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The Legend Lives On - Official Cirque du Soleil 'Immortal World Tour' Discussion

CherubimII said:
And so the Legend continues.....


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Awww, the baby looks like Blanket.
 
It looks amazing.
I am glad to read Paris loved it.
It must be very, very emotional, especially considering the current situation.
May they find the peace they need and deserve.
 
PeterChurchill Peter Churchill
Jackson family members attending Cirque show seemed to enjoy the entire performance & attention. Sat next to Guy Laliberté in the reg seats
2 minutes ago
 
I'm so happy to read that Paris loved it. I'm also happy that Michael knew that Cirque wanted to do a show and his estate executors followed his wishes. I have to wait to June to see it, that seems so far away. Thanks for posting all of the pics.
 
Liking the reviews I'm seeing so far :yes:

I'm so happy to read that Paris loved it. I'm also happy that Michael knew that Cirque wanted to do a show and his estate executors followed his wishes. I have to wait to June to see it, that seems so far away. Thanks for posting all of the pics.
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Not to worry, remember last year when this was announced? well look how quickly opening night came.....June 2012 don't really seem so far away now if you think about it.
 
It's bitter sweet, isn't it? Just to see the footage gives me goosebumps. Just to think of MJ actually involved on this in life.... just to think of what's going in in LA with the trial... just to think of all the time, lies and pain.. and then you hear those notes, his voice, those songs... and ahhhhhhh... I can't help it. I still feel like crying and despite all the time gone, I can't help but miss him more and more.

May time fly, dear Mike.
May time fly.
 
A comment regarding the trailer

To All the speculators: What you see is advertising....a mashup of different segments...which makes it chaotic. In the show you will see a story line!


BTW all the lighting for billie jean outfit...MJ was going to wear that for THIS IS IT!?


MrBuzzialdrin 2 hours ago
 
bluesky said:
A comment regarding the trailer

To All the speculators: What you see is advertising....a mashup of different segments...which makes it chaotic. In the show you will see a story line!
Click to expand...
Oh man... if some people are daring to say anything about this being "messy", just based on the footage, than that means that person has not had the priviledge to ever be part of a Cirque show :doh:
That's all I can say.

Please... Cirque... Michael.... Royalty!
 
Just got home. And it feels like i need to watch the show again, and again...before I can form a real/clear and definite opinion.

There is sooo much going on....and Michael Jackson on the screen, distracted me from whatever was happening on stage.

1) I like that they incorporated a lot of This is It ideas into the show (Smooth Criminal, Thrilller, TDCAU, Earth song).

2) throughout the show, I kept asking myself, what MJ would think....and I am almost certain he would be as pleased as we are.

I already got my Vegas tickets, but Will try to go back again tomorrow...

What a night. What a show. What a performer. What a legacy. This is hard proof how MJ's legacy extends beyond just the music...The Cirque & Estate did a great job of incorporating all the things MJ cared about, Environment, poverty, Love, racial harmony....all that made it unto the show.

I know fans will see the show, but I'd much rather non fans take the time and experience this amazing show. I want more people to witness the genius of MJ.

Another thing I enjoyed, is the inclusion of little known (to the public) songs: Childhood, Lil Suzie, threatened, Ghost....Many will want to discover these songs.

My only disappointment is there was no MJ CD for sale, lots of T-shirts, bags, mug, etc....but no MJ CD.
 
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The Canadian Press - ONLINE EDITION

'A gift from beyond': Cirque du Soleil's Jackson show debuts in Montreal

By: Benjamin Shingler, The Canadian Press

MONTREAL - Michael Jackson had always hoped to do a show with Cirque de Soleil, and on Sunday that dream came true.

The "Immortal World Tour" debuted at the Bell Centre in Montreal, combining acrobatics and dance with the King of Pop's massive catalogue of hits spanning more than four decades.

From "ABC" to "Thriller," the high-octane performance did not disappoint.

It was also a tribute to Jackson's lasting impact on dance and fashion _ from his patented moonwalk to his iconic white glove.

At one point, a pair of giant dancing black dress shoes with white socks graced the stage, and at another, a pack of acrobatic werewolves.

But Michael Jackson and the circus? It's a perfect fit, according to his brother, Jackie.
"First of all, Michael is a great fan of Cirque (du Soleil). He's seen all the shows," Jackie, who arrived with his brothers Tito and Marlon, told reporters just before the show. "And to have Cirque and Michael together, you expect to see something fantastic."

