MJ the Musical


MJ the Musical is a jukebox musical based on the life of the American entertainer Michael Jackson, focusing on his creative process prior to the Dangerous World Tour. It features Jackson's music, with a book by Lynn Nottage, and direction & choreography by Christopher Wheeldon.
MJ was scheduled to premiere on Broadway in mid-2020, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City. In November 2019, Ephraim Sykes was cast as Jackson, but in June 2021 it was announced that he had been replaced by Myles Frost. The production began previews at the Neil Simon Theatre on December 6, 2021, and officially opened on February 1, 2022. It opened in the London West End on March 27, 2024 and running until February 28, 2026.
MJ The Musical received mixed reviews from critics but universal acclaim from audiences. 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 the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. By December 2025 the Broadway production had grossed over $300 million and sold more than 5 million tickets worldwide.

Synopsis

Act I

In June 1992, the cast members are preparing for rehearsals for Jackson's upcoming Dangerous World Tour; the first show in Munich, Germany is in two days. Rob, their manager, tells them to get into their places and warm up. Jackson arrives and watches the process, which leads to the opening number.
As Jackson shares his newest ideas with Rob, Rachel arrives with her cameraman, Alejandro, in hopes of getting an interview with Jackson. He sits with Rachel and recounts some of the terrors he suffered as a child and some of the memorable times when Berry Gordy played his family's hits on his Motown label. Jackson also discusses his collaboration with Quincy Jones and recording his albums Off the Wall, Thriller and Bad with Jones.
Rob and Nick escort Jackson to the press conference at Radio City Music Hall, where he presents his tour and hopes to raise $100 million for the Heal the World Foundation by Christmas 1993.

Act II

Jackson proposes new ideas for the tour, which Rob and Dave tell him are impractical and that they cannot afford it. Jackson recounts the horrific accident in 1984 when a spark ignited his hair in the making of an advertisement for Pepsi. After listening to Rob's negative feedback, Jackson reminds him of something Quincy said to him, "Keep the faith. Don't let nobody take you down".
As the rehearsal continues, Jackson tells Rachel how the songs open up to him. During a break, a commotion breaks out. Rob tries to keep Rachel away from Jackson and doesn't want her near him, but Jackson manages to find her by disguising himself as a cleaner. He explains to her that the disguise is the only way he can be seen in public, which leads to him singing "Human Nature". After the rehearsal, Jackson explains to Rachel how emotional he feels about being loved by fans and about being teased in the newspapers. He tries to blame everything sad and unusual about himself on others but takes sole credit for his good deeds and success.
As Rob comes to check up on him, Jackson recalls when he played at the Apollo Theater with the Jackson 5 and how he wasn't nervous. Rob tells Jackson that everything they created would be remembered for decades, but the latter replies by asking "Is it perfect?". Jackson appears on stage, prepared to start the first show of the Dangerous Tour, ", "Black or White" / "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' ".

Cast and characters

CharacterBroadwayUS National TourWest EndHamburgAustralia
Character20212023202420242025
Michael JacksonMyles FrostRoman BanksMyles FrostBenét MonteiroRoman Banks / Ilario Grant
Teenage Michael / Young Adult MichaelTavon Olds-SampleBrandon Lee HarrisMitchell ZhangazhaPrince DamienLiam Damons
Little MichaelChristian Wilson / Walter Russell IIIJosiah Benson / Ethan JosephJaydon Eastman /
Elliot Mugume /
Ethan Sokontwe /
Dylan Trigger		Luan KizuaBlaiyze Barksdale / William Bonner / Cayden Dosoruth / Daniel Makunike
Jackie JacksonJohn EdwardsJay McKenzieTavio WrightPrince OrjiKyle Kavully
Tito Jackson / Quincy JonesApollo LevineJosh A. DawsonRohan Pinnock-HamiltonDNPRIConlon Bonner
Jermaine JacksonLamont Walker IIBryson Jacobi JacksonSimeon MontagueWilliam BaughLoredo Malcolm
Little MarlonDevin Trey CampbellJaylen Lyndon HunterCristiano Cuino / Sekhani Dumezweni / Khanya Madaka / Aidan OtiNayoKayleb Alese / Charlie Batchelor / Zavier Pillay / Kael Smith
Marlon JacksonZelig WilliamsBrion Marquis WatsonToyan Thomas-BrowneRafael PortelaXavier Gibson
Randy JacksonRaymond BaynardMalcolm Miles YoungAden DzudaCaleaf HensonG Madison IV
Joe Jackson / RobQuentin Earl DarringtonDevin BowlesAshley ZhangazhaDavid HugheyDerrick Davis
Katherine JacksonAyana GeorgeAnastasia TalleyPhebe EdwardsJessica MearsJosslynn Hlenti Afoa
Berry Gordy / NickAntoine L. SmithJ. DaughtryMatt MillsPerci MoeketsiWonza Johnson
RachelWhitney BashorMary Kate MoorePhilippa StefaniEve RadesPenny McNamee
AlejandroGabriel RuízDa'von MoodyMatt GonsalvesPedro ReichertYashith Fernando
DaveJoey SorgeMatt LoehrJon TsourasMario GremlichTim Wright

