Jordan Markus was destined to play Michael Jackson. Watching Jackson’s music videos as a kid, Markus would dance around the living room in his sock feet, emulating the moves he saw onscreen. He now stars as MJ in the first national tour of MJ The Musical, and lives out his own popstar dreams every night. Dance Informa chatted with Markus to learn more about his dance experience, how he brings MJ to life onstage and more.
Markus was introduced to the show when it was still called Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough. He reminisces, “I was around 17, too young to audition, but I definitely wanted to see it. A few years down the line, I hear about an audition that’s coming up for MJ. I was living in San Diego at the time, working and doing a show. One of my castmates in San Diego reached out and asked if I had auditioned for it. I told her no, and she asked if I wanted to. Little did I know, she was friends with one of the casting directors. She recommended me to her. I submitted a tape and did a couple callbacks. I first saw the show in New York during my first callback. After that I was like ‘Oh, I have to book this!’”
He continues, “Luckily I got another callback, and that was the dance heavy portion of it. They sent me videos that I had to learn. I had a couple days then flew back to New York, presented it to them, and they liked what they saw. A couple weeks later, I got the call that I was going on tour with them.”
When asked how heavily he felt dance was weighed in the audition process, Markus shares, “Michael’s obviously one of the most phenomenal dancers to ever grace the stage. And the show won Tony for Best Choreography. Dance is very heavily weighted in this show period, but especially in the audition.”
Although he’s taken some formal classes, and now works with coaches for the tour, Markus is mostly a self-taught dancer – an impressive feat for having landed such a dance-heavy role.
Markus shares, “I was around 17 when I did my first show. Coming in as a self-taught dancer and being around so many trained, well-rounded dancers, I knew I had to pick up as much as I could in the room. I had to make sure I didn’t look out of place.”
He continues, “Now doing some of the most rigorous choreography I’ve ever had to do in my life, it feels like a return to what I knew because as a child this is all I did, all I wanted to do. Now that I get to portray Michael onstage, it feels like a homecoming in a way, at least choreography-wise.”
Markus may be self-taught in dance, but he took seriously the prep needed to accurately portray Michael onstage. “I dove into many different styles of dance that Michael talked about inspiring him. Fred Astaire – the way he floats. Bob Fosse – the lines, the shapes, the oozing of the choreography. The Nicholas Brothers, of course, their tapping is incredible and unmatched,” he says. “Ballet is also something that has been heavily emphasized in our training. The balance of it all, knowing where to hold my weight, and how to shift, things that come from all the different styles of dance have really helped me tremendously.”
Expanding further on Michael’s iconic dance moves, Markus shares, “I like to say Michael’s movement was very articulate and very distinct. If you kick your leg a certain way, everyone thinks Michael. If you do the moonwalk, of course. Music moves us in a way that is irreplaceable, but I think Michael found the way that his body moved and a way to capitalize on that. You can do choreography, but when you feel it, there’s a different level to that.”
MJ The Musical’s choreographer, Christopher Wheeldon, enlisted the help of Rich and Tone Talauega, previous Jackson tour dancers, to bring the musical’s dance numbers to life. Markus now has the opportunity to gain insights from their firsthand experience of touring with Michael.
“I like to call them drill sergeants,” Markus says. “They are so meticulous at what they do. Michael was the same way – a perfectionist. This is not a show you want to come into not knowing what you’re doing. It’s not something you want to get wrong, and they know that and whip us into shape anytime we’re in the dance studio. They are some of the most fun guys to work with. So down to earth, even though they’ve been traveling the world most of their lives working with the biggest artists in the world. I’m grateful to have a chance to work with them and pump their brains about what Michael was like in the rehearsal room.”
When asked about favorite numbers from the show, Markus couldn’t pick just one. “If we’re speaking strictly choreography, I’d say ‘Smooth Criminal’ for sure. It’s such a beautiful number – top to bottom, it’s so spectacular. ‘Billie Jean’ of course. Last, I’ll say ‘Human Nature’ because the choreography in that number is different than any of the others. MJ isn’t doing the heavy lifting, but the way the ensemble moves is very different than anything else in the show. They look beautiful – it’s a very light, ethereal number.”
And, what about the hardest number? Markus answers quickly, “For sure, not even from the choreography standpoint but all around, ‘Beat It’ is one of the most challenging because it’s how we kick off the show. It’s so high energy, and right at the top of the show.”
MJ is without a doubt the most physically demanding show Markus has done. He credits his cooldown process to how he maintains his stamina. “Right after the show, I’ll go back to my dressing room. I’ll cool down my voice and roll out my legs. Sometimes I’ll go to PT if I need a little more help. I’ll use my massage gun, to make sure everything’s loose before I shower and go to sleep. Also, the warm-up process before the show, along with physical training we do twice a week, and rehearsals, all help to get me ready to deliver this beast of a show. There’s so much that we as dancers have to do to take care of ourselves outside of what you see onstage. A lot of people might forget that our jobs aren’t just a couple of hours a night. It’s a very rigorous process, but it’s also a very rewarding process.”
Although dance plays a massive part in Markus’ embodiment of Jackson, he shares that connecting with Michael’s humanity also proved to be a rewarding challenge. “I studied so much – watching his interviews, watching interviews with friends and family members, reading his autobiography a couple of times. I think anyone who wanted to understand Michael could if they really dove deep into what he said. When you hear about Michael Jackson, you don’t hear about the person behind him. You just hear about the songs and the performances.”
As Markus relays this side of role preparation, it is apparent that he and Jackson share a lot of personal similarities. “There are themes in this show that I feel everyone can grasp onto. Themes of passion, perfectionism, loneliness and isolation. It’s easy to tap into those themes because they’re so universal,” he says. “People forget that he was a human who had real feelings and problems to deal with. They were amplified because he was the biggest star in the world, but they were still regular emotions. Being such an empath, it was easy for me to understand how difficult that must have been to be under a microscope your entire life.”
Markus shares what he hopes audiences take away from seeing MJ. “I hope audiences learn something, as I did when I first saw the show, about Michael and about themselves. I think good art helps us to look inward. I hope they leave with an unimaginable joy that they can take with them on their ride home that makes them want to blast all the other Michael Jackson songs that aren’t in the show. I’ve heard people doing that on their way out and it brings me so much joy to inspire joy like that. At the end of the day, it’s just a huge celebration of art.”
Follow Jordan Markus on Instagram @jordnmarkus, and visit tour.mjthemusical.com for the latest MJ The Musical Tour updates.
By Melody McTier Thomason of Dance Informa.
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