The Michael Jackson Musical: 'MJ'

I find it funny how it was cancel the first time due to LN then got it's name change now it's officially cancel until next year. lol! i don't think this musical ever coming. maybe it's a sign that it won't be good. :laughing:
 
Michael Jackson Musical ‘MJ’ Postpones Broadway Opening Until Next Spring Due To Coronavirus Shutdown

MJ, the Michael Jackson stage musical headed for Broadway, will begin previews next March, an eight-month postponement due to the coronavirus pandemic shutdown.

The new dates were announced today by producers Lia Vollack Productions and The Michael Jackson Estate.

The world premiere of MJ, featuring Jackson’s music, will begin previews on Monday, March 8, 2021, at Broadway’s Neil Simon Theatre. Opening night is set for Thursday, April 15. Prior to Broadway’s shutdown on March 12, MJ was set to begin performances this July.

Starring Ephraim Sykes (Ain’t Too Proud) as Michael Jackson, MJ will feature a book by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage and a score comprised of Jackson’s hit songs. Christopher Wheeldon will direct and choreograph.

Anyone who purchased tickets to the previous dates will receive an automatic refund back to the credit card used for the original purchase. Anyone who doesn’t receive a refund by May 30 should contact the point of purchase to request a refund.

The rescheduling marks the second postponement of a major Broadway production in as many days: Yesterday, the revival of Neil Simon’s Plaza Suite, starring Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker and directed by John Benjamin Hickey, announced a postponement of more than a year, from the planned March 13 2020 preview date to March 19, 2021. That production’s venue – Broadway’s Hudson Theatre – is booked for this Fall by the limited engagement return of David Byrne’s American Utopia, though many Broadway insiders don’t expect Broadway to reopen before January 2021.

https://deadline.com/2020/05/michael-jackson-musical-mj-broadway-postpones-opening-2021-1202933577/

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Edited to add:

Seemingly Nothing Can Stop the Michael Jackson Musical, Which Has Rescheduled Its Run to 2021

Come hell, pandemic, or high water, the cursed Michael Jackson musical is still making its way toward Broadway.

Today, producers of the musical MJ, which was originally supposed to start performances this July before opening in August, have announced that it will instead start performances at the Neil Simon Theatre on March 8, 2021, and open April 15.

As of now, Broadway theaters are officially closed until Labor Day due to the coronavirus, though the shutdown will likely extend further, given the numerous questions about how theaters could ensure the safety of patrons, staff, and performers, and how the industry itself could recover economically.

MJ is the second major Broadway production to jump its performance schedule all the way to next spring; the Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker–led Plaza Suite announced yesterday that it would play the Hudson Theatre from March 19 through July 18, 2021.

The pandemic is just one of a series of crises that have plagued the development of the musical.

After the Sundance premiere in January 2019 of Leaving Neverland, a documentary that focused on Wade Robson and James Safechuck’s allegations that Jackson molested them, the production canceled its planned out-of-town tryout in Chicago, citing an Actor’s Equity strike (though the union insisted the strike would not have significantly affected its plans).

Later, in April 2019, book writer Lynn Nottage and director Christopher Wheeldon did a surreal interview with the New York Times in which they said they found the men in the documentary “very believable,” as Wheeldon put it, “but our position in making this show is that we’re trying to make a show that’s balanced.” (Jackson’s estate, which is involved in the musical, has denounced Robson and Safechuck as “liars.” )

For now, when and if it opens in 2021, MJ is still set to star Ephraim Sykes as Michael Jackson.

https://www.vulture.com/2020/05/mj-michael-jackson-musical-reschedules-opening-date.html
 
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Jimmy Fallon mentioned this on the Tonight Show the other night. On the monologue section at the start of the show he said the Michael Jackson Broadway musical has been postponed to next year "when it still will not be a good idea".
 
Jimmy Fallon mentioned this on the Tonight Show the other night. On the monologue section at the start of the show he said the Michael Jackson Broadway musical has been postponed to next year "when it still will not be a good idea".

How original.
 
I really don't want this musical. but I think by next year everything would calm down by now. heck it's pretty much has calm down it's just trolls/haters/ and fans who keep bring up the lies.
 
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Jimmy Fallon mentioned this on the Tonight Show the other night. On the monologue section at the start of the show he said the Michael Jackson Broadway musical has been postponed to next year "when it still will not be a good idea".

