Flashy 'MJ' musical packs in the hits, but struggles to get behind the music

Myles Frost (right) and cast members take part in the curtain call following the recent premiere of 'MJ The Musical' in New York. Photo: Reuters

In answer to the question of whether it's possible to separate the art from the artist, MJ performs a slick, crotch-grabbing sidestep. Packed with nearly 40 hits from Michael Jackson's irresistible catalogue, the Broadway production from director and choreographer Christopher Wheeldon is not so much a biomusical as a high-shine and surface-skimming rehabilitation tour for its late subject, flattening rather than reckoning with his complex legacy.

"With respect, I wanna keep this about my music," insists Jackson early on, played in the story's present day by Myles Frost, impressive in perhaps an impossible role. Jackson is speaking to an MTV documentary crew, a journalist (Whitney Bashor) and cameraman (Gabriel Ruiz), observing rehearsals for the 1992 Dangerous World Tour. Flashbacks ensue, dissolving, somewhat claustrophobically, back into the rehearsal room each time. The narrative premise from book writer Lynn Nottage (Pulitzer winner for Ruined and Sweat) creates a suggestion of scrutiny, though the results are less than revelatory.