‘MJ’: Michael Jackson’s jukebox musical bio

‘MJ’ : Myles Frost. Photo: Matthew Murphy

MJ
Book by Lynn Nottage
Directed & choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon
Neil Simon Theatre
250 West 52nd Street
(800-755-4000), https://mjthemusical.com

By Scott Harrah

Jukebox musicals that attempt to tell the story of a superstar while weaving hit songs into a narrative are always problematic in nature.  Sometimes jukebox bio-musicals work brilliantly (such as Tina and Jersey Boys) or they miss the mark completely.  Attempting a jukebox bio of an artist as iconic, enigmatic and controversial as the late Michael Jackson is inherently an ambitious effort, particularly with a book writer as first rate as Lynn Nottage.  However, while MJ fails as a solid bio-musical, it has enough of his hits to please MJ fans and tourists and is a crowd-pleaser, if nothing else.

One wonders why the producers chose to include a book and story when Michael Jackson has enough of a classic songbook to fill an entire show as a revue.  Think of past Broadway revues of songs that were huge hits like Smokey Joe’s Café (featuring the songs of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller) and Ain’t Misbehavin’, starring the late Nell Carter. More recently we had After Midnight in 2013 as well as the long-running Michael Jackson revue Thriller Live on London’s West End, featuring hits by the Jackson 5 and Michael Jackson.  All that would be needed for MJ could have been a recreation of all his iconic hit songs spanning the decades and that would certainly have sufficed, without the need for a book or story line.  The show, if simply a revue, would have thrilled his fans and easily run for years.  Instead, what we have here is another messy jukebox musical with an awkward book that sanitizes the truth.  MJ is not the first bio-musical to sugarcoat a music legend’s life.  Remember the Janis Joplin musical A Night with Janis Joplin a few years ago?  That show, “approved” by her estate, portrayed Joplin as an almost saintly figure and barely mentioned her pesky little heroin addiction.

MJ was produced “by special arrangement with the Estate of Michael Jackson,” so there was no way the show ever intended to give anything resembling the “real” Michael Jackson.  Here, he is portrayed as a “victim” of the media.  The story focuses on his Dangerous Tour in 1993 as he tells everything to an MTV reporter interviewing him for a documentary.  We have three versions of Michael here: Early Motown Michael (Christian Wilson), who is perfect in voice and movement. Next is “Thriller” Michael (Tavon Olds-Sample), impressive in voice and manner, if a bit too terrified of his father Joe (Quentin Earl Darrington) by that point. Finally, we have the 1993 “victimized” Michael (Myles Frost).  Mr. Frost has some of the physical qualities of Michael Jackson down well, from his wispy voice and quirky mannerisms to his famous “robot” and “moonwalk” dances.  However, Mr. Frost lacks Michael Jackson’s magnetism.

As a biographical musical that attempts to encapsulate a certain time in the superstar’s life, MJ fails. Derek McLane’s set (mostly a dreary rehearsal hall) is often drab, Christopher Wheeldon’s direction is all over the place, and Jason Michael Webb’s musical direction and orchestrations are inconsistent.  Granted, recreating Michael’s iconic pop songs and videos is no easy task, but it is difficult to know what is prerecorded here and what is live.  MJ is a true “thriller” for diehard Michael Jackson fans who simply want to see covers of his classics, such as recreating the Jackson 5 singing “ABC” on TV’s “Soul Train.”  The show works best when it aims for pure nostalgia.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published February 6, 2022
Reviewed at February 3, 2022 press performance.

‘MJ’: Myles Frost & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MJ’: Myles Frost & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MJ’: Myles Frost & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MJ’: Tavon Olds-Sample & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy.