Local ‘Jersey Boys’ see familiar faces in the movie

The reviews are in from the Las Vegas cast of “Jersey Boys” and they are … subjective.

“I’ve never been so proud of a group of friends in my entire life,” says Travis Cloer, who plays Frankie Valli in the Las Vegas version of the biopic.

Monday was a night off for the hit musical at Paris Las Vegas, so the cast got to attend a screening of the movie version before it opens Friday.

The screening at AMC Town Square 18 also hosted the real Tommy DeVito, the “black sheep” member of The Four Seasons played by Vincent Piazza of “Boardwalk Empire” in the movie.

Director Clint Eastwood cast three of the Four Seasons from stage productions of “Jersey Boys,” including Erich Bergen as songwriting wunderkind Bob Gaudio. Bergen opened the Las Vegas edition at the Palazzo in 2008 and stayed for 14 months before the producers let him go.

“I know Erich so well it’s kind of weird,” says Deven May, who plays DeVito in Las Vegas and was part of the first national tour. “Because I played with him onstage, I just kind of see Erich up there.”

“I think it would be easier to watch the movie if we didn’t know people, honestly,” agreed Jeff Leibow, who plays Nick Massi. “It’s a little distracting to watch your friends up there. Especially doing stuff we’ve seen a thousand times.”

Cast members explained that the extended “Jersey Boys” family is a comparably small one, so the screening was continually punctuated by applause when “family” members were spotted.

Renee Marino, who worked in Las Vegas for weeks at a time as a vacation “swing,” gets noteworthy screen time as Valli’s wife, Mary. Other sightings were more brief: Rob Marnell, who recently ended a three-year run as Gaudio in Las Vegas, is one of the replacement Seasons after the original group breaks up. Kyli Rae, who also spent time in the Las Vegas edition, is seen as part of the girl group The Angels.

Cloer was the Broadway understudy of John Lloyd Young, the first Valli who reprises the role in the movie. Cloer thought it was instructive to see him expand the part on film.

“For me as an actor I thought that was great,” he said. “It’s opened up my mind to do things I never thought about. Not that I’m going to change anything, but just things to think about as an actor.”

DeVito will get a second chance to see the movie in a private screening Thursday at the Palms in honor of his 86th birthday. The screening is expected to include actor Joe Pesci, who is portrayed in both the movie and stage show as part of the Four Seasons’ formative saga.

As mentioned in both movie and musical, DeVito lives in Las Vegas and spent some of his years prior to the 2005 Broadway debut of “Jersey Boys” working as an assistant to Pesci.

In the movie and stage show, DeVito is “exiled” to Las Vegas where the mob can keep an eye on him after he gets the group in debt to a loan shark. True to the “Rashoman” theme of “Jersey Boys,” May says the facts are still disputed.

“The story that was told in the film may be more accurate to the way it actually happened. Once again you’d have to ask Tommy,” May says. “You ask any one of the guys, they’re all going to tell you a different story. So no one really knows.”

Contact reporter Mike Weatherford at mweatherford@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0288.