March 30, 2026: Theatre Yesterday and Today, by Ron Fassler.

Almost a year ago, when I saw Jonathan Groff in Just in Time the week it opened on Broadway, I vividly recall a moment during the first act which caused me to almost say out loud to no one in particular, “I’ve got to see this again.” And as the musical deservedly became one of the hottest tickets of the season, with each month that went by, I would catch myself more than once saying out loud, “I’ve got to get back and see Groff before he exits.” So, with the gods smiling down on me, I managed to land a superb seat at yesterday afternoon’s Sunday matinee for the actor’s final show (his parents, Julie and Jim, were directly in front of me). A performance that also saw original cast member Michele Pawk take her leave, as well as Sarah Hyland who, a few months ago, replaced Gracie Lawrence as Connie Francis. But make no mistake: the theatre was packed with Groffies (as they’ve been dubbed); fans who have made it their business to see this one-of-a-kind musical theatre talent offer a performance as startling and electric as any that I’ve seen in my nearly sixty years of continuous theatregoing. Yup, he really is that good.

And now his Bobby Darin belongs to history. And for those in the audience yesterday afternoon, he gave us something to remember. I counted seven standing ovations in Act One alone, something I’ve never experienced before. Such expressions from an audience used to be reserved solely for special occasions; something I know from firsthand experience. As two examples, I was present at the closing performances of such long running hits as Man of La Mancha (June 26, 1971), at the finish of its near five-year run, and 1776 (February 13, 1972), which ran for just under three. Yes, people stood at the end. But during the show? No, that would be unheard of back in the day. Yesterday afternoon, the first time the audience roared to its feet was for Groff’s entrance, coming up through the floor with his back to the audience, prior to launching into “This Could Be the Start of Something Big.” The second came at the show’s opening line of spoken dialogue: “I’m Jonathan. I’ll be your Bobby Darin tonight.” This ovation caused Groff to burst into tears—not uncommon for this tenderhearted soul—and it was off to the races from there. And the standing o’s were not just reserved for the star, but also handed to Michele Pawk on her entrance (!) and to Sarah Hyland after “Who’s Sorry Now?” It was a lovefest, pure and simple, and the energy being emitted could have served as a generator in case of a blackout. Certain acting moments were imbued with barely controlled emotions bubbling to the surface, all related to how much Groff means to the other actors onstage. It gave many scenes an extra dose of reality, deepening the script’s most tender moments (kudos to Warren Leight and Isaac Oliver’s winning book and to Ted Chapin, who came up with the show’s original concept and is part of the producing team).

What makes Groff so special as a singer is that he’s got a voice that won’t quit, a control that Sinatra might have envied, and a joy of performing that sweeps you into his embrace, especially in a concert-style show like this. Wearing his heart on his sleeve and never projecting the megalomania that afflicts certain performers, he exudes nothing but love and light. This is no exaggeration. Anyone who’s seen him in previous endeavors knows this. From his Broadway debut in Spring Awakening (at age twenty-one), through his hilarious and near-homicidal King George III in Hamilton, to his Tony Award winning performance as Franklin Shepard in Merrily We Roll Along—the first actor in over forty years I’ve seen truly crack the part. And with the one-two punch of back-to-back sellout shows in successive seasons, Groff is officially a Broadway megastar of the Hugh Jackman-level. Whatever he does next onstage in New York will have an advance sale that could easily set a record. And no one deserves it more.

With such a sterling voice, it shouldn’t be glossed over what a fine actor he is, even if it was immediately evident in Spring Awakening and reached an apotheosis in Merrily. But for those paying close attention, his work in independent film and on television saw excellent examples of what he can bring to a part. The HBO series Looking gave him the chance over 18 episodes and a film to explore in intimate detail a young gay man’s journey in San Francisco, and his work over the course of two seasons on Netflix’s Mindhunter was astonishing as an FBI agent with an expertise in profiling serial murderers. A skilled dancer, Groff still insisted on ten weeks of lessons three times a week with Just in Time’s choreographer Shannon Lewis before rehearsals commenced.

Though lucky to have seen many illustrious luminaries live onstage over the past six decades, I still missed out on a few that I’d have given anything to experience: Judy Garland, Sammy Davis Jr., and Louis Armstrong. What these three all had in common was a sheer bliss of performing in front of an audience and giving, giving, giving. Garland, with power to spare, possessed perhaps the most distinct and emotionally throbbing voice of any female singer. Davis could do just about anything—sing, dance, play instruments, do impressions—all served best when playing a three-hour-plus set in the intimacy of a nightclub that is now legendary. Armstrong simply radiated happiness, hijacking his audiences with effusive delight. I always ask people who saw these extraordinary individuals onstage what made them so distinctive and the answer usually boils down to one thing: they wanted to entertain and asked nothing in return. And that is the essence of what makes Jonathan Groff so special.

There’s never a whiff of “look at me” while he is Bobby Darin. How does someone step into the spotlight in that way and not make it about themselves? It’s a gift, truly. It probably helps that behind the scenes, Groff has the reputation as that of a mensch, the Yiddish word roughly translated from the German as “human being,” but meaning much more. A considerable human being is more like it; a decent, good, and compassionate person. This exact thing was addressed by Just in Time’s director, Alex Timbers, when he spoke yesterday at the curtain call:

“Jonathan, what I think of most is the way you lead, not loudly, not with ego, but with generosity. You lead by championing joy; by being the most curious person in the room . . . [then] there’s what happens when you step out here onstage. Because there are great performers and then there are people who have a real, electric, unmistakable connection with an audience. And Jonathan, you don’t just perform for an audience, you perform with them. You listen, you respond, you invite them in, you make a roomful of strangers feel like they’re part of something shared and fleeting and a little big magical. It’s a rare thing and Bobby Darin had it and you have it.”

As a bonus at yesterday’s matinee, since it’s still the time of year when the theatre community solicits donations for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, an auction for the hat worn by Groff while he sings “Mack the Knife” went up for sale. It was bought by a gentleman who kept raising the price on himself—clearly happy to be making such a sizable donation. It was Ryan Reynolds and he forced the figure up to $25,000, sort of the opposite of what one does at an auction but, nonetheless, crowd pleasing and much welcome. It put a capper (sorry for the pun) on a most memorable afternoon.

I also happened to have spotted Matthew Morrison in the theatre (well, the bathroom, if I want to get personal), who, along with Jeremy Jordan, are next up to forge their own Bobby Darin journeys. As my book The Show Must Go On demonstrates in story after story, Broadway replacements are a necessity and have been going on as long as Broadway itself. However, these gutsy guys most assuredly have their work cut out for them following a class act like Jonathan Groff. Break legs!

Ron Fassler is the author of The Show Goes On: Broadway Hirings, Firings and Replacements. For news and “Theatre Yesterday and Today”columns when they break, please subscribe.