Friday, January 13, 2012 By Elias Alba
Circe De Soleil Immortalizes Michael Jackson
After nearly two years of waiting, I finally got to see the Cirque Du Soleil: Michael Jackson Immortal show. It was absolutely incredible. The blend of exotic contortions, dances, acrobatics, of Cirque combined with classic Michael Jackson dances, music, costumes, and energy was just perfect.
The talented choreographers were careful to mix well-known moves such as the Smooth Criminal Lean and the Thriller Claws with the amazing acrobatics and stage use of their usual shows.
One of the best parts of the show was they didn’t over-do cliche songs such as Beat It or Bad ( both of which were only featured briefly, not an entire number). They stuck to somewhat less known tracks like Gone Too Soon, and Childhood. They also had a great mix of Heartbreak Hotel, Dangerous, and my favorite song, Smooth Criminal.
There were a few standout performers among them. One woman who was a contortionist could tap herself on the shoulder with her foot, while doing a handstand. This was amazing and slightly disturbing, just thinking of the pain it would cause me! There was also an amazing dancer who had only one leg.
There were also many musicians and vocalist used in the show. A great trombone player, a sax player, two guitarists, two drummers, and an amazing and attractive(and scantly clad) cellist who did half of the Van Halen guitar solo from Beat It.
There was music from all through Michael Jackson’s career, like ABC from The Jackson 5, Blame It On The Boogie from The Jacksons and music from all throughout his solo career.
The only part of the show I did not like was the song Jam. The choreography with the basketballs was fair at best. Obviously, the dancers were not basketball players, or smooth when it came to the sport.
The amazing performance, mixed with amazing choreography,music, and energy deserves no less than four stars. However, be ready to spend a lot of money, as some tickets sold for over $600.
The tour will be in San Jose on the 13th, 14th, and 15th, Oakland starting on the 17th, and if you are willing to make the journey, will be in San Diego starting on the 21st, Anaheim starting on the 24th, , and Los Angeles starting on the 27th.
I loved the show and even tried to get tickets for the next shows in San Jose. For a dedicated Michael Jackson fan, the Cirque Du Soleil show was definitely worth the wait and the money.