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Dangerous was Michael Jackson's true career high

Michael Jackson's Dangerous was the first album I ever owned, a cassette copy that I pored over like the Rosetta Stone. What was that dog in ermine robes about? Was In the Closet about literally keeping something in a closet? All that was certain was that Macaulay Culkin, in being allowed a spoken-word intro to Black Or White, as well as starring in Home Alone 2, was the luckiest kid alive.

Looking at the sales figures, it's clear that everyone's currently on a Jacko reappreciation binge. My own has inevitably (and nostalgically) honed in on Dangerous, and one thing is objectively clear: this album rules.

As its initial release dovetailed with the Jordan Chandler allegations, the album is now falling neatly into an accepted narrative – that it's part of Jackson's decline, both artistically and personally. The reality is that Dangerous is Jackson at the very peak of his powers, with his widest ever emotional range set to production that makes new jack swing seem much more than just lame dance moves and fluorescent man-made fibres .

Produced mostly by Teddy Riley, the tracks are fiendishly intricate, loaded with scratching, multiple layers of drum programming, and shiny smashes of hyper-artificial brass. In its mechanic complexity and tautly funky precision, it mirrors and amplifies Jackson's corporeal and vocal exactitude; it also reflects Jackson's fascination with the robotic that imperceptibly crept into his dance moves and continued in his Moonwalker film.

Jackson, meanwhile, is revelatory. On Remember the Time , he is soft and teasing, ruthlessly manipulating his former paramour, before unleashing ferocious passion at the climax. Indeed, Dangerous is the only album on which he sounds believably erotic, all strained frustration and full-throated entreaties; Riley extracts a sexual urgency that the Neptunes would later draw from Justin Timberlake. Meanwhile on the baked-Camembert ballads Heal the World and Will You Be There , he's charmingly innocent, and sings simple, effortless melodies.

And while Quincy Jones once allegedly shouted, "No squeaks, motherfucker!" during the recording of Thriller, here Jackson is off the leash, brilliantly weaving his vocal tics into the fabric of Riley's production. On Who Is It , he elicits a gulping sob that syncs exactly with the beat – surely the funkiest crying ever recorded?

In all the swooning at Thriller's album sales and Jackson's pre-surgery beatitude, Dangerous risks becoming even more underrated than it is now. That would be a tragedy – for me, it's his finest hour. Does anyone else agree?

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Michael Jackson's Dangerous World Tour ( AKA Heal The World Tour) Live In Bucharest October 1, 1992 (Remastered in 4K 60FPS)

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Michael Jackson’s ‘Dangerous’

By Alan Light

The booklet for Dangerous begins with a short prose poem by Michael Jackson describing the release the singer feels while dancing: “Creator and creation merge into one wholeness of joy” until “there is only … the dance.” It is Jackson’s version of William Butler Yeats’s “How can you tell the dancer from the dance?” and a revealing introduction to the first album in four years from this generation’s best-known and bestselling superstar.

Dangerous might seem to be a chance to separate this dancer — the “eccentric” Michael of the chimps, the Elephant Man bones, the hyperbaric chamber — from his dancing and singing, which remain among the wonders of the performance world and, lest we forget, were the real reason we paid so much attention to Jackson in the first place. According to this plan, we must consider Dangerous on its own terms and listen without images of llamas and Macaulay Culkin dancing in our heads.

But of course this polarity between Jackson’s on- and off-stage lives is exactly what makes him so fascinating, and the triumph of Dangerous is that it doesn’t hide from the fears and contradictions of a lifetime spent under a spotlight. This edge of terror electrified Thriller ‘s Jackson-penned break-through cuts “Billie Jean” and “Beat It” but was diverted into an unconvincing nastiness in 1987 on Bad. It also drove the “controversial” segment of the “Black or White” video, but this tension is presented much more effectively on the album itself.

