(NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ) -- State Theatre New Jersey presents The Temptations & The Four Tops on Thursday, December 12, 2024 at 7:30pm. Two of the most iconic Motown groups of all time perform their biggest hits live in concert at STNJ, including "My Girl," "Just My Imagination," "Papa Was a Rolling Stone," "I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)," "Ain't Too Proud to Beg," "Baby, I Need Your Loving," and many more.
The Temptations, often referred to as American music royalty, are world-renowned superstars of entertainment, revered for their phenomenal catalog of music and prolific career. They are one of the most iconic, best-selling brands in the entertainment world today. While the group has evolved over the years, founding member Dr. Otis Williams has continued to lead the group and carry the torch forward for the next generation of Temptations’ fans. Their concerts include fan favorites such as “My Girl,” “Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me),” “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg,” and “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone.” They were also ranked #1 in Billboard magazine’s most recent list of the Greatest R&B/Hip-Hop Artists of All Time. The Temptations are the recipients of numerous awards and honors and have been the subject of a smash hit Broadway musical, Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations. The Temptations’ heritage, influence, and contributions to not only American culture and African American communities but also to the global music landscape are monumental.
The Four Tops, originally called the Four Aims, made their first single for Chess in 1956, and spent seven years on the road and in nightclubs, singing pop, blues, Broadway, but mostly jazz—four-part harmony jazz. When Motown’s Berry Gordy Jr. found out they had hustled a national Tonight Show appearance, he signed them without an audition to be the marquee act for the company’s Workshop Jazz label. Their first Motown hit, “Baby I Need Your Loving” in 1964, made them stars and their '60s track record on the label is indispensable to any retrospective of the decade. Their songs, soulful and bittersweet, were across-the-board successes. When Motown left Detroit in 1972 to move to Los Angeles, the steadfast Tops decided to stay at home, and with another label. They kept up a string of hits with ABC-Dunhill for the next few years, until the groups move to Casablanca Records in 1980. Smokey Robinson remembers: “They were the best in my neighborhood in Detroit when I was growing up (and) the Four Tops will always be one of the biggest and the best groups ever. Their music is forever.”
Tickets range from $59-$159 and are available for purchase online, by calling State Theatre Guest Services at 732-246-SHOW (7469). State Theatre Guest Services, located at 15 Livingston Ave, New Brunswick NJ, is open by phone and email only, Tuesday through Friday from 11:00am to 5:00pm. For in-person purchases, Guest Services is open Tuesday through Friday from 12:00pm to 4:30pm. Additional ticket and transaction fees may apply.
After major renovations, State Theatre New Jersey celebrated its 100th Anniversary in December 2021 in a fully renovated theater. Originally built as a silent film and vaudeville palace, State Theatre’s historic significance was honored by PBS by featuring it in its documentary series, Treasures of New Jersey, in the fall of 2018. “Treasures of New Jersey: State Theatre New Jersey” can be streamed online.
Today, State Theatre is the largest performing arts center in Central New Jersey and has welcomed more than six million people through its doors since reopening as a nonprofit performing arts center in 1988. State Theatre New Jersey is a cornerstone of the cultural vitality of Middlesex County and averages a total economic impact on New Brunswick and the surrounding area of more than $18 million a year. The mainstage programs have featured high-caliber artists such as Diana Ross, Tom Jones, Kevin Hart, Ringo Starr, Melissa Etheridge, John Leguizamo, Harry Connick, Jr., Diana Krall, and Crosby, Stills & Nash. Program offerings include Broadway, orchestra, family, dance, comedy, rock/pop, jazz, Performances for Schools, and Sensory-Friendly Performances.
State Theatre New Jersey’s programs are made possible by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts. Grant funding has been provided by the Middlesex County Board of County Commissioners through a grant award from the Middlesex County Cultural and Arts Trust Fund.
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