond the Sea.” It’s one of many metatheatrical breaks through the fourth wall that distinguishes his unforgettable performance from not just impersonating Darin but personally embracing his style and story, and telling us what they have in common – a love of performing live on stage before an audience. He makes us feel it with every number, direct-address aside (sometimes signaled by a snap of his fingers that freezes the other characters), and ebullient interactions, direct eye contact, and undeniable rapport with the captivated crowd.
To make the show such an up-close and personal experience, the space (as Groff jokes, in the basement below Wicked) has been transformed into a dazzling Art Deco-style nightclub, with flooding lights that change the color of the silver setting, spotlights that follow him, and an illuminated staircase (lighting by Justin Townsend) leading to an upper level of the stage, cabaret tables at the center of the in-the-round seating, and another small performance area at the opposite end (set design by Derek McLane), with the eleven-piece orchestra, conducted by keyboardist Andrew Resnick (who also provided the stellar arrangements and music supervision), visible on the mainstage at all times and their instruments easily accessible for the multi-talented Groff to play (as did the multi-talented Darin). And his phenomenal performance here also proves him a true triple threat, featuring, in addition to the superb acting and singing for which he’s known and acclaimed, his masterful and authentic dancing (choreography by Shannon Lewis) to the musical stylings of the ‘50s to the ‘70s.
Along with the legendary canon of songs by the gold record artist and three-time Grammy winner, including Groff’s impeccably smooth renditions of “Mack the Knife,” “Splish Splash” (performed stripped down to his skivvies in a bathtub, holding a rubber duckie), and “Dream Lover,” defining episodes of Darin’s life are staged with easy transitions of movable set pieces that identify the different locales. Under Timbers’ fluid direction, the biographical segments take us through the ups and downs of his health (diagnosed at eleven with a weakened heart after several bouts of rheumatic fever from the age of eight, and not expected to live beyond sixteen – a fact that drove him to succeed and to make the most of his life in the short time he had, before his death at 37), stardom (from his beginnings as a songwriter to his emergence as a popular singer, recording artist, stage performer, and screen actor), and relationships with four of the most important women in his life.
They are brought to life by Michele Pawk as his mother Polly Walden, a Vaudevillian singer who had a loving and lasting influence on him and with whom he shares the poignant duet “That’s All;” Emily Bergl as his sister Nina, whose protective attitude and concerns about his health cause ongoing conflicts, especially after she reveals a lifelong secret about him; fellow Tony nominee Gracie Lawrence as his young girlfriend Connie Francis, who broke up with Darin as a result of her father’s disapproval and threats to kill him, belting out “Who’s Sorry Now?” and other chart-toppers; and Erika Henningsen as his wife Sandra Dee, whom he met on location in Italy and married in 1960, when they were filming Come September, had a son, and divorced in 1967, after several unhappy years of her feeling alone and used as a showpiece in the audience of his nightclub performances. Together they present a fully rounded view of the good and bad points of Darin’s personality.
Rounding out the fine supporting cast are Caesar Samayoa as music publisher, songwriter, and producer Don Kirshner, Lance Roberts as famed DJ and impresario Murray the K, and Joe Barbara as Darin’s manager Steve Blauner, all appearing in multiple roles and delivering distinctive characterizations of each.
Whether you’re a longtime fan of Bobby Darin or are hearing his songs and learning about his journey for the first time, Just in Time is a must-see show that redefines the genre of the jukebox musical, immerses the audience in the joy of live theater, showcases the skills of a highly entertaining and engaging company, and is sure to rack up many more awards for the extraordinary Jonathan Groff.
Running Time: Approximately two hours and 20 minutes, including an intermission.
Just in Time plays an open-ended run at Circle in the Square Theatre, 235 West 50th Street, NYC. For tickets (priced at $99-499, including fees), go online, or find discount tickets at TodayTix here.