Mark S. Maluso: Getting a Jump Off-Broadway

About the author:
Off-Broadway audiences have embraced blue men, drummers, clowns, stomp-ers and performance artists of all kinds—and now Korean martial artists can join the list. The comic spectacle Jump brings a high-flying troupe of martial artists to the stage of the Union Square Theatre in a show that's been a smash hit around the world. Veteran theatrical producer and tour manager Mark S. Maluso is shepherding Jump to off-Broadway and beyond as executive producer of CAMI Ventures, LLC, a subsidiary of Columbia Artists Management. Maluso has worked on a variety of shows with international appeal, including one featuring the Shaolin Monks of China, and as he shares with Broadway.com, the minute he saw Jump in London, he felt sure American audiences would love it too. Hey, any feel-good farce described as “Jackie Chan meets Charlie Chaplin” sounds like a winner!

Jump first came to my attention while I was drinking a pint of Guinness. I was in Belfast to attend a client's performance, and after the show I was reading the papers at the city's famous Crown Liquor Saloon probably the world's most beautiful bar when an advertisement for Jump's engagement at London's Peacock Theatre Sadler's Wells caught my attention. I happened to be on my way to London the next morning for meetings, so I quickly rearranged my schedule to catch a performance. Simply put, I fell in love with this show.

Having now seen many performances of Jump, I can say that the strongest memory I have of my first encounter with this unusual blend of slapstick comedy, acrobatics and martial arts was how much my stomach and face hurt: My stomach hurt from laughing, and my face hurt from smiling. Truly, I laughed harder than I had since I was a child. Jump was silly and fun and seemingly simple, but my professional eye began to take in just how subtle and serious the abilities of the performers were. I was in awe of their athletic prowess, but even more moved by their acute sense of comic timing.

As it happened, the performance I attended was Jump's official opening in London. At a reception, I was introduced to the producers of the show and, in particular, a dynamo named Cara Han, from Korea's Yegam Theater Company. With the metabolism of a hummingbird, Ms. Han runs three Jump companies and looks after Yegam's international business dealings. She asked if I would give an interview for KBS TV, Korea's leading television network, and I gushed on and on about how great the show was and how I felt that western audiences will love it.

As these things often go, a professional relationship developed, and my company and Yegam are now happily in business bringing Jump to North and South America. New York is, of course, the first stop here in the United States, and the big question is whether a martial arts comedy can succeed here, as it has in London, Seoul, Tokyo, Madrid and a host of other cities, with future engagements set for Russia, China, Malaysia and Australia.

While we can't predict the future, I think Jump will happily take up residence at the Union Square Theatre and bring its unique brand of merriment to audiences of all kinds and all ages. After all, who can resist the idea of three generations from grandfather to young daughter challenging one another to martial arts showdowns—and then taking on a pair of burglars who have no idea what kind of family they're stumbled upon?

Martial arts have been celebrated on film—from Bruce Lee to Jackie Chan—and in comic books and on television, but Jump represents the first-ever theater show focusing on this thrilling athletic form. In fact, before taking the stage, our cast members train for three and half years in combat disciplines such as tae kwan do, taek kyun and hapkido from Korea and capoeira from Brazil. So, yes, we expect the theater at Union Square to be crawling with folks who may never have set foot in a theater before.

Stay tuned.