Under the Streetlamp a toe tapping joy for summer

Stephanie Sokol for The Oakland Press

Photo courtesy of Under the Streetlamp
Photo courtesy of Under the Streetlamp

Doo-wop, Motown and old rock ’n’ roll will fill Meadowbrook Theatre on Saturday, July 20, as Under the Streetlamp brings the retro sounds of the four-piece vocal group to the stage for a benefit concert.

Michael Cunio, Michael Ingersoll, Chris Jones and Shonn Wiley were the original “Jersey Boys.” After touring for the musical, they wanted to continue performing together, so they formed the doo-wop group Under the Streetlamp, says Wiley, a Michigan native.

FYI: Under the Street Lamp will perform two shows — at 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, July 20, at Meadow Brook Theatre. Tickets are $98 to $125 can be purchased atwww.ticketmaster.com or at the Meadow Brook Theatre box office. Proceeds from the concert benefit the nonprofit Meadow Brook Theatre.

Under the Streetlamp will bring out hits from the ’40s, ’50s and ’60s, while dancing onstage and interacting with the audience.

Nattily clad in suits, the men sing onstage both accompanied and a capella to hits such as the Four Seasons’ “Working My Way Back to you,” The Beach Boys’ “I Get Around,” and Aretha Franklin’s “Rescue Me,” with each vocalist spotlighted in various songs throughout the show.

“We take the music very seriously, but we really don’t take ourselves seriously at all,” Wiley says.

Though the event is not a play like “Jersey Boys,” the audience will get an experience because the musical group puts on a great show, he says.

The men dance and sing, bringing out the music visually and vocally, as well as sharing stories with the crowd.

“We feel like we’re throwing a party, and we’ve invited the audience to come to this really great party,” Wiley said. “We’re dancing around the stage and singing this great music in kind of the same way that the music is with Jersey Boys. But there’s no script, there’s no story.”

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