Character guide
Tommy DeVito
from Jersey Boys
Tommy DeVito is the founder and early driving force of the Four Seasons in "Jersey Boys," the streetwise member whose choices shape the group's fate.
- Show
- Jersey Boys
- Broadway premiere
- 2005
- Role
- Lead
- Music by
- Gaudio & Crewe
Tommy DeVito on stage vs screen
Broadway compared with the 2014 Clint Eastwood film
On Broadway, Christian Hoff originated Tommy DeVito in 2005 and won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical. In Clint Eastwood's 2014 film the role went to Vincent Piazza, while three of his bandmates were played by actors from stage productions: John Lloyd Young (Frankie), Erich Bergen (Bob Gaudio), and Michael Lomenda (Nick Massi).
The film's handling of Tommy's story has drawn historical criticism: like the musical, it understates how much debt Tommy saddled the group with. It also stages an arrest in Cleveland that actually happened at the Ohio State Fair in Columbus.
Who is Tommy DeVito?
Tommy is the one who pulls the future Four Seasons together in the first place, a charismatic, hard-edged guy from the same rough Jersey streets as his bandmates. "Jersey Boys" structures its storytelling around the four members each narrating a section of the show, and Tommy's chapter lays out the group's scrappy origins along with the debts and complications that follow him throughout the story.
His loyalty to the group is real, but so are his flaws, and the tension between the two gives "Jersey Boys" much of its dramatic conflict.
Tommy's role in Jersey Boys
Tommy DeVito is one of the show's four lead roles, sharing narration duties and stage time with Frankie Valli, Bob Gaudio, and Nick Massi. The part requires strong vocal harmony work as part of the group's tight ensemble sound, along with the acting chops to carry an entire section of the show as its narrator.
Audiences and performers alike are drawn to Tommy because he is the most complicated of the four, equal parts founder, hustler, and liability, which makes the role one of the more textured in the jukebox musical genre.
Tommy DeVito: frequently asked questions
What show is Tommy DeVito from?
Tommy DeVito is a lead character in "Jersey Boys," the 2005 musical about the Four Seasons.
Is Tommy DeVito a lead or supporting role?
Tommy DeVito is a lead role, one of the four band members who narrate different sections of the show.
Who wrote the music for Jersey Boys?
Bob Gaudio and Bob Crewe wrote the songs featured in "Jersey Boys."
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