By Ricardo Baca
Denver Post Pop Music Critic
[...]
And that's why Cirque du Soleil's "Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour" is playing the Pepsi Center from Friday through Jan. 8 — and not a smaller arena or circus tent. Cirque is known for its fiery production, its intense spectacle, its creative collaborations. Add Jackson's music to the mix and you have an experience that has never been seen before, says Mike Philips, who plays saxophone with the show's band.
"Mike's music is one of the most powerful things ever," said Philips, who played on Jackson's record, "Michael," before the artist's death in mid-2009. "This is the highest level of music combined with Cirque. The merger of these two ideas, having a hybrid show of pop and rock and Cirque and choreography and pyrotechnics and everything you can imagine, it's like sensory overload."
[...]
Cirque retools the music a little, editing shorter dance cuts and adding percussion and production to fit the show's other elements. "The Immortal World Tour's" artistic staff wanted as many songs as possible in the 100-minute performance and were able to fit in 32 thanks to remixes and mash-ups.
That meant some serious work for the musicians, who were used to hearing these ubiquitous songs a particular way.
"With 'Dangerous,' the previous way of learning 'Dangerous' started at the beginning and went onto the chorus, bridge, verse and another chorus," said Philips about having to relearn all of Jackson's songs for the show. "Now they're abbreviated parts to the songs. So a verse might be missing, or they might do half a verse and then go to the chorus. Mike's songs are songs you know internally, so you have to reprogram yourself."
Jackson's music evolves
But they have to get it right. Music is at the heart of these next-gen Cirque shows. Music is the reason fans are filling Vegas theaters and arenas all over the world — they're an opportunity to connect with Jackson (or Presley, or Lennon) in new ways.
"Michael's voice is what drives the show," director Jamie King touts in press materials. "I have the opportunity to carry on Michael's legacy, to take all that energy — all that he was and was going to be — and build it into this production."
Added Philips: "How could you top 'Thriller' and 'Beat It' and that kind of work? I don't sleep on the 'Dangerous' stuff, either. That era, when Mike came back with Teddy Riley with 'Dangerous' and 'History,' I've revisited it, and I'm digging it.
"When you look at how he evolved, from 'Off the Wall' to 'Thriller,' it's clear that he changed the sound. He had a different way of interpreting R&B and hip-hop. This was Mike's way of morphing into something else based on the time, like including Heavy D on a track," he said referring to the 1991 hit song "Jam."
[...]
In a league of his own
[...]The King of Pop is in a class all by himself, said Philips, who can speak from experience, having played with Prince and
Stevie Wonder before recording with Jackson.
Philips' first gig with Wonder came right after high school graduation — in South Africa for Nelson Mandela's 80th birthday party, he said. Later on, he recorded and toured with Prince — and that experience left him craving to play with Jackson.
"Playing with him on tour was something I always wanted to do, and I always had this trifecta thing — I played with Stevie on albums and toured with him, and I did the same with Prince. But with Mike, the only thing that was elusive was actually touring with him. With Cirque, Mike is not here, but we have some of the sets from 'This Is It,' and we're playing with his spirit every night."
léer completa:
Cirque du Soleil production offers "Immortal" tribute to Jackson - The Denver Post