He needs to shut up. This is why I am glad Square One is becoming a hit on Amazon. Soon, these these few folks, that kind of comment will backfired as it is doing now. It does not look trying to deny a black man his innocent in one film while willing to believe lies in a proven lying doc.
 
Jimmy Fallon mentioned this on the Tonight Show the other night. On the monologue section at the start of the show he said the Michael Jackson Broadway musical has been postponed to next year "when it still will not be a good idea".

**** him. He looks like a duck. As I type this, #jimmyfallonisoverparty is trending on twitter. It's funny how all the people who attacked Michael post LN are getting cancelled. KARMA is REAL!
 
Jimmy Fallon mentioned this on the Tonight Show the other night. On the monologue section at the start of the show he said the Michael Jackson Broadway musical has been postponed to next year "when it still will not be a good idea".

Not sure if he meant this in a "because he's a pedo lol" way or "because the writers think he's a pedo and therefore it will suck" way. Though I'm willing to bet he meant the former. -_-
 
How original.

I can't beleive these people aren't ashamed deep down for dropping these tired old "jokes" and "opinions". Especially as it's more like what they think they should be saying rather then what they really think (if they think at all...).

Plus these presenters are usually so annoying and delusional in thinking they are the main spectacle instead of their guests. Was this the same guy in the Chris Tucker interview posted the other day? Chris was on a roll and basically gave an impromptu mini stand-up but the presenter couldn't tolerate not being the focus of the attention, and kept interrupting Chris to push his lousy wanna-be jokes. He almost ruined the experience, I was like "shut up already, and let the guest talk!". I don't get the success of any of these type of hosts (including Oprah, who also makes everything about herself and doesn't care at all about her guests).
 
Nite Line;4291356 said:
As I type this, #jimmyfallonisoverparty is trending on twitter.

What’s he being canceled over?

Amaya;4291361 said:
Not sure if he meant this in a "because he's a pedo lol" way or "because the writers think he's a pedo and therefore it will suck" way. Though I'm willing to bet he meant the former. -_-

Quite certainly the former. I guess his train of thought doesn’t go beyond “MJ --> bad”. I don’t think he knows anything about the musical or who’s involved in it, or what the people involved in it actually think.

ozemouze;4291364 said:
Plus these presenters are usually so annoying and delusional in thinking they are the main spectacle instead of their guests. Was this the same guy in the Chris Tucker interview posted the other day? Chris was on a roll and basically gave an impromptu mini stand-up but the presenter couldn't tolerate not being the focus of the attention, and kept interrupting Chris to push his lousy wanna-be jokes. He almost ruined the experience, I was like "shut up already, and let the guest talk!". I don't get the success of any of these type of hosts (including Oprah, who also makes everything about herself and doesn't care at all about her guests).

Might be. I’m not really watching those shows, so I can’t remember the names. Most TV personalities are very annoying to watch, as – just like you said – everything they do is usually just about themselves. TV interviews are rarely good. If they don’t get the replies they want, they just cut their guests off.
 
It seems 'karma' is getting quicker....

^ Jimmy Fallon Under Fire as Blackface Sketch Resurfaces

Early Tuesday #JimmyFallonIsOverParty began trending after a 2000 "Saturday Night Live" sketch resurfaced where Jimmy Fallon performed as Chris Rock in dark make-up.

While this was not the first time this clip surfaced online, it kickstarted a firestorm of tweets calling for the late night host to be cancelled
A caption for a video shared on Twitter read: "NBC fired Megan Kelly for mentioning blackface. Jimmy Fallon performed on NBC in blackface."

"Megyn Kelly was dismissed for being insensitive in merely DISCUSSING kids wearing blackface on Halloween. Jimmy Fallon actually WORE blackface while impersonating Chris Rock. He's still working for NBC," read one tweet.

The video had resurfaced back in 2018 when Kelly was let go from "The Today Show" after she argued on air that wearing blackface for Halloween was acceptable.

And in 2019, Nick Cannon posted an Instagram of several comedians -- including Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel and Sarah Silverman -- who wore Blackface and captioned it, "Happy 'BLACKFACE' History Month!!! ����*♂️ I’m sure we can expect some more 'Apologies' by Monday…

Now, Fallon is under fire again, as he joins the ranks of other celebrities, such as Lana Del Rey and Doja Cat, facing backlash this week for actions or words deemed racially insensitive.

