Elijah Rhea Johnson brings late King of Pop to life in MJ, The Musical on Broadway
NEW YORK (WABC) -- Inside the Neil Simon Theatre, it's 1992, and Michael Jackson is perfecting every move for his Dangerous World Tour.
It's also where Elijah Rhea Johnson disappears into the role of a lifetime.
He brings the late King of Pop to life eight shows a week.
It's a full-circle journey that began back in Detroit.
"My dad taught me how to moonwalk a bit, my mom would help me sing songs and I would slowly start performing around at different talent shows in Detroit. Michael is the reason why I started doing this in the first place," Johnson said,
Through more than two dozen of Jackson's biggest hits, "MJ, The Musical" weaves together three decades of musical evolution, from the early days of The Jackson 5 to "Thriller," and the global fame that followed.
"You'll get the iconic dance moves the iconic songs you get a chance to see Michael's vulnerability something that he didn't really show while he was living. He's been famous since he was 6 years old. His entire life he was in the spotlight," Johnson said.
The show doesn't shy away from Jackson's complicated relationship with fame, or the price of perfectionism.
"He's such a complicated person, he was such a perfectionist he put so much of himself into everything he did and he felt that. You see it in the show and you can feel it," Johnson said.
"I can feel the spirit of him sometimes," Johnson said talking about putting on the "Thriller" jacket.
Details on the Neil Simon Theatre and MJ, The Musical: https://www.broadway.org/broadway-theatres/neil-simon-theatre
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