Just In Time Review

 Just In Time was unquestionably my most anticipated show of 2025.

When I say I went all out for this show, I'm not kidding. I bought a 50s era period dress, fully accessorized, got hair and makeup done. The whole nine yards.

Similar to the August Wilson Theatre, albeit not to the same extreme, the Circle In The Square has been transformed into a Copacabana style nightclub. In its new guise, the theatre features two stages on each side, which the actors weave between around a set of cabaret tables. 

Going in, I knew little to nothing about Bobby Darin. I knew what Jonathan Groff had revealed about Bobby's life in interviews, and who doesn't know the song Beyond The Sea? 

Given that jukebox musicals are past their peak in popularity, and a lot of young people (who are a large portion of Jonathan Groff’s fans) don't know who Bobby Darin is, I was expecting this to bomb simply because of genre fatigue. Imagine my surprise when the initial reviews on my Facebook group and Reddit pages were raving, and I was told that the audience interaction and involvement is even better then Cabaret 😱 and that Groff, Henningsen, and Lawrence were going to be right there next to me, with my table in particular in the infamous Jonathan Groff splash zone. 

The show opens with Groff’s entrance as himself, “in this moment, on this day, in this theater.” He gives a quick speech about his love for performing, how he connected to this part, a few jokes to warm up the crowd, then slips into the role of Bobby Darrin. 

When they say that this show is immersive, it is NEXT LEVEL!!! I had a table seat, so I was on the floor, which was part of the stage. Groff and the rest of the company were sitting and serenading at tables, acknowledging the audience, walking and dancing through the aisles between the tables, and so forth.

I didn't expect as much interaction with Jonathan as I got. 

* Right off the bat, not even five minutes into the show, Groff makes a joke about the Mindhunter (a Netflix show I love that he's in) fan base, and how there aren’t a lot of people still watching it. i did a discreet snapping motion in approval, I didn't think he'd see it, but he did, and he pointed at me, the spotlight hit me, Jonathan lit up, and said "YES like you. I see you there" and flashed a smile at me before moving on!   

* During Lazy River, he came right over to my table, knelt down to my level and gazed into my eyes as he serenaded me. I swooned like a teenager at a Jonas Brothers concert. In that moment, the world melted away, it felt like it was just me and Jonathan in that room, sharing this special moment. Performer, and audience member making a connection. 

* During Dream Lover, he came over and serenaded me AGAIN before giving my outfit his official seal of approval. 

* During the finale, When The Curtain Falls, he came over and we locked eyes one more time, both of us on the verge of tears. 

Erika Henningsen and Jonathan's backup dancers also loved my outfit. And gave me lots of smiles and winks. 

Jonathan Groff is energetic, charismatic, and charming. The chemistry Groff shares with his audiences is magnetic and a sight to behold; he loves performing, and loves being in front of people, and it shows in his tender interactions with us, the smiles, the eye contact, singing directly to a lucky few at the tables, dancing with us, holding our hands, ad libs, and other small nods to us. His last spoken line to us is “I love you.” I had yet to witness his dancing, and was delighted to gaze upon the release of the latent dancing beast, Groff has spoken about how he trained for 10 weeks with the choreographer, Shannon Lewis for 10 hours a day just for this role, and he doesn’t just dance, he moves like Bobby Darrin did, incorporating some of Darren’s little quirks. As the focus of the show, it’s natural to feel like everyone else plays second fiddle to him. He has a gift for making everyone in that audience feel connected to him, even for just a moment, and he gives so much in this show. Remarkably, his energy never drops, and it’s clear the man is having the time of his life up there. I wish i had half the energy he displays in this role. Groff is so good in this role, that i struggle to imagine anyone else bringing this level of charm and charisma to the role of Bobby Darin, no offense to his understudy, with the herculean task of taking on this role if Groff is ever out.  

Gracie Lawrence is absolutely incredible as Connie Francis, her voice is absolutely gorgeous, her chemistry with Jonathan wasn't sizzling and sexual (but it is heavily implied that Darrin and Francis didn’t have sex)., but it was there and it was sweet and cute, and his Bobby is clearly smitten with her Connie. The romance was so pure and innocent. It made their breakup absolutely devastating. This is due in part to Groff establishing a connection early on with Lawrence (he’s talked at length about how he connects early on with his co-stars to establish a friendship.) And it's clear not just that their characters adore each other, but that they, Groff and Lawrence adore one another. The little adoring smiles they send each other, the way they make each other laugh (not in character, as Groff has stated many times), the way they look at each other in awe of their talent, and the sweet hugs they share, it all sends the same message “we love and respect one another.” 

Erika Henningsen was a wonderful Sandra Dee, though I wish she'd fleshed out the character further. Henningsen portrayed Dee as a ditzy, dumb blonde and mommy's girl. She only displayed the role's emotional depth towards the end, during the climactic divorce, which is sad, because i know she is a wonderful actress with great depth and talent, i just feel that this role didn’t give her the chance to shine as much as some of her previous work (especially “Mean Girls”.) Nonetheless, she was a lovely singer, and i enjoyed seeing her. 

The musical arrangements maintained their signature 50s and 60s sound and vibe while seamlessly incorporating a modern twist. Each song was a showstopper. The audience brought Groff to tears after his gorgeous rendition of “Lazy River” with our tremendous applause. And Mack The Knife was mind blowingly good, the energy flowed into the audience, it made me shake, Mack The Knife has always been my favorite Bobby Darrin song, Groff turned it into even more of an earworm, and it lives rent free in my head, I smile like an idiot whenever i think about it. It had no need to be a spectacle, but Groff’s energy made it into one. I was in awe. 

The dancing in this show is over the top and flashy. Though the numbers are modest and understated, Bobby Darin’s music always makes me want to dance. I was bopping along and tapping my toes throughout the show. I’m pretty sure Groff say me trying to dance (badly) in my seat to Splish Splash

Overall an electrifying experience. I can't wait to go back over and over again. Unfortunately with the prices skyrocketing after the Tony awards, i probably won’t be able to do the table seats, they cost $600 now, and if the show extends again (i assume Groff had a year long contract, and the show will close in April 2026, unless he extends his contract, he says he wants to), i’m anticipating Cabaret level prices

ETA: I've since attended the show two more times, and was lucky enough to be the recipient of Groff's final audience interaction, a dance, on my third visit (when I was celebrating my birthday a little early), Groff even gave me the microphone and let me sing the final line of "Dream Lover" for all 800 people in the theater