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Movie Review: "Jersey Boys" (2014) Clint Eastwood's latest film, "Jersey Boys" opened in theaters on June 14. The film is an adaptation of the Tony-winning m usical from 2006, and tells the story of the Four Seasons. John Lloy d Young reprises his Tony-winning role as Frankie Valli, and much of the cast has also appeared in the Broadway production. Despite some major problems, "Jersey Boys" is a completely enjoyable film, especially at a time where the only alternatives at the movie theaters are sappy teen love stories and the twenty-eighth sequel to some superhero movie. Rather than being a full-out theatrical musical, "Jersey Boys" is very much a dramatic film, that features musical performances only when they make sense with the plot, but not necessarily to further it. Those are the two different ways musicals are usually adapted into films. The first way has worked many times in recent memory ("Hairspray", "Mamma...

Theater Review: "Violet" "Violet" opened on Broadway at the American Airlines Theater earlier this year. It is a revival of the Jeanine Tesori- Brian Crawley musical, which premiered off-Broadway in 1997, and is based off a one night only Encores! concert version done last summer. The plot revolves around a young woman, Violet, who has a scar across her face as the result of a horrific accident when she was young. She travels from North Carolina to Tulsa, Oklahoma to seek the healing powers of a  televangelist. Two-time Tony winner Sutton Foster portrays the title role. A complete departure for the star, known for her energetic tap- dancing  performances in musicals like "Throughly Modern Millie," and "Anything Goes". In "Violet" however,  Foster does not dance, does not have a single costume change, and wears no makeup. Any concerns that leaving her comfort zone would hinder Foster's preformance are put to rest the moment ...