The Michael Jackson musical, entitled “MJ The Musical,” announced Thursday that it will come to Broadway this summer.
The musical will play the Neil Simon Theatre beginning July 6, 2020, with an opening night on Aug. 13, which puts the production in the 2020-2021 Broadway season. The Broadway announcement comes after the musical had cancelled its Chicago engagement around the same time that child molestation allegations resurfaced against Jackson.
It is produced by the Michael Jackson Estate and Columbia Live Stage and features a book by Lynn Nottage and direction and choreography by Christopher Wheeldon.
The production originally announced in January that it would play Chicago before coming to Broadway. However, that production was cancelled around the time of the premiere of the documentary “Leaving Neverland,” in which two young boys allege that Jackson sexually abused them.
Dan Reed, the director of the documentary, said he had no comment on the Broadway announcement at this time.
“MJ The Musical” is currently in development at studios in New York City.
The production recently announced it was changing the title of the musical to “MJ” from “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough.”
The Neil Simon Theatre has been unoccupied since the final performance of “The Cher Show” on Aug. 18. “The Illusionists” will play the theater from Nov. 29, 2019 through Jan. 5, 2020.
