PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — For a limited time, Portlanders can soak in the history of Motown at a local museum, then watch the dramatic telling of one of the genre’s most celebrated groups at a Broadway show.
The Grammy-curated exhibit Motown: The Sound of Young America and the Broadway performance “Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations” will align in Portland through Feb. 12.
The Motown exhibit offered at the Oregon Historical Society museum through March 26, includes stage outfits and instruments used by famed groups like the Temptations, the Four Tops, the Supremes, the Miracles and Boyz II Men. The exhibit also features interviews with Motown legends and interactive displays where visitors can learn to dance like the Temptations or perform “Stop! In The Name Of Love” by the Supremes.
“A blend of gospel, blues, and pop, Motown began in Detroit in the late 1950s and quickly became ‘The Sound of Young America,’ crashing the American pop charts and challenging the Beatles-led British Invasion,” the Oregon Historical Society website states. “The visionary of Motown, Berry Gordy, Jr., a former prizefighter and songwriter who believed that talent could be found on nearly every Detroit street corner, brought the iconic sound into the mainstream. From Motown came the Supremes, the Temptations, Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, the Jackson 5, and many others. Collectively, they changed the musical direction of the nation.”
After brushing up on Motown history, music lovers can watch modern performers bring the story of the Temptations to life at the Keller Auditorium. Tickets are still available for the Tony-award-winning Broadway show, which arrived in Portland on Feb. 7, and will be performed through Feb. 12.
“‘Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations’ is the electrifying, new smash-hit Broadway musical that follows the Temptations’ extraordinary journey from the streets of Detroit to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame,” Portland’s Center for the Arts website states. “With their signature dance moves and silky-smooth harmonies, they rose to the top of the charts creating an amazing 42 ‘Top 10’ Hits with 14 reaching number one.”
The biographical show is also a period piece, which tells the story of the group’s personal and political conflicts during a decade of civil unrest in America. The play is set to some of the Temptations’ greatest hits, including “My Girl,” “Just My Imagination,” “Get Ready” and “Papa Was a Rolling Stone.”