Tessa Nelson

The production gives real weight to the over-policing of young Black men—through Knuck’s storyline, Brown’s choreography, Peter Nigrini’s projections (which include images of historical figures such as Amadou Diallo), and Roz White’s emotionally real and commanding performance as Miss Liza Jane, a black mentor figure who has borne witness to the struggle. These elements make the danger feel immediate and historically grounded. And yet, by allowing Jersey to evade any meaningful reckoning with her own complicity, the musical ultimately undercuts that work. The result edges toward what Peter Brook described as “deadly theatre”—a production that gestures at serious ideas, renders them beautifully, and then leaves them fundamentally unchanged.