...Other fans were upset that Fallon was targeted as Robert Downey Jr. has largely gone unscathed for performing an entire movie in Blackface in 2008's "Tropic Thunder."


https://toofab.com/2020/05/26/jimmy-fallon-blackface-sketch-resurfaces/?__twitter_impression=true
 
myosotis;4291373 said:
It seems 'karma' is getting quicker....

^ Jimmy Fallon Under Fire as Blackface Sketch Resurfaces

Isn’t it funny how many of MJ’s haters turn out to be racists? Not ha-ha funny. The other one.
 
He's apologised for the black-face performance. I think his apology to Michael will take a (much) longer wait....

JIMMY FALLON VERY SORRY' FOR BLACKFACE SKETCH ON 'SNL' ...
'No Excuse' for This

It took 20 years, but Jimmy Fallon's impersonation of Chris Rock on "Saturday Night Live" -- which he did in blackface -- has come back to bite him.

It seems unbelievable, but much like Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau last year, Fallon's late to learn the lesson that doing blackface at any point in your past is something that won't stay secret.

Fallon says, "I made a terrible decision to do an impersonation of Chris Rock while in blackface. There is no excuse for this."

He adds ... "I am very sorry for making this unquestionably offensive decision and thank all of you for holding me accountable."

https://www.tmz.com/2020/05/26/jimmy-fallon-apologizes-blackface-skit-snl-2000-saturday-night-live/
 
I believe some MJ haters and trolls are racist. not all but some of them are. they still can't stand the fact Michael was a powerful black man.
 
He's apologised for the black-face performance. I think his apology to Michael will take a (much) longer wait....

JIMMY FALLON VERY SORRY' FOR BLACKFACE SKETCH ON 'SNL' ...
'No Excuse' for This

It took 20 years, but Jimmy Fallon's impersonation of Chris Rock on "Saturday Night Live" -- which he did in blackface -- has come back to bite him.

It seems unbelievable, but much like Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau last year, Fallon's late to learn the lesson that doing blackface at any point in your past is something that won't stay secret.

Fallon says, "I made a terrible decision to do an impersonation of Chris Rock while in blackface. There is no excuse for this."

He adds ... "I am very sorry for making this unquestionably offensive decision and thank all of you for holding me accountable."

https://www.tmz.com/2020/05/26/jimmy-fallon-apologizes-blackface-skit-snl-2000-saturday-night-live/

Of course he apologized. Otherwise that would be the end of his career. ;)
Even back in the year 2000 it should have been obvious to everyone involved that it was a bad idea to begin with.
 
In Jimmy's (partial) defence I don't think he writes the "jokes" on the Tonight Show, it has a team of writers.

I do find it annoying, however, that he plays the nice guy card and is up everyone's arse that comes on the show and then is complicit in the continued attempts to erase MJ's place in history.

I did find it hilarious that cancel culture came for him almost immediately though hahaha
 
I hate the world of 2000... You have to apologize for something you did 20 years ago...

It was a sketch - a joke, no harm done - I am very sure there was absolutely no racist motivations behind it...

Everyone finds something to be angry about...
 
I kind of agree with you Hess. it seem people nowadays get too offend by everything. while I do agree blackface is wrong, not everything meant to be racist etc.
 
Hess;4291560 said:
I hate the world of 2000... You have to apologize for something you did 20 years ago...

It was a sketch - a joke, no harm done - I am very sure there was absolutely no racist motivations behind it...

Everyone finds something to be angry about...

I see you’re from Europe, just like me. We have a different context. Dig a bit deeper into the history of blackfacing, and you’ll understand the outrage better. It’s not a harmless joke, no matter how you look at it, when you know the history of it. :)
 
ScreenOrigami;4291602 said:
I see you’re from Europe, just like me. We have a different context. Dig a bit deeper into the history of blackfacing, and you’ll understand the outrage better. It’s not a harmless joke, no matter how you look at it, when you know the history of it. :)

I'm thorn about this TBH. The only thing that makes his performance questionable is the sour heritage of blackface. He made a sketch impersonating Chris Rock (another MJ hater BTW, haha), it's basically like he was acting as let's say Axl Rose and would pick up a long-haired wig. So this in itself shouldn't be a problem, but then comes the blackface... I don't know the solution for this, but forbidding impersonating someone just because of skin colour differences would be falling into the other extreme.

