MJ the Musical
MJ the Musical is a jukebox musical based on the life of the American entertainer Michael Jackson. It features Jackson's music with a book by Lynn Nottage,[1][2] and choreography by Christopher Wheeldon.
This article is about the 2021 production. For the 2006 musical on the same subject, see Thriller - Live.MJ
Various Artists
Various Artists
The life and music of Michael Jackson
December 6, 2021: Neil Simon Theatre, New York City
2021 Broadway
2023 U.S. Tour
2024 West End
2024 Hamburg
2025 Sydney
MJ was scheduled to premiere on Broadway in mid-2020, but this was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[3] In November 2019, Ephraim Sykes was cast as Jackson,[4][5] but in June 2021 it was announced that he had been replaced by Myles Frost.[6] The production opened at the Neil Simon Theatre on February 1, 2022, with previews beginning in December 6.[7] In April 2023, Frost was replaced by Elijah Johnson.[7]
MJ received mixed reviews, but has been a success at the box office. It was nominated for 10 Tony Awards including Best Musical, with the musical winning four awards, including Best Actor in a Musical for Frost, as well as Best Choreography, Best Lighting Design and Best Sound Design. The original cast recording was also nominated for Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. By January 2024, the Broadway musical production had grossed $170.9 million, with an attendance of over 1.1 million.
Box office and business[edit]
MJ has been very successful at the box office, averaging over a million dollars each week on Broadway.[37][38][39] Following the Tonys, the show's weekly gross jumped to $1,661,000 with sold-out shows every day and advance sales booming. It was the biggest box office jump that week on Broadway and a new high for the show.[40] By September 4, 2022, it broke the Neil Simon theater's box office record five times with a total cumulative gross of $49.4 million.[41] As of February 2024, MJ the Musical on Broadway grossed around $177.6 million with 1,204,693 attendance and 869 performance.[42]
Critical response[edit]
MJ has divided critics, with the show receiving mixed reviews.[43] Charles Isherwood of Broadway News criticized Lynn Nottage's book, in particular, writing, "where MJ loses its fleet footing is in the bland, exposition-heavy and often trite dialogue supplied by Nottage...Clichés, preachy speeches, and baldly obvious dialogue abound."[44] Adam Feldman of Time Out wrote, "'Listen to my music,' says Michael to his interviewer. 'It answers any questions you might have.' Does it? I left the theater entertained, but not convinced I had seen the man in the smoke and mirrors."[45] Critic Maya Phillips of The New York Times wrote, "The musical is inherently hollow; the opacity of Michael Jackson and his life of traumas and controversies make it difficult to find material compelling and cohesive enough to tell a story onstage".[46]
More positively, Deadline reporter Greg Evans said it was "visually & sonically ravishing!",[47] while the Chicago Tribune called the show's scenery gorgeous and the show "beautiful to experience throughout, which one almost never can say about jukebox musicals".[48] Peter Marks of The Washington Post also praised the show and the cast, especially the "utterly persuasive" Myles Frost, and called MJ "a riveting, adrenaline rush of a show".[49] Linda Armstrong of Amsterdam News called the production "spectacular", "stunning" and "off-the-charts".[50] Joe Westerfield of Newsweek said, "In many ways MJ is a living, breathing, even breathless, music video, but with that touch of inspiration, drive and art that only Michael Jackson can provide."[51]