It is a testimony to the talent of Jamaal Fields-Green, star of the production of West End of MJ the musicalLet fans waiting at the door of the scene judge him the true king of pop.
“It happened and in the United States too,” recalls the young theater actor in The Hollywood Reporter On the humming of the public members outside the place. “It’s not” Jamaal, Jamaal! ” It’s “Michael, Michael!”
Fields -Green is the only actor to have played in the three productions of the show at 10 times nominated in Tony – the American national tour of Broadway (where she reported $ 265 million) and now on the prestigious theatrical scene of the West End of London. Based on the book by Lynn Notage, with direction and choreography of the legend of the Ballet Christopher Wheeldon, the musical of Jukebox was a success with those who are looking for a semblance of cultural magic that the late singer spoke.
MJ the musical Delivered. THR was recently a guest of Fields-Green during a performance in the middle of the show week, in progress at Prince Edward Theater in the heart of London. The 28 -year -old had big shoes to fill: he succeeded Myles Frost, winner of the best actor Tony in 2022, in January of this year, and took the opportunity to shine with a gloved hand with glitter.
When the interpreter caught up THR A few days later, he still vibrated the previous night. “I dined with Laurence Fishburne last night,” he said, smiling. “My mother knows one of her friends and I know one of her close friends, who has known me since high school when it was only goals and a dream. He wanted me to meet him and … I mean, Laurence Fishburne is one of the greatest players of all time. It was incredible. ”
Fishburne came to see Fields-Green like Jackson MJ the musical And, like the rest of us, was seduced by strange resemblance. Born and raised in the Bronx, Fields-Green says that the American superstar was in her life from an early age. “I used to dance on” Beat It “and” You Rock My World “, which is my favorite MJ song. And “thriller”, “he adds,” my grandfather was my DJ. He played a song, then I would dance to music in front of my family in our living room. ”
After starting a rap group with his friends, Fields-Green found himself attracted to the school productions of Bedside And Oz assistant. He also balanced everything with football, but opted for musical theater at Hartford University. Always at university, he reserved what would happen to become the most spoken spectacle of the 21st century: Hamilton.
“Honestly, I thought I was going to have to get a work of bartender and do the New York Grind, as they call it,” he said about the landing of the double role of John Laurens and Philip Hamilton in the production of Chicago. “It could have taken about a few years, but fortunately, it came much earlier and it somehow catapulted me.”
Fields-Green grew up on the music of Michael Jackson.
Daide / @ due_baby
Then, after a noisy race outside Broadway and “some of the best years” in his life, Fields-Green lost two years of his career against Covid-19. Everything – animated theater shows, in particular – was on an indefinite break. “I went home and picked up all my old tasks at home,” he said. “It was really, really nice, to spend time with my family, but it was difficult. It was really difficult. ”
After winning two reminders for MJ the musical In 2020, but not having obtained the play, he went to see the show after the pandemic calmed down. “I didn’t know if they were going [be able] Do it, “he recalls to think of a performance in 2022.” Here is Michael Jackson. It’s quite difficult. After the first issue, I said to myself: “Holy Moly”. And by the fourth, not even halfway through the [first] Act, I said to myself: “Oh my God. I think they do it. “During the Entract, an email arrived in the Fields-Green reception box: they are looking for future replacements for the role of Michael Jackson.
Before inheriting the main part, Fields-Green was a watch Dangerous World Tour) and “Current day” MJ, which takes the reins on the most impressive musical numbers in the series – the moon moon and the grabage between the crotch through “Smooth Criminal” and “Beat It” as convincingly as Jackson himself.
Fields-Green was transported by plane to Los Angeles to train with people who worked and knew Michael Jackson. The choreographers Rich and Tone Talauega did not let him rest before the first issue, “Billie Jean”, was perfect. “I think:” I stick that “. We did not touch “Beat It”. Oh my God.
The interpreter explains that YouTube was his best friend to nail not only Jackson’s dance movements, but also out of stage. He consulted all of the star’s inspirations: James Brown, Bob Fosse, Fred Astaire, Sammy Davis Jr., Boogaloo Shrimp and more. The interview archives have become a precious resource. “Listening to the cadence of his voice, the way he pronounced certain words, the way he used his hands, the way he walked, his stature,” continues Fields-Green.
“I have done a large amount of research on him, because that’s what was necessary. This work line, I don’t only play a character who has been made thin air. I play someone who walked and breathing on this earth and left behind a heritage that is now in my hands during the time of the show for which you are going and watching it. It is a huge responsibility. But I like it.”
Calling the demanding role is an understatement. He is six consecutive performances and meticulously choreographed each week, and Fields-Green continues to fall from the thumbs around his size following vigorous training (despite the intensity, he lists “Cline Criminal” and “Thriller” as his favorite sequences). There are milder moments, like the sincere duo with his mother (Koko Alexandra) and the documentary team (Philippa Stefani and Matt Gonsalves) hoping to persuade MJ to open up to his health and dependence struggles.
The most tense scenes arrive in the form of the exploiting father and operator of the Jackson 5, Joseph (Matt Mills), and the various allegations that have marred the legacy of the star leading to and since his 2009 death are discreet.
Does Fields-Green think that accusations of abuse (and possible acquittal) have changed the way the fans interact with the show? “What I like in the show is that he is not afraid of the reality of what was going on in his life,” he replied. “He was at the height of his career, then all of this happened … But this show allows us to see the human being behind the icon. I think you can come and train your own opinion.”
Fields-Green took care of the titular role on MJ the musical of Myles Frost.
Daide / @ due_baby
One of the biggest dishes to remember for Fields-Green in the entry into the famous black moccasins is how the legend of music was constantly proven. “I remember that he had said:” At the age of 20 or 21, I was already a veterinarian in the industry “, which is so flexible,” he said. “But to create Out of the wall And victory, what, maybe one or two grammys for that? And feel excluded and slept. To have all this anger he had who led him to create Thrillerwhich is one of the biggest albums of all time … then he had the impression that he had to start all over again with Badwith DangerousHis tours and his artistic talent and his clips – he had to continue to crown because he felt that the industry was sleeping on him. It was very shocking for me. But comforting – it’s like, if MJ has to do this, it makes me feel better to have to do it too. »»
These are not only developed dance numbers and pages of lines to learn – Fields -Green also had to get used to performing with the British public. “You definitely practice the virgin theater label,” he laughs. “It’s a quick blow, a clap, a clap and a silence. I love it. The actors [can] We really engulf in the world we create without distraction. The American spectators, he said, are a little more rowdy.
And his aspirations do not stop at the door of the scene. Fields -Green is a screenwriter, a short film of cinema – his project The tip Screened at the Black Black Film Festival – TV actor and musician. Under the name of J. Hasan, he released an EP, What was the reasonin June. But he keeps it in the Jackson family: two of the tracks have a compatriot Michaels Brandon Harris (Middle Michael on the West End) and Jordan Markus (Lead MJ on the national tour).
“I would lie to you if I said that I did not want an Egot,” recently recipient of Fields-Green, recipient of the prestigious Award Helen Hayes for the main actor in a resident musical, admits to THR. It is as ambitious as the man he embodies: “When everything is said and done, I want to leave a work line where I created a legendary heritage.”