Plus I agree with Hess that there was no racist motivations behind it most probably, which should be also an important factor.
 
ozemouze;4291615 said:
I'm thorn about this TBH. The only thing that makes his performance questionable is the sour heritage of blackface. He made a sketch impersonating Chris Rock (another MJ hater BTW, haha), it's basically like he was acting as let's say Axl Rose and would pick up a long-haired wig. So this in itself shouldn't be a problem, but then comes the blackface... I don't know the solution for this, but forbidding impersonating someone just because of skin colour differences would be falling into the other extreme.

In my opinion, a good impersonator should be able do a parody of a black person without actually painting their face black. And if they can’t, they should probably just move on to something else. ;)

EDIT: Just like they’re not going to paint Ephraim Sykes’ face white to play MJ, even though at the time portrayed in the musical (Dangerous Rehearsals 1992) the vitiligo had already taken over most of MJ’s skin. I have no doubts that he’ll still be able to impersonate MJ while having black skin. :)
 
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or if they can't find a good impersonator just find a black impersonator it's that easy. or if they can't find any of that then don't do the sketch at all.
 
ScreenOrigami;4291616 said:
In my opinion, a good impersonator should be able do a parody of a black person without actually painting their face black. And if they can’t, they should probably just move on to something else. ;)

Sure, but we talk about Jimmy Fallon here. :laughing:

I agree of course, but even with touchy subjects it's important to consider the intent as well, otherwise real racists who are familiar with cultural codes and behave accordingly can remain under the radar, while people with good intentions just partly ignorant about other's culture can be under attack instead. Having said that a US tv personality should know better.

I think that e.g. the Rolling Stone's handling of MJ's carrier (or more like personality, as that's what they dealt with mostly, if they dealt with him at all :/) during the decades is more connected to racism/cultural superiority, and much more infuriating. But because it's subtle and not as obvious as a blackface they weren't called out on that to this day AFAIK.

ScreenOrigami;4291616 said:
Just like they’re not going to paint Ephraim Sykes’ face white to play MJ, even though at the time portrayed in the musical (Dangerous Rehearsals 1992) the vitiligo had already taken over most of MJ’s skin. I have no doubts that he’ll still be able to impersonate MJ while having black skin. :)

Yes, that's definitely the only right solution (I noticed the smart move to get us back on topic :D).
 
I hate the world of 2000... You have to apologize for something you did 20 years ago...

It was a sketch - a joke, no harm done - I am very sure there was absolutely no racist motivations behind it...

Everyone finds something to be angry about...

Unfortunately our world in 2020 is full of snowflakes SJWs who are easily triggered by everything. For them, everything is sexist, everything is racist, everything is homophobic, everything is offensive.

If Michael was an artist today, I am 100% sure that he would get called a sexist for releasing songs like Billie Jean, Dirty Diana, Dangerous etc, because they are negative towards a particular woman.
 
Relevant Spike Lee movie: “Bamboozled”, coincidentally first released in the year 2000. The year of Fallon’s blackface sketch.

https://spikes-joint.myshopify.com/products/bamboozled-criterion-collection-blu-ray-dvd

Quote:

“With this blisteringly funny, unapologetically confrontational satire, writer-director Spike Lee examined the past, present, and future of racism in American popular culture, issuing a daring provocation to creators and consumers alike. Under pressure to help revive his network's low ratings, television writer Pierre Delacroix (Damon Wayans) hits on an explosively offensive idea: bringing back blackface with The New Millennium Minstrel Show. The white network executives love it, and so do audiences, forcing Pierre and his collaborators to confront their public's insatiable appetite for dehumanizing stereotypes. Shot primarily on unvarnished digital video and boasting spot-on performances from Wayans, Savion Glover, Jada Pinkett Smith, Tommy Davidson, Michael Rapaport, Mos Def, and Paul Mooney, Bamboozled is a stinging indictment of mass entertainment at the turn of the twenty-first century that looks more damning with each passing year.”

bamboozled_Image_2048x2048.png
 
Unfortunately our world in 2020 is full of snowflakes SJWs who are easily triggered by everything. For them, everything is sexist, everything is racist, everything is homophobic, everything is offensive.

If Michael was an artist today, I am 100% sure that he would get called a sexist for releasing songs like Billie Jean, Dirty Diana, Dangerous etc, because they are negative towards a particular woman.

I agree with ya. I don't know how Michael would handle this day and age. it was good thing he was born and made music when he did. i'm pretty sure he also knew this too.
 
The irony of people on an MJ board claiming that there’s nothing racist about a blackface performance when it’s supposed to be a joke.
 
People need to read their history (no pun). this is why history is so important and shouldn't be erase and forgotten.
 
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