Musical ‘MJ’ brilliantly recalls an iconic talent
By Rich Fahey
BOSTON – Perhaps, through it all and 15 years after his death, he is still the king of pop.
Gauged by the raucous welcome the national touring company of “MJ” received at the Citizens Bank Opera House at a recent performance, time and distance haven’t managed to dim Michael Jackson’s star.
“MJ” opened on Broadway on Feb. 1, 2022. It was nominated for 10 Tony Awards including Best Musical, eventually winning four awards, including Best Actor in a Musical for Myles Frost, as well as Best Choreography, Best Lighting Design and Best Sound Design. The original cast recording was also nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album and the show is still going strong at the Neil Simon Theater.
The first national tour now in Boston through July 7 stars Roman Banks, who channels the adult Jackson with style and aplomb. He has it all: the voice, the movement, even the tenor of his voice. That includes the breathtaking moonwalk, signature spin and toe-stand, sequined silver glove, tilted fedora, and the tight black pants with scrunched white socks.
With Banks setting the tone and a roster of Tony-winning designers lending their talents, the Michael Jackson Experience is being presented in its totality on the Opera House stage.
There will be a panoply of Jackson’s greatest hits, dazzling light shows and projections, and an orchestra under the music direction of Victor Simonson fit to back both the man and the mission.
What you won’t get is any discussion of the allegations of sexual misconduct that cast a cloud over Jackson in his later years, even as he was acquitted at a 2005 trial. The explosive 2019 documentary “Leaving Neverland” reignited the controversies.
“MJ” was produced with a special arrangement with Jackson’s estate and along the way will explore other controversial aspects of his life such as his addiction to painkillers, his hyperbaric chamber and his changing appearance. It will also explore, via flashbacks, his tumultuous upbringing as a member of the Jackson Five and father Joe’s pursuit of perfection.
“MJ” is largely the vision of two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Lynn Nottage, who wrote the book, and director/choreographer Christopher Wheeldon. Wheeldon said in a print interview there was talk of scuttling the project after the first accusations surfaced about Jackson. After extensive discussions, the decision was made to go ahead with an eye towards trying to separate the artist from his art, although Wheeldon admitted in the interview “it’s not entirely possible to do this.”
Nottage’s book covers two tension-filled days of rehearsal before Jackson and Co. embarked on their worldwide “Dangerous” tour in 1992, before the first sexual allegations were made against him.
The story is seen through the lens of a documentary news team, led by an assertive producer (Mary Kate Moore) who hopes to score a revealing interview with Jackson as beleaguered tour manager Rob (Devin Bowles) puts up with a seemingly endless number of last-minute requests from the exacting Jackson.
In a series of flashbacks, the show explores Jackson’s psychic pain from his turbulent childhood, with a demanding and abusive father, Joseph Jackson (Bowles in a dual casting) who relentlessly pushed his sons toward consummate perfection.
In all, there are several actors playing Jackson at different stages of his life, and another playing Michael Jackson’s brother Marlon; both eventually left the Jackson Five and went solo.
The talented cast includes Josiah Benson and Bane Griffith as Little Michael, Brandon Lee Harris as an older Michael, Jamaal Fields-Green is an alternate for MJ and Bryce A. Holmes as Little Marlon.
Jackson’s signature songs are sprinkled throughout the evening, and fans won’t be disappointed with either their presentation or performance. The roster includes “Beat It,” “Billie Jean,” “Thriller,” “Bad,” “Smooth Criminal,” “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough,” “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin,’” “Man in the Mirror,” “Black or White,” and more.
In helping Banks – who devoured everything he could find about Jackson – re-create Jackson’s movements, Wheeldon relied heavily on brothers Rich and Tone Talauega, the celebrated choreographers who are part of the “MJ” creative team.
The production values are otherworldly. Start with scenic designer Derek McLane, who was nominated for a Tony for this show, and authored the spectacular Tony-winning set for “Moulin Rouge!” that began life here in Boston at the Emerson Colonial Theater. Natasha Katz’s lighting design is a series of spectacular displays, mirroring the best of MJ’s iconic music videos, and Gareth Owen’s sound design and Paul Tazewell’s costumes complement her work perfectly.
If you are a Michael Jackson fan looking to recall a generational talent, you won’t be disappointed. Wheeldon told an interviewer the main goal of the show is to “make people feel good.”
From the reaction at a recent performance, mission accomplished.
The national touring production of “MJ.” Book by Lynn Nottage. Directed and choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon. Orchestrations and arrangements by Jason Michael Webb. Music supervision, orchestrations and arrangements by David Holcenberg. Presented by Broadway in Boston. At Citizens Opera House, June 18-July 7. Tickets from $50; www.broadwayinboston.com