Packed with high energy performance, glitzy costumes, great music and an amusing MC to drive the show along, who wouldn’t want a ticket to this? The greatest hits from the iconic Tamla Motown label are taken down, not that they need dusting off, and given the outing of their lives. All the greats we knew and loved are there, The Temptations, Stevie Wonder, The Four Tops, Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, Diana Ross and The Supremes; the list is endless and the in house ’Funk Band’, together with the talented singing and dancing cast take us on a roller coaster ride through 60s and beyond.
At the outset, audience participation is actively encouraged and by the end dancing in the aisles is de rigueur! Both halves of the show fairly explode with life and hit after hit from the Motown stable is performed; many of the singers more or less "become" the star whose song they are singing : Stevie Wonder and Diana Ross, not to mention the line up of The Temptations and The Four Tops. I really enjoyed the Temptations slot and the slickly synchronised dancing.
The costumes were an eye-catching reminder of the 60s and 70s when men were men and women were women, perfectly pressed tuxedos and jackets for the boys and figure hugging sparkly dresses for the girls with lots of nifty costume changes to keep the interest. The show succeeds strongly by not just aiming to perform the Motown music but doing so with an original twist and more than a touch of tongue in cheek humour. A great dialogue gets going with the lovable MC and by the end even the shyest of the audience found it difficult to keep in their seats and boogied along with the best of them. Dancing in the Street, the big hit for Martha Reeves and the Vandellas which lent its name to the show, was saved for the big finale and (of course) the well deserved encore!
This is ideal entertainment for all the family young and old, a great night out with the girls, or a romantic twosome to sing along with your favourite artists from the past; all of these were in the audience on Monday night and I can vouch for them and us in our evident enjoyment of a first class show.
Jacquie Vowles