Critics slam new “sanitised” Michael Jackson musical
Theatre critics have slammed the new Michael Jackson musical that hit Broadway this year for its blatant “sanitisation” of child abuse allegations against the late popstar.
The musical, called MJ, documents Michael as he prepared for his four-continent Dangerous Tour of 1992, while also dealing with an MTV documentary crew who filmed his incessant rehearsals.
Throughout the musical, fans get glimpses into the artist's life, with flashbacks to his time in the Jackson Five and his difficult upbringing.
MJ was written by Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage and choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon, and was produced by Jackson's estate with an apparent promise not to mention the young boys who accused the star of sexually harassing them, despite taking place just one year before the first allegation came out.
The musical debuted on Broadway recently, with Michael’s three children Paris, 23, Prince, 24, and Prince Michael “Bigi” Jackson, 19, in the audience.
Critics at the show’s opening night rallied against the musical, noting that the show attempts to separate the art from the artist, while conveniently ignoring the child sex abuse allegations that overshadowed Jackson's career.
Many of the reviews, including one for the New York Times, mentioned the fact that Jackson's estate were involved in producing what was essentially an 'authorised autobiography', which is why the story featured such watered-down references.
The review, written by Jesse Green, says, “In this, MJ is trying to have it both ways. It wants to blame everything sad and weird about Jackson on others… but credit him alone for his every good deed and success.”
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