'Beat it' to the Paramount for MJ the Musical. It's Dangerously good!

“MJ the Musical” is the latest biographical Broadway touring play highlighting the lives and careers of culture shifting musicians to reach Seattle. And similar to the shows featuring the Temptations and Tina Turner, this production about the King of Pop had many moments when audience members left their seats to sing and dance to popular tunes.

But even with a few pitfalls in the script, this production surpasses any musical I’ve seen this year. The combination of recognizable songs, a dynamite live band, a memorable performance from Roman Banks, who plays Michael Jackson, creative - and at times surprising - stage design, and fueled by excellent choreography and costumes that brought this production to life, MJ the Musical was a theatrical experience that I won’t soon forget.

Here’s what to expect:

There is so much good to say, but I’m going to start with the elephant in the room. I was asked many times, by many people, in the lead up to this show how the production would address the allegations of sexual abuse Jackson faced. And here is where the playwriting fell short - they not only omitted these allegations entirely, but they placed all Jackson’s character flaws that were addressed, onto his father, Joseph Jackson, who was the play’s antagonist.

In full transparency, I’m not a big fan of the wave of biographical shows and films we are seeing that are commissioned by the subject of said films and shows. I don’t believe it is possible for anyone to tell the story of their own life objectively. In this case, Jackson himself is not alive to approve, but the Estate of Michael Jackson is listed as having a “special arrangement” with the production in the credits. So, it may not come as a surprise that this production is strategically set in 1992 as Jackson prepares for the “Dangerous” world tour. The first allegations of child sex abuse against Jackson that were investigated by police happened in 1993. So by way of placing this story in 1992, these allegations don’t exist in the world of the play, thus they are never mentioned or addressed.

My issue with the portrayal of Joseph Jackson, played by Devin Bowles, is not simply inaccuracy. In fact, I’d argue the portrayal was for the most part accurate, based on reporting and documentation by the Jackson family. On stage, we see Joseph Jackson abuse his son, flirt with women and, at one point, verbally admit his infidelity, and we witness him choose money over the well being of his family. He even sings the song, “For the Love of Money” by the O’Jays, as he convinces Michael Jackson to join the Victory tour in 1984 with his brothers. I don’t take issue with any of that.

However, the only character flaws portrayed in Michael Jackson is that he was a workaholic, he was addicted to painkillers, and there were allegations that he bleached his skin and had plastic surgery on his nose. All of these flaws were attributed to his father. We see Joseph Jackson telling a young Michael Jackson that practicing his music and dance was more important than playing outside like the other kids his age. We see Joseph Jackson tell teenage Michael Jackson that he is ugly and that no one will ever love his dark skin and big nose. And we see the incident where Michael Jackson was burned during the filming of a Pepsi commercial. This incident is when we see Michael Jackson get prescribed Demerol for the pain, and later as he is in too much pain to practice for the Victory tour, we see his father shove pills in Michael’s hand and strongly encourage him to get back to work.

It was an interesting, yet deliberate, production choice to pin all of Michael’s character flaws onto his father. It created a gap in the story because it didn’t feel the character of Michael Jackson had a real arc. He didn’t learn anything new or powerful in the journey of the story, instead it was the audience that learned why he had flaws. So instead of resolution and development within the character, the audience was presented with excuses and explanations.

But even with all that being said, the show was amazing!

First and foremost, this is a musical. And the music here featured 25 of the biggest hits by the King of Pop. Everyone in the theater seemed to know these songs and it was fun to sing along with so many people participating. And the participatory atmosphere was no surprise - “Beat It” recently reached 1 billion streams on YouTube. Michael Jackson's music is still extremely popular.

The show opens during a rehearsal for the “Dangerous” world tour, and a reporter from MTV has arrived to interview Michael Jackson. This interview serves as a vehicle that transports us back through the life of Michael Jackson. So many memorable moments are captured. We see the Jackson 5 performing at the Apollo on amateur night. We see a young Michael Jackson doing the robot on Soul Train. And these moments are present with the simple stage design of a rehearsal room being flipped into representations of the venues. The speed of the set changes, the crispness of the costume changes, and the powerful performances of the ensemble cast who were great dancers themselves, all come together to create a spectacle that made it impossible to look away from the stage.

It was fun to hear the songs and see the dancing, but I also appreciated seeing Michael Jackson’s personality. We see how he saw beauty in the world and how important it was to make others smile. While having a meeting with his business manager, discussing the cost of the tour that would lead Michael to mortgage Neverland Ranch, Michael flipped the seriousness of the moment into joy by sneaking a red clown nose onto his face. Then he pulls out a water-pistol and squirts the manager until both are lost in laughter.

My favorite moment was the opening of Act 2. Throughout the production Michael Jackson is in every jacket you can think of from his videos and performances, but here he slides on the glimmering glove for the first time. Then he puts on a bedazzled hat. And he performs a mash-up of “Billie Jean” and “Smooth Criminal,” which are two of my favorites, and the crowd roared in delight.

Here’s who it is for:

This show is for the fans of Michael Jackson's music. Anyone who loves his music videos. Anyone who still moonwalks. The choice to omit his strongest allegations was an attempt to make this show about the music and the legacy. This is pure nostalgia and a way to relive the hits and iconic moments without interruption by his alleged indiscretions.

My Recommendation:

Go see this show! It is amazing. The music, the dance, the costumes. It’s an experience that will stay with you. It’s one more chance to see the King of Pop on stage, and in this show there are moments when different versions of Michael Jackson are on stage performing together.

And yes, I know I used a lot of space up top discussing the omission in the script and the unfulfilling character arc. But I doubt people are here for the story. People want the music, the costumes, and above everything else - the dancing. And this show delivers on all of those. I recommend this for anyone who wants to go to the theater and have a great time seeing an award-winning show that may lead to dancing in your seat until you sweat.