Ain’t Too Proud hits all the right notes at Baltimore’s Hippodrome Theatre

Emilio Madrid

Mounting a ‘jukebox musical’, which uses previously written and produced music to tell a story, can be a dicey prospect. Some are just performances of the well-known songs with little connective material, some use the music to tell the story of a famous artist/musical group/company, and in at least one case, an entire story was built around songs that had no actual linking material except for the artists who originally wrote and performed them but aren’t the subject of the show. The more popular of the jukebox musicals tell the story of the artist/artists who sang the songs. Jersey Boys is probably the most well-known and popular of the shows as it always seems to be touring. Beautiful: The Carole King Story is one of the better shows, while Summer: The Donna Summer Musical unfortunately falls into the cheese category because of its bargain basement production (which the actors performing as Ms. Summer work hard to overcome). Now the 12-time Tony Award nominated hit jukebox musical Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations is taking the road after having completed its Broadway run in January of this year (the show opened in March 2019, was forced to suspend production in March 2020 due to the pandemic, and re-opened on October 16, 2021).

It’s probably safe to say that if you’ve ever turned on a radio at any point in your life, or been somewhere that had music playing, you’ve most likely heard a Temptations song: ‘The Way You Do The Things You Do’, ‘My Girl’, ‘Since I Lost My Baby’, ‘Get Ready’, ‘Ain’t Too Proud To Beg’, ‘I Can’t Get Next To You’, ‘Ball of Confusion’, ‘Just My Imagination’, ‘Papa Was a Rolling Stone’, and the list goes on. So there is no lack of material for Ain’t Too Proud, which opens by introducing us to Otis Williams who as a teenager in Detroit discovered a love of music and recruited friends from school to be in his group, Otis Williams and the Distants. Discovering that their manager was taking a larger cut than Williams felt the group as due, he fired her but needed to find a way to move on (she took everything including the group’s name). A chance encounter with Motown founder Barry Gordy landed the newly renamed The Elgins a recording deal … but only if they started singing original material (Gordy had heard them doing covers at a club engagement) and changed their name. Knowing they would tempt people with their music, the name The Temptations stuck and the group became one of Motown’s biggest acts … right behind The Supremes, which got all the backing from Motown because of Gordy’s relationship with Diana Ross.

But The Temptations had hit after hit and performed to sold out crowds across the country, and eventually the world but the climb to fame came with more than one pitfall. The core group, ‘The Original Five’, consisted of Williams, Melvin Franklin, Al Bryant, Eddie Kendricks and Paul Williams. Singer David Ruffin had been angling to join the group and when a frustrated Paul Williams quit, Otis gave him the job (although in the show it is also presented that Williams was scouting Ruffin, hoping he would accept the offer after Paul’s departure). As the group’s fame grew so did egos, particularly Ruffin’s, and turmoil led to his dismissal from the group, replaced by Dennis Edwards. Fears that the Ruffin fans would turn their backs on the group were put to rest as the group’s popularity continued to soar and Grammys were won. But that road to fame is a cruel mistress and the group suffered more departures and tragedy, personal and professional but The Temptations persisted and are still going strong to this day with Otis Williams still a vital member of the group.

Emilio Madrid

The touring production of Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations is one of the most vibrant, exhilarating jukebox musicals I’ve ever seen. While it is about the group and its roster of members, the show is carried squarely on the shoulders of Marcus Paul James, who plays Otis Williams, which is only fair since Otis was the cornerstone of the group, letting the others often get more of the spotlight. James is the show’s storyteller, often breaking out of the scene to speak to the audience, carrying us along with him and the group on their journey. He gives a wonderful performance and he brings a warmth and sincerity to Otis which makes it easy for us to be drawn in to the story as seen through his eyes.

