Nick Fradiani, whose full name is Nick Fradiani IV, comes by live musical performance honestly. His father, Nick III, was a lifelong musician, so Fradiani grew up seeing how singing and playing instruments builds into a career. “My dad got me an agent, and I was playing in clubs in our area of Connecticut while I was a teen,” Fradiani says by telephone from his New York apartment a few hours before he boarded a train to Philadelphia to begin appearing as Neil Diamond in “A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical,” at the Forrest Theatre. Alas, Fradiani, who’d played Diamond of Broadway, was only booked for the first week of the Philadelphia run, so he is gone now, to be replaced by Alec Michael Ryan, also an alumnus of “A Beautiful Noise” on Broadway. The sad part of Fradiani leaving is of all the actors I’ve seen play known entertainers, be they Tina Turner, Carole King, Frankie Valli, a Beatle, or a Temptation, Fradiani came the closest to looking, sounding, and performing like the mega-star he portrayed. Physically and vocally, he captured the essence of Neil Diamond. So much so, you could believe you were attending a Neil Diamond concert. Yet he wasn’t consciously imitating Diamond or suppressing what he brings to the stage as a seasoned performer in his own right. Fradiani’s attitude towards playing a music icon, and his experience as a veteran of “America’s Got Talent” and “American Idol,” a show in which he came in first in 2015, remains of interest whether he is currently in Philadelphia or not. And there’s no saying, Ryan, also directed by Michael Mayer and coming directly from Broadway, won’t do the same. “There’s a lot to reconcile when you play someone as popular and well-known as Neil Diamond. Nick Fradiani, cast as the younger Neil Diamond, center, and the cast that makes up ‘The Noise’ in “A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical” at the Forrest Theatre. (COURTESY OF FORREST THEATRE) “First is knowing the audience wants Neil,” Fradiani said. “Unfortunately, there is only one Neil, and he doesn’t perform any more. “So they have me, and I have to balance playing someone whose voice and mannerisms a lot of people know with I bring to the table after a lifetime working in front of live audiences. “I can, after all, only be me playing Neil. “So besides what happens in rehearsal and taking over the role, I took it upon myself to study Neil. I watched YouTube after YouTube of him. I didn’t want to impersonate him. That would not be a good way to go. I wanted to portray him as authentically as I could. “That meant realizing the difference between us. For instance, I have a higher voice than Neil’s. He’s a pure baritone. “There’s a huskiness in his voice. I wanted to approximate that. “By listening and watching Neil, I caught the rhythms in his speech and noted his mannerisms. I am playing a role, but that role is an actual person. “This was all a work in progress, which, luckily, I can do by now, after singing ‘Sweet Caroline’ maybe 2,000 times, without thinking about it. “The process meant learning Neil’s phrasing, noting his particular inflections. I’m an actor. He does things different from me. I had to incorporate his traits into my style of presentation. “I’ve been lucky. I came to acting late, but after years of working in front of live audiences. One advantage I had is I could meet and study the real people I was playing on stage. I met Neil. Chazz Palminteri guided me through ‘A Bronx Tale.’ “I am the one singing and dancing on stage. But as an actor, I want the audience to see enough Neil to convince them they are seeing a character they know and recognize as Neil Diamond.” Fradiani brings years of experience, including being in high-stakes situations to the stage. Recording artist Nick Fradiani in 2016. The ‘American Idol’ competition winner transitioned to acting and the stage, and believes he has captured the essence of Neil Diamond for the musical “A Beautiful Noise.” (Ethan Miller/Getty Images) His weeks on “American Idol,” he says, “ taught him a lot about being professional and what one had to do to succeed and entertain at a high level. “I couldn’t say anything else but that ‘American Idol’ changed my life, and not just because I won the competition that year. That can be a matter of luck and audience support. You see a lot of entertainers who have been on ‘American Idol’ and went further than the winner of their season. “What motivates and raises the stakes is being on national television every week and having to progress to stay on the show and in the competition. “I benefited from being older and more experienced than most of the contenders. But I also knew the stakes. When you’re on live TV, the pressure is so great, unlike anything else. “As weeks went by, that pressure became stronger, not just because of wanting to win but wanting to fulfill the audience’s and the judges’ expectations. “A lot besides what you’re doing depends on you when you are on a national show. I kept moving to new notches because there was a large audience to entertain. I wanted to win, but I didn’t want to disappoint the viewer. “ ‘American Idol’ bolstered my confidence. It helped me stretch, to reach to be better.” As mentioned, Fradiani was seasoned before he appeared on “America’s Got Talent,” on which he didn’t make it past early rounds, or “American Idol.” Years before it would matter, he even got to see Neil Diamond. “Yes, at age 4. My father was a huge Neil Diamond fan, and he took me to a Neil Diamond concert when I was 4.” Music is a lifelong practice for Fradiani. He performed in dozens of clubs and regarded himself as a musician. “Acting came later. I’ve played clubs my whole life, but acting, adding a character to the music, is new. I feel as if I was thrown into it in later life. Once I found the theater, I fell in love with it. “Being on a stage and entertaining live came natural to me. Learning to speak, sing, and move as someone else was a challenge, but I enjoy it. I learned a lot from being in ‘A Bronx Tale’ and then doing ‘A Beautiful Noise.’ “I’ve always been comfortable on stage. It was time for a challenge, and I’ve reached a stage at which I know can go on a stage in character and be fine.” Fradiani’s girlfriend, Lauren Celentano, is also in the theater. She recently left the cast of “Moulin Rouge” to appear in a new musical, “Death Becomes Her,” based on the 1992 MerylStreep-Goldie Hawn film. Steals, deals has no appeal As if daytime television was not terminally sappy enough, several programs, some on the network, some syndicated, interrupt their normal vapid content to offer discounted merchandise on segments usually called “Steals & Deals” or some variation thereof. “Steals & Deals” involves the host or representative from a show’s cast going to a set filled with display tables of goodies. The host allegedly interviews a guest who peddles all kinds of gadgets, most of which you’d never know you wanted and haven’t thought about at all, at prices markedly below retail value, assuming one can obtain the item via retail. The salesperson praises everything in terms that make a QVC or HSN host seem sincere, and the host’s gushing outdoes the enthusiasm of a local TV reporter reflexively oohing and ahhing while covering a food spot or art exhibition. Everything, you’re told, is so clever, it’s something you have to have, and the markdowns are so severe, only a fool would pass such a bargain by. I mean, how can one resist an item so useful, decorative, practical, and cheap? What gets me is how these sales segments have proliferated from show to show with Kelly Ripa, Kelly Clarkson, Drew Barrymore, Jennifer Hudson and sundry others getting into the act. The most entertaining are the shills, often consistent on individual programs, who just can’t wait to enumerate the merits of the next best thing you don’t need and won’t use much once it’s out of the box and cluttering your storage room. I’ve always maintained commercial television stations can do as they please. Especially since anyone who doesn’t like what he or she is seeing can hit a button on the remote and tune out. It doesn’t make a difference whether I enjoy the marketplace segments or not. That said, the dedicated shilling of merchandise cheapens an already dreadful product. Yes, beyond local shows on Channel 29, I think daytime television only has value when you troll through the channels and alight on a Ginger Rogers-Fred Astaire movie. The presentation is egregious enough to be cloying. It’s bad enough when one has to sit through a three-minute commercial for some miracle skin cream or medication that seems to make everyone who takes it dance or go to a farmers’ market. Delaying interviews with stars who don’t matter or cooking segments with seven minutes of high-powered sales pitches borders more on insult than a service. Commercial networks and stations are entitled to eke out any revenue they can. That’s what business is about, and television is primarily a business. I just hope the income the daytimes shows derive is worth reducing hosts to the status of carny barkers and the treating the audience like marks. Ginned up Eagles controversy ESPN got witty on Thursday at the expense of our beloved Philadelphia Eagles. The text under a story being discussed on “Sports Center” read, “Fly Egos Fly,” and dealt with the controversy, said to be hotter among fans and in the media that in real life, between quarterback Jalen Hurts and star receiver A.J. Brown. You can’t blame either of those superstars if they bristle when every announcement of a nationally televised Eagles game is teased with “Saquon Barkley and the Philadelphia Eagles.” Still, in spite of a wonderful win-loss record — 11-2 at this writing but hopefully 12-2 by later — and the assurance of a playoff berth, the Eagles generate worry. Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts and wide receiver A.J. Brown celebrate a touchdown against the Cleveland Browns on Oct. 13, 2024, at the Linc. (AP Photo/Daniel Kucin Jr.) Perhaps, as Channel 3’s Don Bell says, more among Philadelphians than in towns around the league. Bell says local fans and press gnash their teeth and discuss the shortcomings of the team while friends from other cities says, “Your Eagles are doing great.” Announcers and analysts calling Eagles games seem to agree with the out-of-towners, although local radio announcers, Merrill Reese and Mike Quick, have been critical. As has former Eagle Jason Avant, whose comments I find particularly astute and who I like hearing with Rob Ellis on WIP (94.1 FM) post-game programs and with Don Bell and Pat Gallen on Channel 3’s Sunday night roundup. I like thinking the controversy is overblown in fans’ minds and in the press. Then again, I sit watching or listening every week and shout multiple times, “Throw the (expletive deleted) football already. A.J./DeVonta/Dallas is right there, right there!” Step up attire, on-air people While watching a lot of local news in recent weeks, I’ve decided that if I was a local news director, I’d insist on all anchors, reporters, and commentators adhering to a businesslike dress code. On some stations, Channel 10 in particular, wardrobe is a catastrophe. It’s like everyone shops at some store’s exclusively reserved Ugly department. Apologies, Jacqueline London. You’re fine. Too much wrong can happen when on-air folks are permitted to be casual. With Channel 29’s Hank Flynn as an exception, I, as a news director, would direct all men to wear ties and all women to dress as if they were high-level executives. Some men look good in open collars. Some look downright schlumpfy, with T-shirts that don’t have crisp collars, pants that don’t match jackets or shirts, and coats that look more suitable for combat than for television. Women need to look to and model after Channel 6’s Cecily Tynan, Channel 29’s Kathy Orr, or Channel 6’s Karen Rogers, coincidentally all weather anchors. Come to think of it, Channel 3’s Kate Bilo always looks good too.