Jersey Boys is an impressive Broadway Sacramento season opener.

Oh, what a night! It is almost like December 1963 when Nicolas Dromard, Keith Hines, Hayden Milanes and Drew Seeley take the stage in an incredible simulation of the Four Seasons pop group in Jersey Boys. The Broadway Sacramento production of the Tony-winning musical plays through November 22.

Jersey Boys, like the movie of the same name that was recently in theaters, is meant to tell the true story of four young hooligans from the streets of New Jersey who, beginning in 1960, became one of the greatest American pop groups of all time. That rise was achieved through a lot of hard work, plenty of loud arguments, a little help from the mob—and, oh yes, some great music.

The story begins a little shakily, not unlike the teenaged Frankie Valli’s voice. But by the time the group finds its sound with 1962’s “Sherry,” Milanes (as Valli) has found his, too. From that point on, he’s as Frankie as they come, and Dromard (as Tommy DeVito), Hines (as Nick Massi) and Seeley (as Bob Gaudio) establish themselves as grounded, believable characters. Barry Anderson (as over-the-top fop Bob Crewe) completes the hit-making team that created a string of hits, including “Walk Like a Man,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Rag Doll,” “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,” “My Eyes Adored You” and so many more.

This could easily have been just another jukebox musical—and one could certainly do worse than choosing the Four Seasons to build one around—but two-time Tony Award-winning director Des McAnuff and book writers Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice use Gaudio’s music and Crewe’s lyrics to tell a real story: one of a rise to fame because of (and sometimes in spite of) human nature and all that life can throw at us.