Some people have told me “They have a lot of guts putting on a Broadway show about Michael Jackson!” Depending on where you fall in your beliefs, it’s either gutsy or about time. When we went to MJ on opening night, within the first 15 minutes, I got a palpable feeling of desperation from the audience that I’ve never picked up on in all the years I’ve attended live theater. I sensed a need for people to enjoy Jackson’s music – for it to be okay to do so. The audience was surrounded by people who loved Jackson’s music. Can we separate the negatives from the many positives?
MJ, the musical about Michael Jackson, the “King of Pop,” captures a window of time in the early 1990’s when the performer was preparing for his “Dangerous” world tour. There was a ton of pressure on him for this show to be a success, not only for the arc of his career but because he was going to donate all of the proceeds to various nonprofit organizations including his Heal the World Foundation. The show was becoming over-the-top in technical aspects and expense. To add to the stress, an MTV crew of a cameraman and a journalist were there during rehearsals, trying to document the artistic process but also to gain insight into the famously private artist himself.
We are present for the endless rehearsals for the tour, with dancers and musicians putting in achingly long hours at the behest of Jackson who kept throwing a wrench into things with his latest vision of how the show should be. You see what a true artist and visionary he was, picturing certain dance moves, certain intentions of movement, and special effects. Every change meant more delays and, especially, more money. But without raising his voice or throwing a tantrum, Jackson elicited cooperation from his producers, directors, managers, etc. And he coaxed excellence out of the dancers who seemed to understand who and what they were in the presence of while still being dog-tired.
Throughout the show, in the course of rehearsals, the reporter inserts herself, asking probing questions, trying get Jackson to lay himself bare. He really doesn’t, verbally, but through the clever methods of the theater, we are taken back to Jackson’s childhood where we see the rise of The Jackson Five, spurred on by their domineering jerk of a father, aided by his mother who, although far more gentle, stood up for and put up with her husband’s abusive ways. It was awful to watch.
We see The Jackson Five become hugely successful and Michael break off to start his solo career. We see the roles Barry Gordy and Quincy Jones played in his evolution. We see scenes we’re familiar with like their Soul Train performance and the stunning opening moment of his Dangerous tour. Cheers of recognition repeatedly erupted from the audience, oftentimes obliterating music or conversations. Such is the power of being taken back to happy times in our lives!
We see Jackson’s descent into prescription drug abuse but never see him lose control. He just goes and goes and goes and demands excellence of everyone around him and far more of himself.
The acting in MJ is excellent with several actors portraying dual roles. The music is fantastic as it had better be! The sets are creative with the use of layered screening and neon lights. You’d swear you were hearing Michael Jackson himself. Someone behind me whispered to his date, “Are we sure they aren’t lip syncing to Michael?” The dancing is incredible, and the costumes are fun, bringing back lots of memories of concerts, TV, album covers and posters covering our walls.
My favorite scene happens at the start of the second half of the show (which runs a nearly too long two and a half hours). Before the curtain goes up, we see Jackson’s handwriting on the curtain – notes to himself about Fred Astaire, the Nicholas Brothers, and Bob Fosse. That first scene shows these famous dancers and choreographers with Jackson looking on, mimicking some of their moves and we get it. THAT’s where that certain move, style and flourish came from that are so iconically Jackson’s. He was inspired by, and adapted, so many moves from his predecessors which made me, a big fan of all of those folks, appreciate and respect Jackson all the more. He was one end of a thread of artists – a thread that continues, really, as people then and now try to mimic his moves. We see you, moon dancers and Thriller move experts!
At the start of the show, with the first number, people started to sing along. I thought, “Oh no, this won’t do.” Thankfully it ended pretty quickly, either because people realized this isn’t a concert show or because they started to get wrapped up in the storyline. Either way, thank goodness! No, this isn’t a Michael Jackson tribute concert. But yes, it is a window into his mind and heart and it is a celebration of a collection of music spanning more than 40 years that set a high standard then and still does both for the music created and the music we listen to.
Oh, and that Dangerous Tour that could have been a huge financial flop? It became one of the biggest-selling tours of all time. Turns out Jackson’s vision for it all was spot on.
The touring Broadway show MJ doesn’t shy away from, nor excuse the negatives about Michael Jackson’s life. But it does offer some insight and explanation, which IS deserved. The show is a chance for fans of his music to just settle in and, guilt-free, revel in it.
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