Ain’t Too Proud opens at the Prince Edward Theatre after a hugely successful run on Broadway and across America, the story follows the “life and times of the Temptations”, a band that you most definitely know the music of. The show swept up in the 2019 Tony Awards nominations with a very impressive 12 nods however only took home one award for Sergio Trujillo’s choreography.
The show is brought to us by the creators of Jersey Boys, the Juke-Box musical hit that’s been playing to packed crowds up and down the country pretty consistently since 2008. It’s very clear that the success of that stage adaptation has tried to be replicated in this production; whilst it ultimately is a very different journey involving different themes the basis of the musical is a carbon copy. So whilst I was excited to see this on stage I was left slightly disappointed because I felt like I’d seen all of it before.
The direction and book were just too similar to Jersey Boys, the format was almost exactly the same and the overall feel to the show just felt too close. What Jersey Boys achieves is a very raw narrative with very emotional peaks and pits however in this show these moments seem to be glossed over and have a comedic portrayal to it which takes us out of the core story and makes us think its a bit of fun rather than witnessing the struggles the band had to face. There is no doubt that The Temptations story should be shared however in this format it just feels a little false and not as capturing emotionally as Jersey Boys.
There is no doubt in my mind that this may be one of the strongest West End casts out there at the moment, with casting by 2023 Olivier Award honouree Pippa Ailion and her team this is truly a fabulous group of performers.
The show's main focus is on the early days of the Temptations and leading the cast we have Sifiso Mazibuko as Otis Williams, Cameron Bernard Jones as Melvin Franklin, Kyle Cox as Paul Williams, Tosh Wanogho-Maud as David Ruffin and Mitchell Zhangazha as Eddie Kendricks. All five guys really do a wonderful job at telling the story of the group and it really is an all-star lineup. Particular mention for Cox, having only recently left drama school he clearly has a big future as a leading man. A mention must also go to Holly Liburd who gave us a great performance as Diana Ross, whilst it came and went awfully quickly it was really beautiful. And also Posi Morakinyo as Dennis Edwards, a band member who joins later on in the show. He gave a wonderful performance and he is definitely a performer with very good potential for a bright future in theatre.
Whilst the Tony Award-winning choreography by Sergio Trujillo truly did give us everything we wanted and more, the direction by Des McAnuff didn’t give us anything new or fresh. Many audiences coming to see this show would have already seen Jersey Boys, perhaps in the very theatre Ain’t Too Proud is playing at, and it’s almost identical. It’s a shame this story couldn’t be told in a fresh way with innovative energy that has never been done before. However, as a theatre critic it’s my job to point out the flaws in a show but there is no denying I had a bloody good time, and that’s what we need most right now, isn’t it?! Ain’t Too Proud gives us toe-tapping numbers from the best talent London could possibly offer and there is absolutely no doubt you’ll have a damn good time watching this show.
Review by Mark Swale
Rating: ★★★★
Seat: J17 | Price of Ticket: £125