Teddy Riley replaces. Quincy Jones as Jackson’s primary collaborator on Dangerous , an inspired selection that is the key to the album’s finest moments. Riley — the producer of groundbreaking tracks by Bobby Brown, Keith Sweat and his own combo, Guy — is the godfather of New Jack Swing, which merges hip-hop beats with soul crooning and has dominated the R&B charts in recent years. This choice clearly represents Jackson’s pursuit of a more contemporary sound, an attempt to come to grips with the changes that have swept pop music since Bad — most significantly, rap’s successful attack on the mainstream. Riley’s work on Dangerous is reminiscent of Jackson’s solo album Off the Wall (1979) and that record’s distillation of disco to its perfect pop essence. Riley’s tracks don’t offer the revolutionary genre-busting of Thriller , but they dramatically illustrate the versatility of his style. Instead of the cocksure strut of a New Jack classic like Bobby Brown’s “My Prerogative,” the stacked layers of keyboards on Dangerous shift and percolate, varying textures over insistent, thumping rhythm tracks.

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The aggressive yet fluid dance grooves Riley helped construct — and his emphasis is on writing grooves, not traditional songs — prove a perfect match for Jackson’s clipped, breathy uptempo voice. The fit is especially striking on the songs dealing with women. Exactly half of Dangerous is concerned with affairs of the heart, and Jackson’s greatest fears are brought right up front — there’s not a single straightforward love song in the bunch. Instead we get betrayal in “Who Is It” and repressed lust in the titillatingly titled (and determinedly heterosexual) “In the Closet.” Even “Remember the Time,” the most lighthearted musical track on the album, tells of a blissful romance only to ask, “So why did it end?” The tense, stuttering beats mirror these anxieties compellingly Riley’s melodies may seem secondary, but he carefully plants unshakable hooks in the least likely places — a jittery rhythm track in “Can’t Let Her Get Away,” a snaky, unexpected bridge in “In the Closet.”

There’s nothing on Dangerous as anti-female as Bad ‘s “Dirty Diana,” but Jackson’s persona is much more assertively sexual than the accused victim in “Billie Jean.” He stalks and preens in “She Drives Me Wild.” “Give In to Me” flirts with something more disturbing as Jackson sings, “Don’t try to understand me/Just simply do the things I say” in a grittier, throaty voice while Slash’s guitar whips and soars behind him. Neither this slow-burn solo nor the Stones-derived riff on “Black or White” offers the catharsis of Eddie Van Halen’s blazing break on “Beat It,” but they demonstrate that what seemed like a stunning crossover fusion in 1982 has now become an established part of the pop vocabulary.

Less impressive are the ballads on Dangerous , where Jackson turns to more global concerns. He has always had a weakness for sappiness, and over the years his delivery has grown increasingly constricted on slower numbers. “Heal the World” is a Hallmark-card knockoff of “We Are the World,” while the grandiose “Will You Be There” never catches fire. “Keep the Faith,” with its power-of-positive-thinking message, is looser and sets off fireworks with a call-and-response gospel coda. It’s easy to overlook, though, because it immediately follows “Will You Be There,” and both tracks feature the Andrae Crouch Singers; the sequencing of Dangerous often clusters similar songs in bunches when a more varied presentation would have been stronger.

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“Jam,” the album’s opener, addresses. Jackson’s uneasy relationship to the world and reveals a canny self-awareness that carries the strongest message on Dangerous. “Jam” features a dense, swirling Riley track, propelled by horn samples and a subtle scratch effect, and includes a fleet rap by Riley favorite Heavy D. Though it initially sounds like a simple, funky dance vehicle, Jackson’s voice bites into each phrase with a desperation that urges us to look deeper. He is singing as “false prophets cry of doom” and exhorts us to “live each day like it’s the last.” The chorus declares that the miseries of the world “ain’t too much stuff” to stop us from jamming. To Jackson, who insists that he comes truly alive only onstage, the ability to “Jam” is the sole means to find “peace within myself,” and this hope rings more sincere than the childlike wishes found in the ballads.

At such moments, Dangerous rises to the impossible challenge set by Thriller , the commercial and artistic juggernaut that will always loom over Michael Jackson’s work. At his best, then and now, the dancer and the dance come together and reveal a man, no longer a man-child, confronting his well-publicized demons and achieving transcendence through performance. What got lost in the uproar over That Video is that, despite his offstage Peter Pan image, Michael Jackson’s finest song and dance is always sexually charged, tense, coiled — he is at his most gripping when he really is dangerous.

