Blast from the past returns to the stage
After earning rave reviews during its mid-1990s run, Forever Plaid is finally back
A theatre favourite in the 1990s is back for another Toronto stint this spring. Starvox Entertainment presents Forever Plaid, an off-Broadway, Dora Award-winning musical, from May 17 to June 12 at the Panasonic Theatre.
Written by Stuart Ross, Forever Plaid played at the New Yorker Theatre (now the Panasonic) during its 1993 to 1996 run in Toronto. It found fans in audiences and critics alike; the production sold 900,000 tickets and picked up three Dora Mavor Moore Awards for outstanding musical production, outstanding stage design and outstanding performance for its four central cast members.
Set in the 1950s, Forever Plaid tells the tale of a male quartet by the name of the Plaids. The singers — Frankie, Jinx, Sparky and Smudge — are on route to their first big concert when an unfortunate event takes them on a detour to heaven. Is their dream of doo-wop fame dead? Or will they be granted an ethereal second chance to perform?
No spoilers here. But the musical is friendly for families and promises laughter, not tears. Enthusiasts of ’50s pop hits will be enamoured with the soundtrack (and accompanying choreography), which includes songs such as “Heart and Soul,” “Moments to Remember” and “Love is a Many Splendored Thing.”
If you’re having visions of Jersey Boys, you’re not wrong. The Broadway musical and Forever Plaid both focus on all-male pop groups performing in the ’50s and ’60s — the former, a real quartet (The Four Seasons) and the latter, a fictitious one. The two productions share other similarities: actors Jeff Madden and Matt Cassidy.
Madden played Frankie Valli in Jersey Boys, both in its two-year Toronto run and its 15-month Australian production. He’s also a seasoned festival actor (he was a member of the Shaw Festival’s ensemble cast for eight seasons) and a television actor in series such as Murdoch Mysteries. In Forever Plaid, Madden plays Jinx, a char- acter described as “shy and perpetually terrified.”
Cassidy also has Jersey Boys credentials; he was an understudy in the role of Nick Massi during the Toronto run. He plays Smudge, the Plaids’ resident worrier, a role he first filled during Forever Plaid’s showing at the 2013 Charlottetown Festival. His other credits include television appearances (in shows including Pri- vate Eyes and Mohawk Girls) and various theatre performances ( Oklahoma!, Moby Dick, Chicago and The Rocky Horror Show).
Rounding out the cast are Jonathan Cullen and Scott Beaudin. Cullen plays Frankie, the group’s sweet, kind-hearted member. He brings a wealth of musical experience, having previously performed in The Book of Mormon, Billy Elliot and West Side Story. Beaudin, only 23 years old, is Sparky, the Plaids’ singer with spunk. Beaudin has acted on stage and in film and television. He earned a Young Artist Award nomination for his work on Haven, a television drama that ran from 2010 to 2015.
Tickets for Forever Plaid are on sale now and range in price from $39.99 to $99.95. They’re available at mirvish.com.