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Eight years ago, Jonathan Groff’s friend Ted Chapin took him to see Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 and then to dinner at Orso. There, Chapin, who was producing the “Lyrics and Lyricists” series at the 92nd Street Y at the time, asked if Groff might like to perform in an upcoming edition featuring the songs of Bobby Darin.
The question led Groff down a YouTube rabbit hole as he watched clip after clip of the genre-busting singer-songwriter. Growing up in Pennsylvania, Groff had heard Darin’s hits, like “Mack the Knife” and “Splish Splash,” but he hadn’t realized they came from the same voice—and wasn’t convinced he’d be able to embody his energy and versatility.
“I was completely taken by Bobby’s primal ferocity, even on these old black and white clips of him performing,” Groff tells Vogue. “There was a real presence and passion. This wasn’t just a rock and roll guy or a crooner singing songs. There was real connection in his performance style.”
When he eventually decided to move ahead with the concert, Groff began fleshing out his own primal connection to Darin. Inspired by Natasha’s immersiveness and high off the club atmosphere of Here Lies Love at the Public Theater, he contacted the latter’s director, Alex Timbers and got to work on what would eventually become Just in Time, which celebrated its opening on Broadway on Wednesday night at the Circle in the Square Theater.
To aid his transformation, Groff—who won a Tony for last season’s brilliant and wildly popular revival of Merrily We Roll Along—quickly learned to play both the drums and piano, and took 10 weeks of dance lessons with choreographer Shannon Lewis, whose work makes its Broadway debut with the show. But unlike the average bio-jukebox, Just in Time doesn’t require Groff to shed his unique charm. Instead, he introduces himself as the performer we know and love, then taps in and out of the Darin character.
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