By Matthew Wexler
“I never would’ve guessed I’d have anything in common with him, the playboy crooner and me in Mom’s pumps, but turns out I do,” says Jonathan Groff of Bobby Darin in the opening moments of Just in Time, the new Broadway musical that just opened at Circle in the Square.
Thanks to Ted Chapin’s original concept, a smartly written book by Warren Leight and Isaac Oliver, and Alex Timbers’ snappy direction, the dazzling new show rethinks the possibilities of what a biomusical can be. We’ve seen many before—Cher, Carol King, The Temptations, to name a few—but none come close to Just in Time for one above-the-title reason: Jonathan Groff.
Derek McLane’s gorgeous supper-club scenic design, Catherine Zuber’s jewel-toned mid-century costumes, and Justin Townsend’s time-stop lighting bring Darin’s journey to life. The production traces his rise from an up-and-coming songwriter in East Harlem to Grammy-winning Best New Artist of 1959, through his time living in a trailer park in Big Sur, California, to his early 70s comeback before his untimely death at age 37.
Groff, who’s having a banner year after winning a Tony Award for his performance in the revival of Merrily We Roll Along and co-stars in the film A Nice Indian Boy, trained heavily to step into Darin’s shoes. Months of dance classes with choreographer Shannon Lewis and piano and drum lessons paid off. But what Groff ultimately delivers is unteachable.
“This can only happen in this room, right now, with you, and it’ll never happen quite the same way again …. Be here now. That’s all we can do,” says Groff at the show’s conclusion. His ability to connect with both fellow actors, such as Darin’s two major love interests, Connie Francis (Gracie Lawrence) and Sandra Dee (Erika Henningsen), and the audience alike is uncanny.
At the performance I attended, patrons unabashedly cheered and wept, swept away by the “Dream Lover.” Was it Groff or Darin that they were so enamored by? It didn’t matter.
‘Just in Time’ Takeaway
Golden Folk Hits, released in 1963, is an outlier in Darin’s discography but showcases the singer’s versatility. Inspired by the social movements of the era, he turned his attention to a different genre and, despite concerns about his image, returned to folk music with 1966’s If I Were a Carpenter, the title song of which was nominated for a Grammy Award.
Just in Time plays at Circle in the Square. Performances through July 27.
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