Ain’t Too Proud’s Ephraim Sykes on Rising Up from the Ensemble, His Dream Project with Hairspray Live! Co-Star Ariana Grande & More

Unlike David Ruffin, The Temptations’ bespectacled showstopper, Ain’t Too Proud's Ephraim Sykes was not born ravenous for the spotlight. The Temptations musical marks Sykes' sixth Broadway show, but it's his first time stepping into a meaty role on the Great White Way. Known for his standout performance in Hairspray Live! as Seaweed, Sykes is naturally charismatic, but Broadway was not his original goal.

His first memory of performing? “I was forced to be in The Nutcracker when I was 10,” he recalls. “Another time, there was a sock hop in the fifth grade, and there was this little girl there that I wanted to impress; I wanted her to be my girlfriend. They had this twist contest. I was like, ‘I don't even know what the twist is!’” (Sykes did the splits instead, winning the competition and his fifth grade sweetheart.)



“I did not know I wanted to do this as a profession,” says the Florida native. This is not to say the arts had no place in Sykes’ life growing up. Born in a musical household, Sykes grew up learning the drums, saxophone, trumpet and piano from his parents. He graduated from the Alvin Ailey/Fordham University BFA program with honors, and then toured with the Ailey II company for two years. “I went to Fordham as a dancer dancer. I had tunnel vision,” he remembers.

A choreographer's assistant tapped him to audition for The Little Mermaid, which led Sykes to his Broadway debut in the Disney musical. “Once I got that, I felt at home. I never thought to do Broadway before that moment,” Sykes says. “My whole journey to Broadway has been—I can't even say a dream because I could have never dreamt it. I keep working hard and winding up in places I would have never expected.”

Though Sykes has had his share of survival jobs (“When I got to New York, I worked at Abercrombie & Fitch on Fifth Avenue. I still hate that smell.”), Mermaid led to Memphis, which led to Newsies, which led to Motown, which ultimately led to the Broadway blockbuster Hamilton. Following Hamilton’s epic Tony performance (and 11 wins on Broadway’s biggest night), he was asked to audition for NBC’s Hairspray Live!

“I was like, ‘Well, I'm not doing that because, of course, they're not going to pick me,'” Sykes recalls. He ended up sending in a self-tape audition (recorded by his friend and Ain’t Too Proud co-star Derrick Baskin) and landed the role of Seaweed alongside chart-topper Ariana Grande as Penny. “The day I met Ariana Grande, I'm in Capitol Records at the microphone recording the album. She comes bobbling in there, her little self,” he says. “She's like, ‘Hi!’ They're like, ‘Ephraim, this is Ariana! How about we do you guys' duet?’ I was just like, ‘Cool, cool, cool. God got jokes.’” Would Sykes like to reunite with the Grammy winner in the future? Of course! “The first thing that comes to mind is some sort of superhero musical. The Incredibles musical, or something,” he says.

After Hairspray Live!, Sykes was in demand, but he chose an audition for a stage show over pilot season. "All my agents and managers are like, ‘All right, Hollywood is buzzing about you.’ I had 20 to 25 meetings right after, and lo and behold, the first audition I had was for Ain't Too Proud,” Sykes says. “I really just understood this piece and this man's life.” Sykes captures the electricity of the troubled Temptations lead singer. “This is the most monstrous role I've ever had to take on,” Sykes explains. "My measure of success with this show is really just feeling like I've tried my best.”

Awards season voters have taken notice of the triple-threat: Sykes is nominated for the Drama League Distinguished Performance Award and an Outer Critics Circle Award for his performance in Ain’t Too Proud.  But Sykes says it’s about a lot more than trophies: “The award is when I walk out of the stage door, and I meet somebody that says, ‘What you did really connected to me.' I love what I do. That's the award for me.”

Photo Credits: Photographs by Matthew Murphy | Styling: Jake Sokoloff | Grooming: Joanna Simkin | Assistant: Sydney Goodwin
Video Credits: Directed by Kyle Gaskell | Produced by Caitlin McNaney