If you are a baby boomer who grew up on the Motown Sound or are just a music fan, you owe it to yourself to see the Key Bank Broadway Series production of ain’t too proud – The Life and Times of the Temptations, which runs through July 31 at Playhouse Square’s State Theater.
The musical, which opened on Broadway in 2018 and was nominated for 12 Tony awards, tells the story of the Temptations, who went from the streets of Detroit to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and into the hearts and souls of generations of music fans around the world.
The narrator is Otis Williams, the singer who brought the group together and is ironically the last surviving member of the original Temptations. He is played by Marcus Paul James, who has performed the role on Broadway and should get rave reviews for his Cleveland performance. Told through dialogue and song, Otis reflects on the brotherhood, loyalty and competition that brought the singers together and the competition within the group and within the music industry that shaped their future.
ain’t too proud also tells the stories of the individual members and how they coped with fame — not all of them successfully. The musical journey that led the Temptations to stardom is filled with back stories of pathos and grief — like Paul Williams’ struggles with drugs and eventual suicide; Otis Williams’ alienation from his son; and the departures of lead singers David Ruffin and Eddie Kendricks — both of whom died way too young.
Between all the great music and upbeat singing and dancing, we learn of the struggles of life on the road as drug addiction, tumultuous personal relationships, and the internal struggle among the group’s members challenged the unity of the family that they wanted to be. But the Temptations soldiered on to have 42 top ten hits with 14 reaching number one, becoming one of the most famous singing groups in the history of American music.
With Motown founder Barry Gordy always in the background and always trying to pull the strings, the Temptations walked the narrow line of maintaining their blackness but also having crossover appeal — never wanting to offend white audiences. This conflict was so deep that it threatened the survival of the group, especially as America dealt with the conflict in Vietnam and the death of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
The choreography, directed in Cleveland’s production by Sergio Trujillo and associate choreographer Edgar Godineaux, is worth the price of admission, as the cast, who exhibit boundless energy, recreate the dance steps that made the Temptations famous and created a style that has been copied by so many other artists.
The scenic designer does a masterful job of creating scenes from a juvenile jail to stages around the world through unique settings, designs, and visual illusions. The Cadillac convertible that makes an appearance on stage early in the show was very impressive.
All the familiar Motown names are there: Smokey Robinson, the Supremes — before Diana Ross split— and Tammi Terrell. The songs that made them famous, like “The Way You Do the Things You Do,” “Since I Lost My Baby,” ”My Girl” and “ Poppa Was a Rolling Stone” play a major role in the musical. And kudos to the entire musical staff that never missed a beat in roughly 2.5 hours of nonstop Motown magic.
You owe it to yourself to take a trip down memory lane with ain’t too proud, which is onstage at Playhouse Square through July 31. If you are like me, every song brought back memories of the 1960s and 70s, wearing bell bottom pants and puffy hair and dancing to the Motown beat. You will leave the show humming the tunes and, as some people I saw in the audience, dancing in the aisles.
I ain’t too proud to say that I’d see this show again in a heartbeat. It was just that good.
