Review: MOTOWN Races Through Charm City

MOTOWN Races Into Charm City's Hippodrome

Is there a perfect recipe for a fabulous musical? Of course great music is required, but what else? Characters we identify with and root for, snappy dialogue, a bit of romance, a strong through-line, excellent performers, identifiable themes, something to think about and if there's some social commentary thrown in, so much the better. MOTOWN THE MUSICAL (book by Berry Gordy, music by Various Artists) is the complete package.

Jukebox musicals, by virtue of having songs written beforehand for other media, are often plot-thin and overly contrived, with songs that enhance (more or less, but often less) story progression: WE WILL ROCK YOU is a campy and wonderful example of this; MAMMA MIA! not so much. I expect MOTOWN THE MUSICAL to have a plot and hope quite fervently to like it.

I like it.

Being of the 'don't spoil it for me' ilk of media consumers, I firmly refuse to spoil a show for my readers with a plot synopsis, so I will simply offer reassurance that the plot of MOTOWN (which my fingers keep stubbornly mis-typing as MOWTOWN, a lawnmower musical as yet unwritten) is not in the least contrived but completely realistic and heart-warmingly human. Baltimore and Motor City may be more like strained siblings than kissing cousins, but in some deep sense, Detroit IS Baltimore and this musical will resonate most particularly here, most particularly now.

If this makes MOTOWN sound Overly Important, I apologize and submit that even things that are Great Fun- which it is- need foundational roots that cling to universal themes and basic precepts of good storytelling -which it does, quite well, on several levels. The show manages to deftly handle an assortment of potentially treacherous topics without either trivializing or getting bogged down. It is one of the better scripts I've seen in the last two years and has the opposite of what is termed 'book problems,' which allows other elements to be shining brilliance rather than glossy compensation.

Those 'other elements' include a high-concept semi-representational set design with pneumatically driven pieces, an array of projection screens, fresh song and orchestral arrangements, spot-on choreography, sixty years' worth of costuming with glorious wiggy accompaniment as designed by Charles G. LaPointe, several follow spots, intricate sound design, two credited script consultants and director Charles Randolph-Wright's equally delicate management of both comedy and tragedy. Uncredited are mentors who helped the ensemble understand the characters, times and emotional content of sequences in the show since it would be a stretch to imagine that many members of this energetic, invested cast remember even the eighties. Kingpin status goes, of course, to the amazing Berry Gordy who is responsible for the majority of the script and the autobiography upon which it is based (as well as many of the lyrics, including, with Michael Lovesmith, three new songs specifically for the production) and fills the Our Hero role in the show itself.

Big applause to the wonderful casting of Telsey & Company (responsible also for casting television's GREASE: LIVE) which gathered or discovered equity performers who portray without caricaturing, who develop and age, who interact and support, who deliver music we believe, even when it doesn't sound exactly as we remember. There are more accolades possible than space permits, but I can't resist particular recognition of Jesse Nager's strong comedic contribution in his role as Smokey Robinson. Special thanks to 'swing' performers who have no roles assigned to them but who are prepared to step in for any member of the ensemble, each of whom have at least two, and some as many as six, roles to play in the show.

From the opening brass to the closing high-hat, the music moves at the speed of life, never allowing the pacing to drag. Musical director Darryl Archibald, also on Keyboard 1, serves as our conductor for the evening and rather than reproducing sound from vinyl 45s, presents the music we already love as if it were fresh off the presses or even still work in progress.

Despite the heavy tech associated with this touring production, this is a show I can imagine performed by smaller, less well-funded companies, which would bring the story to ever wider audiences. MOTOWN deserves to be not just a Broadway phenomenon but a part of our collective culture. It's fun, it's funny, it's sexy and it's full of the sort of hopeful committment to brighter futures that used to be part of the American Dream. It's absolutely worth reminding ourselves of who we are, where we've been and how much more we can become. If you remember, prepare to sing along. If you don't remember, prepare to fall in love.

MOTOWN THE MUSICAL plays at the Hippodrome through Sunday, March 13th. Shows are Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8pm, Saturday at 2 pm and Sunday at 1 pm.

Hippodrome Performing Arts Center, 12 N Eutaw St, Baltimore, MD 21201; for tickets call 800-982-ARTS

Pictured: Jarran Muse as Marvin Gaye; Krisha Marcano, Allison Semmes, Trisha Jeffrey as The Supremes Photo Credit: Joan Marcus

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