Jackson's mother Katherine and his three children were also at the show, making a brief appearance beforehand for a photo-op.

The family made the trip to the premiere from Los Angeles, where the manslaughter trial of Michael Jackson's doctor is underway.

The show packed 60 hits into about an hour and a half, starting with the Jackson 5 and ending with Jackson's last studio album.

It did not, however, dare imitate the man himself — no single performer plays the role of Jackson.

"We were very clear on this, and I think the family was too," said Daniel Lamarre, president and CEO of Cirque du Soleil.

Lamarre said he had the blessing of Jackson's mother to go ahead with the show.

"Many people were interested in doing shows to pay tribute to Michael Jackson," Lamarre said.

"His mother said Michael has always wanted to do a show with the circus, so if there is a show about Michael, it will be Cirque du Soleil."

While a wholehearted tribute, the performance didn't glaze over Jackson's eccentricities, with Bubbles the chimpanzee making more than one appearance.

It also alluded to a darker side. To the tune of Jackson's song "Childhood," where he laments never having had one, dancers swayed above the entry sign to the now infamous Neverland Ranch while a child looked longingly through a window.

In another tune, Jackson is heard pleading "I need my privacy, get away" as clips of the TV news media play in the background.

The $60-million tour has stops in cities across Canada and the United States, beginning with Ottawa on Oct. 7.

The Jackson estate authorized and took part in the project.

Before the show, more than a hundred fans waited in the rain for a glimpse of the Jackson family on the red carpet.

One group of women wore single white gloves and black leather jackets in homage to Jackson.

"I've been a fan since I first saw him on TV in 1969 when I was nine," said Montrealer Shirley Elvis.

"When I first heard this show was coming, I think everyone was in a really dark place and when we heard that they were going to do this it was like another gift from Michael from beyond."

Winnipeg Free Press
 
Cirque du Soleil's Michael Jackson: The World Tour: Theater Review
9:25 PM PDT 10/2/2011 by Etan Vlesing


The Bottom Line
Cirque du Soleil combining dance-inspired circus acts with popular Michael Jackson songs will have the late pop star's fans cheering and his detractors scratching their heads.

Venue
Bell Centre, Montreal
Director-choreographer
Jamie King

The show, which had its world premiere in Montreal on Sunday night, features a circus mime, a contortionist, acrobats and dancers performing to the late King of Pop's songs.

MONTREAL -- The Gloved One may be dead, but thanks to Cirque du Soleil, the late pop star's life remains a circus with Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour saluting the King of Pop Sunday night with a world premiere in Montreal.


Here was another full on production from iconic concert director-choreographer Jamie King, a veteran concert tour director for Madonna, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera and Celine Dion.
But a concert being live performance, King's latest tour creation suffered without a star live performer to anchor the show and provide a focus.
Sure, Jackson's digitally recorded voice, fronted by a live band and around 60 dancers and circus performers, drives the show. But Cirque du Soleil, for all its legendary inventiveness, can't match Michael Jackson, for all his iconic song-writing and dancing flamboyance, step for step, music performance for music performance.
In the late pop star's place, King's stage setting offers a fantastical realm, in keeping with Jackson's otherworldly persona. And the framing story is a plea for global love and peace embodied in a Giving Tree, one of the giant oak trees at the Neverland Ranch, and the apparent source of Jackson's song-writing creativity.
Set designer Mark Fisher's 12-meter-high Giving Tree, which opens to the concert audience via the Neverland Ranch gates, eventually gives way to a fantasy-driven world of ferris wheels, merry-go-rounds, draw bridges and toy trains.
"Have you seen my childhood," the audience hears Jackson's digital voice intone, as we recall his best Peter Pan plea that all along, Jackson was just a kid at heart, trying to relive a childhood he never knew.
We see on stage in The Immortal World Tour elephants, a giant hat big enough to hold two dancers, and a soft sculpture glove by which performers create varied hand positions.
And we see a young Michael as an animatronics puppet during the "Ben" track float in a giant balloon into the arena, to the applause of the capacity Bell Arena audience in Montreal.
It's all classic Cirque du Soleil, except, of course, for the absence of the late, great entertainer himself.
His absence is all the more glaring each time Jackson shows up on a giant LED screen or the stage-length scrim, via video of his old gigs like the 1987 Bad World Tour, or the pyrotechnics and illusions of the 1992 Dangerous World Tour.
King makes the most of the absence.
The red jacket, the sequins, the glittering glove and white sock/dance shoes are all represented with props. Dancers showcase the deceased singer's iconic steps, including the moonwalk and his famous leaning motion. Zombie dancers rise from the grave during the "Thriller" track, accompanied by pulsing synths and power choruses.
And there's the predictable Cirque du Soleil touches: a mime and a monkey figure dance together during the "Blame It on the Boogie" scene and four performers swing high in the air on ropes during the "Human Nature" track.
But a circus mime, a contortionist, acrobats, and dancers and their sweat-breaking choreography can't replace the Real Deal. And make no mistake: Michael Jackson The Immortal Tour is not Jackson's life story.
We see a familiar character arc that took Jackson from musical boy wonder as a fifth of the Jackson 5 to global pop genius.
But a Cirque du Soleil production sanctioned by the Jackson family could well offend the pop star's detractors for dismissing much that held Jackson's fans and the paparazzi in thrall until his untimely death in 2009: the "sleeping with boys" allegations, Jackson in handcuffs and on trial, the pill popping, the bleached white skin, the spending sprees and the botched plastic surgery.
King's quasi-metaphysical storyline of Jackson¹s music and songs, and his quest for global love and protecting the world¹s children, instead never strays from a fantastical, circus sensibility.
But the magic of Michael Jackson: The Immortal Tour is the King of Pop's detractors will be left shaking their heads over what all the circus that's come to town means, and Jackson's legions of fans will know exactly what their idol is saying, seemingly from beyond the grave.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/cirque-du-soleils-michael-jackson-242983
 
