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It’s a testament to the talent of Jamaal Fields-Green, star of the West End production of MJ the Musical, that fans waiting at the stage door deem him the real King of Pop.

“It’s happened and in the States, too,” the young theater actor recalls to The Hollywood Reporter about humoring audience members outside the venue. “It’s not ‘Jamaal, Jamaal!’ It’s ‘Michael, Michael! Michael! Please, Michael.’”

Fields-Green is the only actor to have starred in all three productions of the 10-time Tony-nominated show — the U.S. national tour, Broadway (where it grossed a whopping $265 million) and now on the prestigious theater scene of London’s West End. Based on Lynn Nottage’s book, with direction and choreography by ballet legend Christopher Wheeldon, the jukebox musical has been a hit with those seeking some semblance of the cultural magic that the late singer famously conjured.

MJ the Musical delivers. THR was recently a guest of Fields-Green at a mid-week performance of the show, running at the Prince Edward Theatre in the heart of London. The 28-year-old had big shoes to fill: he took over from Myles Frost, winner of the best actor Tony in 2022, in January this year, and seized the opportunity to shine with a sequin gloved hand.

When the performer caught up with THR some days later, he was still vibrating about the previous night. “I had dinner with Laurence Fishburne last night,” he says, grinning. “My mom knows a close friend of his and I know a close friend of his, who has known me since high school when this was all just goals and a dream. He wanted me to meet him and… I mean, Laurence Fishburne is one of the greatest actors of all time. It was amazing.”

Fishburne came to see Fields-Green as Jackson in MJ the Musical and, like the rest of us, was wowed by the uncanny resemblance. Born and raised in the Bronx, Fields-Green says the U.S. superstar was in his life from a very early age. “I used to dance to ‘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, and then I would dance to the music in front of my family in our living room.”

After starting a rap group with his friends, Fields-Green found himself lured into school productions of Hairspray and The Wizard of Oz. He balanced it all with football, too, but opted for musical theater at the University of Hartford. Still in college, he booked what would go on to become the most talked-about show of the 21st century: Hamilton.

“Honestly, I thought I was gonna have to get a bartending job and do the New York Grind, as they call it,” he says about landing the dual role of John Laurens and Philip Hamilton in the Chicago production. “It might have taken a few years or so, but fortunately, it came way earlier and it kind of catapulted me.”

Fields-Green grew up on Michael Jackson‘s music.

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Then, after a raucous run off-Broadway and “some of the best years” of his life, Fields-Green lost two years of his career to COVID-19. Everything — busy theater shows, especially — was on indefinite pause. “I went back home and I picked up all my old chores back at the house,” he says. “It was really, really nice get to spend time with my family, but it was hard. It was definitely hard.”

After landing two callbacks for MJ the Musical in 2020 but not getting the part, he went to see the show after the pandemic had subsided. “I didn’t know if they’re gonna [be able] do it,” he remembers thinking at a 2022 performance. “This is Michael Jackson. It’s pretty hard. After the first number, I was like, ‘Holy moly.’ And by the fourth, not even halfway through the [first] act, I was like, ‘Oh my God. I think they’re doing it.’” During the intermission, an email arrived in Fields-Green’s inbox: They’re looking for future replacements for the role of Michael Jackson.

Before inheriting the lead part, Fields-Green was a standby for both the roles of middle Michael (a younger version of the singer leading up to his Dangerous World Tour) and “current day” MJ, who takes the reins on the show’s most impressive musical numbers — moonwalking and crotch-grabbing through “Smooth Criminal” and “Beat It” as convincingly as Jackson himself.

Fields-Green was flown out to Los Angeles to train with people who worked and knew Michael Jackson. Choreographers Rich and Tone Talauega did not let him rest until the first number, “Billie Jean,” was perfect. “I’m thinking, ‘I’m botching this.’ We haven’t touched ‘Beat It.’ Oh my Gosh. But I kept at it,” he continues, “And eventually ended up getting it.”

The performer explains that YouTube has been his best friend in nailing down not only Jackson’s dance moves, but off-stage mannerisms, too. He consulted all of the star’s inspirations: James Brown, Bob Fosse, Fred Astaire, Sammy Davis Jr., Boogaloo Shrimp and more. Interview archives became a precious resource. “Listening to the cadence of his voice, the way he pronounced certain words, the way he used his hands, the way that he walked, his stature,” Fields-Green continues.

“I did an extensive amount of research on him, because that’s what was needed. This line of work, I’m not just playing a character that was made out of thin air. I’m playing someone that walked and breathed on this earth and left behind a legacy that is now in my hands for the duration of the show that you go and watch it for. It’s a huge responsibility. But I love it.”

To call the role demanding is an understatement. It’s six, back-to-back, meticulously-choreographed performances every week, and Fields-Green continues to drops inches around his waist as a result of the vigorous workout (despite the intensity, he lists “Smooth Criminal” and “Thriller” as his favorite sequences). There are gentler moments, such as the heartfelt duet with his mother (Koko Alexandra) and the documentary team (Philippa Stefani and Matt Gonsalves) hoping to persuade MJ to open up about his health and addiction struggles.

The more tense scenes arrive in the form of the Jackson 5’s overbearing, exploitative father Joseph (Matt Mills), and the various allegations that have tainted the star’s legacy leading up to and since his 2009 death are quietly alluded to.

Does Fields-Green think the abuse charges (and eventual acquittal) has altered the way fans interact with the show? “What I love about the show is that it doesn’t shy away from the realness of what was going on in his life,” he responds. “He was at the height of his career, and then all of this stuff was happening… But this show allows us to see the human being behind the icon. I think you get to come and form your own opinion.”

Fields-Green took over the titular role on MJ the Musical from Myles Frost.

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One of the biggest takeaways for Fields-Green in stepping into the famous black loafers is how much the music legend was constantly having to prove himself. “I remember him saying, ‘By the time I was 20 or 21 I was already a vet in the industry,’ which is such a flex,” he says. “But creating Off the Wall and only winning, what, maybe one or two Grammys for it? And feeling shut out and and slept on. Having all this anger that he had that led him to create Thriller, which goes down as one of the greatest albums of all time… Then he felt like he had to do it all again with Bad, with Dangerous, his tours and his artistry and his music videos — he had to keep topping himself because he felt the industry was sleeping on him. That was very shocking to me. But comforting — it’s like, if MJ has to do this, that makes me feel better about having to do it as well.”

It’s not just elaborate dance numbers and pages of lines to learn — Fields-Green has also had to get used to performing to British audiences. “You guys definitely practice pristine theater etiquette,” he laughs. “It’s a quick clap, clap, clap and silence. I love it. The actors [can] really engulf ourselves in the world that we’re creating without distraction.” American spectators, he says, are a tad more rowdy.

And his aspirations don’t stop at the stage door. Fields-Green is a screenwriter, short film maker — his project The Trick screened at the LA Black Film Festival — TV actor and musician. Under the name of J. Hasan, he released an EP, What Was the Reason, in June. But he keeps it in the Jackson family: two of the tracks feature fellow Michaels Brandon Harris (middle Michael on the West End) and Jordan Markus (lead MJ on the national tour).

“I’d be lying to you if I said I didn’t want an EGOT,” Fields-Green, recently a recipient of the prestigious Helen Hayes Award for outstanding lead actor in a resident musical, confesses to THR. He is as ambitious as the man he embodies: “When all’s said and done, I want to leave behind a line of work where I have created a legendary legacy of my own.”

#Musicals #Jamaal #FieldsGreen #Michael #Jackson