The Temptations musical, coming to Fox Cities PAC, addresses highs and lows of the legendary group, with iconic music
APPLETON – Fans of Motown group the Temptations can watch classic hits like "My Girl," "Ain't Too Proud to Beg," "Papa Was A Rolling Stone" and "I Can't Get Next To You" performed live at the Fox Cities Performing Arts this week.
"Ain't Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations" runs June 20 to 25 at the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center. The show tells the story of the Temptations, from their humble beginnings as a musical group in Detroit to legendary members of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
The Temptations formed in 1960 as a five-person group and performed over the next few decades with various members rotating in and out. The group still performs today, and includes 81-year-old founding member Otis Williams, the only member of the original quintet who is still living. The group's most recent album, Temptations 60, was released in 2022 and celebrates 60 years of the group.
For Michael Andreaus, who plays Otis Williams in the show, the best part of performing in "Ain't Too Proud" is seeing audience members' faces "light up" with memories as the cast performs close to 30 of the group's legendary songs during the approximately 2½-hour show.
"It's such a good time. Whenever you're doing a show that has so many great hits in it like the Temptations were able to produce, then you can't help but have fun," he said. "People are always out in the audience singing along and moving in their seats."
While the musical is filled with the Temptation's hits and iconic dance moves, Andreaus said it also addresses the darker aspects of the group's story.
"Ain't Too Proud" is based on the book "Temptations," which was co-written by Williams as an autobiography and story of the vocal group. In the musical, Williams's character acts as the narrator and chronicles the group's experience through its highs and lows, from the band's rise in popularity to members' interpersonal disagreements and racial injustices.
The Temptations came to fame at the height of the country's Civil Rights Movement, and "Ain't Too Proud" depicts some of the impacts of segregation, civil unrest in America, the 1967 Detroit riots and the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., amid personal issues with the band like drug addiction, violence and suicide.
Andreaus said many of the show's themes of racial injustice still carry weight in today's society. He said he's grateful the musical's writer, Dominique Morisseau, did not shy away from portraying those issues.
"It would have been really easy to just make it very surface level, just some great songs on the stage and call it a day. Or even just to use the songs to tell a different story, just because the music is so great," Andreaus said. "But the fact that we take this opportunity to really tell the truth of their situation, and the truth of the things that they went through, I think that is something that (for) a lot of people ... that resonates with them."
Williams helped in the musical's rehearsal process, and Andreaus, who has been in the cast of "Ain't Too Proud" since the tour's start in 2021, said he's been able to meet Williams on multiple occasions.
Andreaus said it's not often that an actor gets to speak to the real person they play onstage for eight shows a week.
"Of course, it's incredible ... I am honored that I get the chance to even walk in those footsteps just a little bit. But there's also ... a heavy responsibility to it as well, you know, because you want to make sure that you're representing this person in an authentic way," he said of portraying Williams onstage.
The main thing Andreaus said he aims to replicate when he plays Williams is the founding member's love for the other members of the Temptations.
"That I think is such a central theme in our show, and why it works so well is, I mean, I really love the guys that I get to do the show with every night. You know, we've built our own little brotherhood traveling on the road together, " Andreaus said. "So that part's not faked, that part's not acting."
Tickets for "Ain't Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations" can be purchased online at foxcitiespac.com through Ticketmaster, by phone at 800-982-2787 or through the Fox Cities PAC ticket office in person or by phone at 920-730-3760.
The PAC ticket office is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday.
Contact Kelli Arseneau at (920) 213-3721 or karseneau@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @ArseneauKelli.
This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Fox Cities PAC to show The Temptations musical featuring iconic hits
