Cirque du Soleil is taking Neverland Ranch on the road.
The first of the acrobatic troupe’s two planned Michael Jackson shows will be set in a stylised version of the singer’s famed Southern California home, according to Jamie King, writer and director of what Cirque is billing as Michael Jackson, The Immortal World Tour.
“It is really about a central character or characters who get transported into this world of Neverland where they learn everything there is to know about Michael,” said Mr King, who has directed concert tours for Madonna, Rihanna and Celine Dion.
The tour will kick off in Montreal next October and hit 30 cities including New York, Miami, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and Las Vegas. John Branca, co-executor of Michael Jackson’s estate, said that, depending on fan response, it could be extended beyond its planned end in the summer of 2012 and travel outside of North America.
Excerpts from Michael Jackson’s music videos and extended scenes from last year’s This Is It documentary will be part of the 90-minute show, but no performer will represent Michael Jackson specifically.
“Michael Jackson is throughout the entire show, but in no way am I going to use a stand-in,” Mr King said, adding that songs would include hits from Thriller to Smooth Criminal, as well as new remixes like those made for Cirque’s Beatles show, Love.
Immortal will also feature as-yet-unreleased songs that the King of Pop had finished before his death last year, including some from an album that the singer’s estate hopes will go on sale by Christmas, Mr Branca said.
Concept art for the set prominently features a massive tree, which represents a favourite oak that sat outside Michael Jackson’s Neverland bedroom, Mr King said. The singer nicknamed it the Giving Tree and had a perch built atop it where he wrote music and sometimes slept.
“It made sense that that would be the perfect environment for us to create this world of magic, fairy tale,” Mr King said. “Because Neverland for Michael Jackson was his kind of his peace and his serenity. ... So after going to Neverland and really experiencing and feeling the beauty and the energy that was there, I had no choice but to create an environment that reflected that.”
Mr King said he would begin auditions for about 60 dancers next week. Producers are hoping to hire dancers and musicians for the live band who have worked with the singer, Mr Branca said. Michael Jackson admired the Canadian troupe’s work and had attended Cirque shows in Los Angeles and Las Vegas. “He was always captivated and a fan of what Cirque does,” Mr Branca said.
Cirque and the estate are also collaborating on a separate permanent production in Las Vegas in 2012 at a property owned by MGM Mirage. They will each own 50 per cent of both projects and share equally in the cost of putting on the productions.
A select number of tickets were sold to fan clubs of Michael Jackson and Cirque Du Soleil starting on Wednesday. The rest go on sale tomorrow.
Facts and figures
• Cirque du Soleil, is a Canadian entertainment company, self-described as a “dramatic mix of circus arts and street entertainment.”
• Based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul in 1984 by two former street performers, Guy Laliberté and Daniel Gauthier
• Each show is a synthesis of circus styles from around the world, with its own central theme and storyline. They draw the audience into the performance through continuous live music, with performers rather than stagehands changing the props.
• The shows employ approximately 4,000 people from over 40 countries and generate an estimated annual revenue exceeding US$810 million.
• The multiple permanent Las Vegas shows alone play to more than 9,000 people a night, five per cent of the city’s visitors, adding to the 90 million people who have experienced Cirque worldwide.
• Cirque’s creations have been awarded numerous prizes and distinctions, including a Bambi Award in 1997, a Rose d’Or in 1989, Drama Desk Awards in 1991 and 1998, three Gemini Awards and four Primetime Emmy Awards.
• Cirque’s creations employ no animals in their performances and instead emphasise traditional acts of human skill and daring; in addition, contemporary music and dance are integrated into the production.
• Last year Cirque du Soleil presented 19 shows around the world, including an “adults-only” cabaret-style production in Las Vegas.