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Cirque du Soleil stages world premiere of Michael Jackson's World Tour

BY BRIAN MCCOLLUM
DETROIT FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

The event: The music, moves and legacy of Michael Jackson got the fantasy treatment Sunday night as Cirque du Soleil staged the world premiere of The Immortal World Tour. It's the biggest project formally authorized by the estate since the star's 2009 death.

The crowd: A capacity audience of 13,000 included brothers Tito, Jackie and Marlon Jackson, mom Katherine and Michael's kids Prince, 14; Paris ,13; and Blanket, 9.

The tour: Today's show launched a 47-city North American tour that will make its U.S. debut Oct. 15 in Detroit. The tour — which will include a December residency at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas — is slated to wrap up July 20 in Chicago, though more dates are likely. A variation of the show will establish a permanent Vegas home in late 2013.

The fans: On a wet and chilly night in Montreal, Sunday's opening drew fans from Brazil to Los Angeles, some decked out with glittery white gloves and classic Thriller jackets.

The music: The show was an ecstatic barrage of hits from Jackson's solo career and Jackson 5 years. With vocal parts extracted from original studio tapes and mixed with a live band (directed by Jackson keyboardist Greg Phillinganes), it was a four-dimensional funky swirl of sound. The set ran through a host of moods — a night where the tender Childhood seamlessly segued into the crackling Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'.

The performance: The Jamie King-directed show featured Cirque's typical attention to detail, from meticulously constructed props (glowing hearts, a handsome hot-air balloon) to exquisite cast numbers choreographed by longtime Jackson associates such as Travis Payne. Unlike traditional Cirque shows, Immortal was presented less as a nouveau circus than a fantasy concert, with some of Jackson's signature moves cast through Cirque's whimsical prism.

The centerpiece: A re-creation of Jackson's Giving Tree, the backyard spot at his Neverland Ranch where he often retreated for musical inspiration.

The wow factor: Human Nature featured performers dangling over the stage, gorgeously dotted with lights against a backdrop of stars. A giant white glove and dancing shoes appeared for Beat It, and the Giving Tree sprouted a sprawling set of claws for Thriller, which featured mummies and white-tuxedoed zombies. Peace symbols adorned the chests on the robotic warriors of They Don't Care About Us. While the show featured no singular story line, broad themes of compassion, human connection and global consciousness were sketched throughout.

The King of Pop: Jackson's images were a constant presence, and he occasionally had the stage to himself: I'll Be There featured just his voice accompanied by a live piano, childhood footage playing on a big onstage screen.

The brothers: Backstage, three beaming Jackson brothers declared that the show captured Michael's spirit. "That was Michael's message — to help us understand that love is so important," Tito says. The family was particularly moved by the interpretation of Gone Too Soon. "Our mother is probably bawling out there somewhere," Jackie says.

Detroit Free Press
 
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