Each actor playing one of The Temptations is excellent. Harrell Holmes Jr. takes on the role of Melvin Franklin, the second longest serving Temptation (nicknamed ‘Blue’ because he decided that was his color after buying a blue jacket) with the deep bass voice, and probably the most even-minded member of the group after Otis, rarely rocking the boat. Brett Michael Lockley plays Al Bryant, one of the more volatile members of the group. Jalen Harris is Eddie Kendricks, the one with the voice of an angel, and James T. Lane is Paul Williams, often the group’s choreographer. Together with James, they have such perfect harmony when they sings and tight moves when they dance, but each actor imbues their character with a personality of their own, able to turn on their stage personae even when they’re in the midst of major personal issues off the stage. Elijah Ahmad Lewis is spectacular as David Ruffin, with a powerful voice and some very limber joints. Lewis deftly takes Ruffin from fanboy to ego maniac, alienating his group but not the audience. Ruffin could have become a one-note character after his firing from the group in the wrong hands but Lewis never allows the audience to dislike Ruffin to the point of seeing him almost as the show’s villain. Harris Matthew is also spectacular as Dennis Edwards, Ruffin’s replacement, easily taking that vacant spot in the line-up. He really gets to shine as the group is preparing to record the song ‘Papa Was a Rolling Stone’, which Otis calls the angriest recording they ever made (so much so that they wanted it to flop so they could move on but it was a Number 1 hit). As Temps come and go throughout the show, it sometimes becomes difficult to know who is who but nonetheless they are all fantastic performers, singer and dancers, always riveting with their showmanship while building the personal aspects of the characters.

I have to give a shout out to some non-Temptations too. Deri’Andra Tucker, Traci Elaine Lee and Shayla Brielle G. are outstanding as The Supremes in their brief moments on stage, and Shayla pulls triple duty as Mama Rose (Melvin Franklin’s mother) and Tammi Terrell. Najah Hetsberger almost steals the show as Otis’ wife Josephine when she gets to belt out a couple of tunes. This is her first national tour and she makes a huge impact as Josephine, with a voice that can raise the roof. I hope producers take notice and start casting her in larger and larger roles.

Emilio Madrid

While the performances, singing and dancing (and of the show’s 12 Tony nominations, Sergio Trujillo was the sole winner for the tight choreo) are the focal point of the show, the overall production design is magnificent. The set itself is basically two ‘iron’ columns, some corrugated walls and a couple of video screens, with various pieces of furniture and set pieces gliding on and off stage (it’s nice to see a show where the actors aren’t also the stagehands). But this is all brought to life by creative and dynamic graphics, text and images, projections, the perfectly timed lighting, the screens moving up and down to cover the stage and reveal something completely new behind them in what felt like the blink of an eye sometimes. Nothing was kept static for too long, and being the tech nerd I am I sometimes was more drawn to what was going on with the set but I never lost sight of the performances. Everything blended together so well, so vibrantly thanks to the creative direction by Des McAnuff and his creative team: Robert Brill & Peter Nigrini (Scenic Design & Projection Design) and Howell Binkley (Lighting Design).

If I have any complaint, it’s the same one I usually have for these types of show — there is no real way to identify when things are happening except for the moment when the news breaks that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. With all of the projections and video used in the show, they could have at least included some year markers for us. But that is a typical omission for a show like this and it’s one I wish someone would address. Also, don’t go in expecting this to be a Temptations concert. You’re not going to get full versions of all the songs as some are used to bridge one scene to the next (some of which could rightfully be called vignettes because they are so short because this is a sprawling, decades-long story) and some characters, like Josephine, are given a particular song to play out their scene. Nonetheless, it’s still good to hear the songs and watch the actors go through their moves.

After seeing Summer: The Donna Summer Musical a couple of months ago, I was a little apprehensive about Ain’t Too Proud, concerned that it would have that same low-budget feel to it. I’m ecstatic to report that the show looks like a million bucks, it avoids any cheese factor, it will make you tap your toes, bop your head, laugh and cry but at the end you will be on your feet because each and every person on that stage and behind the scenes earned that standing ovation. And let me admonish those who want to run out early before the curtain call to beat the crowd to the parking garage — DON’T! It’s the height of rudeness to the people on stage who are still giving you a performance, and to the rest of the audience members you are disrupting and distracting. The curtain call hadn’t even started on opening night when I saw people quickly making their exits. Show some respect! Now go get some tickets to this terrific show (use our Ticketmaster link)!

Ain’t Too Proud runs about 2 hours and 30 minutes with one 15 minute intermission. Recommended for ages 12 and up (the show contains a few curse words — nothing like Jersey Boys — a brief moment of domestic abuse, and some drug use).

Ain’t Too Proud runs through May 8 at Baltimore’s Hippodrome Theatre. Other cities on the schedule include Buffalo NY, Pittsburgh PA, Chicago IL, Greenville SC, San Francisco CA, Seattle WA, Portland OR, Memphis TN, Hartford CT, Charlotte NC and more. Visit the official website for more information.