(Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts; Orlando FL) The 4-time Grammy Award winning "MJ: The Musical" moonwalked its way into central Florida Tuesday March 4, the 1st night of a 13-night run in the City Beautiful.
The premise of the show is set around the days leading up to the opening night of Michael Jackson's 1992 "Dangerous Tour", with flashbacks to earlier periods of the star's life.
Jordan Markus portrayed the character of "MJ", which served as the "current day" (1992) Michael Jackson. Markus did a fantastic job of embodying the star. There were moments where it felt as though we were watching the King of Pop back with us on the stage before us as Markus spoke softly like Michael Jackson, moved like Michael Jackson, and had the mannerisms of Michael Jackson. There was the possibility that the actor was going to potentially overuse and over-incorporate the signature dance moves throughout the show; however, Markus did an excellent job of mixing up the iconic signature moves as the audience was treated to a fun display of the moonwalk, finger points, high kicks, and hat tosses.
Bane Griffith was this night's "Little Michael", which showcased the star during his earlier Jackson 5 days. Griffith had an amazingly fantastic voice. There is significant potential for this young star ahead. Vocally, he delivered a perfect representation of the Jackson 5's lead singer, nailing the high notes effortlessly and commandingly.
Anastasia Talley served as this evening's "Kate" and "Katherine Jackson". Her beautiful harmony with Little Michael and MJ during "I'll Be There" was simply beautiful, and was perhaps the best rendition I've ever heard of the song.
Erik Hamilton played the role of "Michael", which covered the character's life post-Jackson 5 but pre-global superstar. Hamilton did well, but it was during "Wanna Be Starting Something" that the actor erupted out of his shell, and suddenly I was watching an earlier day Michael on stage.
Devin Bowles was this evening's "Rob" and "Joseph Jackson". Acting-wise, he was the best actor this night. He was so convincing in 2 separate roles, that I wasn't certain at first if we were watching 2 actors who happened to look a lot like the other, or if we were actually witnessing just 1 singular actor toggling back and forth between 2 distinctly different characters and emotional depth. Bowles displayed a very wide range of acting capacity, and was very impressive.
Regarding the show itself: if you are a fan of Michael Jackson's music, you will be very happy to hear some extremely well-performed live versions of his songs, performed in a vocal range appropriate to Jackson's age when he initially recorded them. You'll enjoy recreations of the sequined outfits that were associated to very distinct moments and events during the superstar's life. You will also appreciate some outstanding set designs and complex choreography performed by amazing dancers.
However, where the musical -- not the actors -- has some gaps: although we were led down some trips on Memory Lane, these were only at a superficial capacity. For instance, the seemingly most stressful part of this evening's story centered around the financial aspects as to how the Dangerous tour was going to be covered. There were also some quick blurbs referencing Michael's addiction to pain-killers, and some intense moments where Joseph Jackson was depicted as an abusive father. With this, however, the musical never dove into the emotional effect or impact this abuse had on Michael other than a very quick mention that the MJ character didn't want to incorporate certain songs into the tour because of the memories it brought back. Although we got the impression that Michael was a perfectionist, there was zero mention of pedophilia, the fact that Michael actually had siblings outside of the Jackson 5, that Michael was married to Elvis Presley's daughter, or that even had any children of his own. There was a moment during the show where MJ began opening up to a reporter, but they only went into a few generic rumors and nothing substantial. This is where the show fell flat on a few notes.
If your intent is to have an enjoyable Michael Jackson music listening experience, you'll want to check this one out as there are some 25 songs incorporated into this sparkly show. In that aspect, I'd recommend checking this one out.
Write-Up: Bailey Guinigundo
Photos: Matthew Murray and Bailey Guinigundo
The premise of the show is set around the days leading up to the opening night of Michael Jackson's 1992 "Dangerous Tour", with flashbacks to earlier periods of the star's life.
Jordan Markus portrayed the character of "MJ", which served as the "current day" (1992) Michael Jackson. Markus did a fantastic job of embodying the star. There were moments where it felt as though we were watching the King of Pop back with us on the stage before us as Markus spoke softly like Michael Jackson, moved like Michael Jackson, and had the mannerisms of Michael Jackson. There was the possibility that the actor was going to potentially overuse and over-incorporate the signature dance moves throughout the show; however, Markus did an excellent job of mixing up the iconic signature moves as the audience was treated to a fun display of the moonwalk, finger points, high kicks, and hat tosses.
Bane Griffith was this night's "Little Michael", which showcased the star during his earlier Jackson 5 days. Griffith had an amazingly fantastic voice. There is significant potential for this young star ahead. Vocally, he delivered a perfect representation of the Jackson 5's lead singer, nailing the high notes effortlessly and commandingly.
Anastasia Talley served as this evening's "Kate" and "Katherine Jackson". Her beautiful harmony with Little Michael and MJ during "I'll Be There" was simply beautiful, and was perhaps the best rendition I've ever heard of the song.
Erik Hamilton played the role of "Michael", which covered the character's life post-Jackson 5 but pre-global superstar. Hamilton did well, but it was during "Wanna Be Starting Something" that the actor erupted out of his shell, and suddenly I was watching an earlier day Michael on stage.
Devin Bowles was this evening's "Rob" and "Joseph Jackson". Acting-wise, he was the best actor this night. He was so convincing in 2 separate roles, that I wasn't certain at first if we were watching 2 actors who happened to look a lot like the other, or if we were actually witnessing just 1 singular actor toggling back and forth between 2 distinctly different characters and emotional depth. Bowles displayed a very wide range of acting capacity, and was very impressive.
Regarding the show itself: if you are a fan of Michael Jackson's music, you will be very happy to hear some extremely well-performed live versions of his songs, performed in a vocal range appropriate to Jackson's age when he initially recorded them. You'll enjoy recreations of the sequined outfits that were associated to very distinct moments and events during the superstar's life. You will also appreciate some outstanding set designs and complex choreography performed by amazing dancers.
However, where the musical -- not the actors -- has some gaps: although we were led down some trips on Memory Lane, these were only at a superficial capacity. For instance, the seemingly most stressful part of this evening's story centered around the financial aspects as to how the Dangerous tour was going to be covered. There were also some quick blurbs referencing Michael's addiction to pain-killers, and some intense moments where Joseph Jackson was depicted as an abusive father. With this, however, the musical never dove into the emotional effect or impact this abuse had on Michael other than a very quick mention that the MJ character didn't want to incorporate certain songs into the tour because of the memories it brought back. Although we got the impression that Michael was a perfectionist, there was zero mention of pedophilia, the fact that Michael actually had siblings outside of the Jackson 5, that Michael was married to Elvis Presley's daughter, or that even had any children of his own. There was a moment during the show where MJ began opening up to a reporter, but they only went into a few generic rumors and nothing substantial. This is where the show fell flat on a few notes.
If your intent is to have an enjoyable Michael Jackson music listening experience, you'll want to check this one out as there are some 25 songs incorporated into this sparkly show. In that aspect, I'd recommend checking this one out.
Write-Up: Bailey Guinigundo
Photos: Matthew Murray and Bailey Guinigundo
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