Notable cast replacements

Broadway (2021–2025)

Michael Jackson: Elijah JohnsonKatherine Jackson: Sasha Allen

Musical numbers

;Act I
;Act II
Performances on October 31 also include a special Halloween closing number of "Thriller"

Recordings

Recording for the original Broadway cast album took place on February 7 and 8, 2022. The original Broadway cast recording was released on July 15, 2022. The original cast recording was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.

Development

The musical was announced in June 2018 with the backing of Michael Jackson's estate. Wheeldon spoke about the musical, stating, "The show is very much anchored in one particular moment in time. I always bring up the fabulous movie that Spielberg made about Lincoln: You take one key moment, I suppose, in the history of someone's life and then sort of use that as an anchor point for past storytelling and, perhaps, some kind of prophecy of what's to come. We'll be doing that with this story." Asked about the dance and choreography, he said he "intend to put quite a lot of Michael's work in the show".

Productions

Broadway (2021)

MJ was originally scheduled to premiere in Chicago in 2019, at the Nederlander Theatre. The Michael Jackson estate canceled the Chicago tryout due to "scheduling difficulties" brought about by an Actors' Equity Association strike.
The musical was scheduled to debut on Broadway in mid-2020 but was postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The production is directed and choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon, and it features a book by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage. Scenery for the production is designed by Derek McLane with costuming by Paul Tazewell. Natasha Katz and Peter Nigrini are collaborating on lighting and projection designs respectively. Gareth Owen designed sound production, with hair and wig design by Charles LaPointe. Elijah Johnson took over as Jackson in March 2023 until August 2025. Matte Martinez then stepped into the title role of the production in September 2025.

National Tour (2023)

A national tour began in Chicago at the Nederlander Theatre on August 1, 2023, and is scheduled to run through August 3, 2025. Jamaal Fields-Green took over as Jackson in July 2024. Jordan Markus then stepped into the title role of the production in February 2025.

West End (2024–2026)

The musical opened in the West End at the Prince Edward Theatre, with previews beginning March 6, 2024 and an official opening night on March 27. Frost reprised his role as Jackson. Jamaal Fields-Green then went on to reprise the role as MJ in January 2025. It is set to close on February 28, 2026, after running for less than two years.

Hamburg (2024)

A German production is expected to play the Stage Theater an der Elbe at Hamburg. Dialogue will be in German with the musical numbers remaining in English. Performances are scheduled to begin on December 1, 2024.

Australia (2025)

An Australian production opened at the Sydney Lyric Theatre on February 26, 2025. Banks reprised his role as Jackson. After the Sydney production was closed on August 23, the Melbourne production arrived at Her Majesty’s Theatre with Ilario Grant leading the role as Jackson on September 9.

Asia Tour (2026–)

The show’s first international tour is set to begin in October 2026 in major cities across Asia for an initial two-year run. More details will be revealed in the coming months.

UK Tour (2027–)

The show is set to tour across the United Kingdom in 2027.

Box office

Ticket sales have averaged more than a million dollars per week on Broadway. Following the Tony Awards, the weekly gross jumped to $1,661,000, with sold-out shows and brisk advance sales; it received the biggest box office jump that week on Broadway and recorded a new high for the show's sales. 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. As of January 2025, MJ the Musical on Broadway had grossed around $245 Million with a total attendance of 1,679,656 after 1,246 performances. MJ The Musical has ranked amongst the top five highest grossing annual Broadway shows each year since its release. By April 2024, MJ the Musical had sold more than two million tickets worldwide eventually reaching sales of over 5 million by August 2025.

Critical response

MJ received mixed reviews from critics. 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." 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." 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".
The Deadline reporter Greg Evans said the musical was "visually and sonically ravishing", 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". Peter Marks of The Washington Post also praised the show and the cast, especially the "utterly persuasive" Frost, and called MJ "a riveting, adrenaline rush of a show". Linda Armstrong of Amsterdam News called the production "spectacular", "stunning" and "off-the-charts". 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."