Berry Gordy has brought his true story to life in the spectacular Motown the Musical. In the two-hour-and-45-minute production the good, bad and ugly parts of the music industry are depicted.
The show begins with a bang as the audience jumps through times ranging between 1959 and 1983and this soul train does not stop.
So much music is represented through out the production that it's easy to miss some of the tunes. ( Motown the Musical is heavy on music, not on plot. ) At the beginning one almost wonders when the story will start. There are over 50 hit songs to work through and, toward the end, so many artists are impersonated it almost becomes a drag show. I noticed "Do You Love Me?" screamed "work" way before drag queens ever did. The young people can really learn their history from this nostalgic time warp, and I hope they do.
Comparing "My Guy" to "My Girl" had hilarious results and the Queen of MotownMary Wells, as done by Martina Sykesholds a note so long that it's an early show-stopper.
The Jackson 5, led by Reed L. Shannon as Michael Jackson, and many of Diana Ross' moments, as played by local performer Alison Semmes, brought emotional clapping and invoked love from the audience.
It's funny that a joke was made about Smokey Robinson, played by Nicholas Christopher, late in the show after the real Robinson did the same thing earlier in the evening for the red carpet. The experience of watching this biography surrounded by the real-life stars was unforgettable on opening night.
Racism is at first lightly touched upon; then things get serious thanks to the production's Marvin Gaye, who has a different take on the music biz. I wonder what he would think of the industry now.
If singing neighbors bug you then don't go to this show, as the tunes are so memorable that people tend to burst out in song and just can't seem to help themselves. Oh, and bring your hand sanitizer, germaphobes, as Ross encourages the audience to reach out and touch the hands of possible strangers. We can make the world a better place by not catching the flu!
There are many roots in Chicago for Motown the Musical, from the actual storyline to cast members, so it's nice to kick off a national tour that will sure to please fans of this genre of music and create new ones along the way.
Fans of Dreamgirls and Rock of Ages should run out to see what these shows are based on. "I Hear a Symphony"and its name is Motown.