Jeremy Pope and Ephraim Sykes are ~ proud ~ Tony Award nominees!
Jeremy Pope is the 6th actor in Tony Award history nominated in two categories the same year! Pope is nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play or his performance in Choir Boy as well as Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical for his performance in Ain't Too Proud. Ephraim Sykes is also nominated for the the Tony Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical for his performance in Ain't Too Proud.
Michael Riedel talked with Pope and Sykes about portraying The Temptations on stage,
"It's an honor to highlight a man in his full form... We still love him to this day even with his problems. That is therapeutic and gratifying to me because it encourages me to be my full self always" said Sykes about playing "David Ruffin" on stage.
With Pope and Sykes' nominations, Ain't Too Proud is nominated for 12 Tony Awards total including Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, Best Scenic Design of a Musical, Best Costume Design of a Musical, Best Lighting Design of a Musical, Best Direction of a Musical, Best Choreography, and Best Orchestrations. Their cast-mate Derrick Baskin is nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical for his performance in the production.
With Pope's nominated for his performance in Choir Boy, the play is nominated for 3 additional Tony Awards, including Best Play Best Choreography, and Best Sound Design of a Play.