The music of Michael Jackson is coming back to Chicago. “MJ the Musical” opens at the James M. Nederlander Theatre on Aug. 12 — the same venue that launched the original U.S. tour of the Tony-award winning Broadway production back in 2023.
For Brandon Lee Harris, who plays the teenage Michael Jackson, this is more than a homecoming for the show. Harris was born and raised on the West Side, and he’s excited about bringing the musical home to his family and friends.
“My family is still in Chicago, and they will be here for the show,” said Harris. “It feels really good. The first time we came here, there was a lot of hype because we were opening the tour. We were in tech, we were in previews, and we were always in rehearsals.”
This time, Harris said the show is a “well-oiled machine.” Which means he has time to visit some of his favorite Chicago-area spots: his mom’s house in Rogers Park, his dad in west suburban Westchester and his alma mater, Lincoln Park High School, to see his former choir teachers. He also notes grabbing food at his favorite West Side restaurant, El Gran Burrito.
Harris said stepping onto the stage each night as the iconic pop star never gets old but comes at a cost.
“There’s a lot of pressure that I put on myself to portray such a man,” he said. “It is a show about a Black musician, Black music, Black artistry and a Black family. So every time I walk out on stage, I’m just trying to make sure that I am portraying Michael in the best light, the best way I possibly can, knowing that I’d never be him.”
“MJ the Musical” tells the life story of the King of Pop through the lens of an MTV interview during the days leading up to the 1992 Dangerous World Tour.
Critics have noted the timeline of the production allows for an omission of the sexual abuse allegations Jackson faced in 1993 and after.
Instead, the musical focuses on Jackson’s childhood, his rise to fame, his struggles with his own identity (including allegations of plastic surgery on his nose and his public struggle with vitiligo) and the immense pressure he put on himself to succeed.
But the heart of the story, besides the music and excellent choreography, is the depiction of Jackson’s relationship with his father, Joe Jackson.
“It’s easy for us to villainize people that we don’t fully know about,” said Devin Bowles, who plays Joe Jackson. “For me as an actor, I love diving into the humanity of people. Joe was a father, a husband and a son. For me, when I start there, I think about the behavior of this person and the predicaments they were put in.”
Bowles approaches the character of Joe Jackson from a similar place he sees in one of his favorite villains in the Marvel Cinematic Universe: Thanos, the supervillain seeking to stabilize overpopulation in the universe by wiping out half of all lifeforms.
“Thanos thought that what he was doing was for the greater good. And it’s only in contrast that we can identify villains in the first place,” said Bowles. The true essence of a good villain is the belief they are actually the hero.
“Joe loves Michael Jackson,” said Bowles. “I think Joe was very product driven. He didn’t want anything to derail him from guiding his kids to being the best ever.”
In the production, we see that goal achieved. Through flashbacks, the audience goes on a journey that includes the legendary Jackson 5 performance at the Apollo and Michael Jackson moonwalking on “Soul Train.”
When it comes to embodying Jackson, a key component is nailing the dance moves. The choreography was a partnership between director and choreographer Christopher Wheeldon and the brothers Rich + Tone Talauega — the creative duo Harris refers to as “the MJ authenticators.”
Rich and Tone worked extensively with Michael Jackson, and in the musical, they not only incorporated Jackson’s signature moves but Harris said they also created new movements in Jackson’s style.
Brandon Lee Harris said he puts a lot of pressure on himself to portray Michael Jackson. “It is a show about a Black musician, Black music, Black artistry and a Black family. So every time I walk out on stage, I’m just trying to make sure that I am portraying Michael in the best light, the best way I possibly can, knowing that I’d never be him.”
Manuel Martinez/Manuel Martinez/WBEZ
When asked if he’d ever imagined playing Michael Jackson when growing up, Harris, whose first role was the Scarecrow in “The Wiz” at Pritzker Elementary in Wicker Park, chuckled and replied, “Honestly, if you would have told 8-year-old me that I’d be playing Michael Jackson one day, I probably would have passed out. Because Michael is my inspiration. He’s the reason why I wanted to be an artist, a singer, a performer in general. He’s influenced me so much in my career.”
Mike Davis is a theater reporter who covers stages across Chicago.