A Musical Based on the Life of Michael Jackson Is Coming to Broadway in 2020
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Hopefully you've been practicing your moonwalk, because Michael Jackson's epic career is getting the Broadway treatment.
On Tuesday, The Michael Jackson Estate and Columbia Live Stage announced that a new musical based on the life of the King of Pop is coming to the Great White Way. The show has yet to receive a name, but it's expected to arrive in 2020 and is being written by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage. Since the American playwright's past work includes Sweat and Ruined — two gritty dramas that expertly explore subjects like war, poverty, and the lives of marginalized people — we can expect a nuanced and potentially darker take on Jackson's iconic life and career. Then again, with the Michael Jackson Estate's heavy involvement with the show, it will be interesting to see which controversial moments from the pop star's life Nottage is able to tackle, if any.
As for which songs we'll get to hear, the musical will reportedly include fan favorites like "Thriller," "Smooth Criminal," "Beat It," and "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough." An American in Paris's Christopher Wheeldon, who's taken home a Tony Award himself, is set to both direct and choreograph the production. If the show is anything like recent jukebox musicals based on the lives of musical superstars (Beautiful, Jersey Boys, and On Your Feet), it's slated to be one of Broadway's most promising new arrivals.