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Michael Jackson Live in Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour

Concert from Michael Jackson's Dangerous Tour. Songs include Thriller, Billie Jean, Black or White, Human Nature, Smooth Criminal, and Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'.

Michael Jackson was one of the biggest pop stars of the 80s, and certainly one of the most popular recording artists of all time. His Dangerous Tour was the biggest tour any performer had done in history. The staging took nearly three days to set up and 20 trucks of equipment were shipped between countries on cargo planes, making headlines everywhere it went.

This concert took place during Jackson's first leg of the tour on October 1st 1992. With his instantly identifiable voice, eye-popping dance moves and stunning musical versatility, Jackson performs a career-spanning selection of his greatest hits to 70,000 screaming fans. Songs include Thriller, Billie Jean, Black or White, Human Nature, Smooth Criminal, and Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'.

Music Played

Timings (where shown) are from the start of the programme in hours and minutes

Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson - Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'

Michael Jackson - Human Nature

Michael Jackson - Smooth Criminal

Michael Jackson & Siedah Garrett - I Just Can't Stop Loving You

She's Out Of My Life

Michael Jackson - I Want You Back

Originally performed by The Jackson 5.

Michael Jackson - The Love You Save

Michael Jackson - I'll Be There

Michael Jackson - Billie Jean

Michael Jackson - Workin' Day and Night

Will You Be There

Michael Jackson - Black or White

Michael Jackson - Heal the World

Michael Jackson - Man in the Mirror

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Dangerous World Tour: 1992 – 1993

The Dangerous Tour started on June 27th 1992 and ended on November 11th 1993. It consisted of 69 concerts and was seen by approximately 3.5 million people. All proceeds from the tour were donated to various charities, including Michael’s Heal The World Foundation. The tour was unfortunately cut short due to health reasons.

The tour had a spectacular ending, with what looked like Michael putting on a jet pack and flying over the audiences’ head and out of the stadium’.

Set List – 1st Leg:

• Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’
• Human Nature
• Smooth Criminal
• I Just Can’t Stop Loving You
• She’s Out Of My Life
• Jackson 5 Medley
• Billie Jean
• Workin’ Day And Night
• Will You Be There
• The Way You Make Me Feel
• Black Or White
• Heal The World
• Man In The Mirror

Set List – 2nd Leg:

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Michael Jackson - Live in Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour

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Michael Jackson's "Thriller": A pop revolution launched 40 years ago

Michael Jackson's "Thriller" turns 40

Today marks the 40th anniversary of Michael Jackson's sixth studio album 'Thriller', which was released on 30 November 1982 and remains unchallenged as the best-selling record of all time. 

French rock journalist Philippe Manoeuvre looks back at the iconic album, which features songs like 'Wanna Be Startin' Somethin', 'Billie Jean', 'Beat it' and 'Thriller'.

"It is one of the best-selling records in human history," says Manoeuvre. "The last time the people at Sony looked, we were at 66 million physical albums sold. We're not even talking about the people who listen on a podcast. It's physical, it's 66 million people who have this record in their homes."

Manoeuvre also recalls the moment when Michael Jackson introduced the world to his famous moonwalk in Motown 25 Show in 1983, shown on "Les enfants du rock" TV Show in France.

"Michael Jackson, in two videos - 'Billie Jean' and 'Beat It' - had become an international phenomenon," says Manoeuvre.

Michael Jackson worked with great musicians and producers like Eddie Van Halen, Quincy Jones and many others. According to Manoeuvre, the success of 'Thriller' was not a surprise.

"It's the talent, the combination of talents. Since then, we have been trying to explain and understand. There are undoubtedly some fabulous musicians accompanying Jackson. Most of all, there's Quincy Jones."

What's so special about MJ's Thriller?

Co-produced by Quincy Jones, 'Thriller' was Jackson's second album on Epic Records, following the commercial and critical success of the album 'Off the Wall' in 1979. 

'Thriller' explores musical genres such as funk, post-disco, soul music, soft rock, R&B and pop. The lyrics of the songs are varied and deal with themes such as romance, paranoia and the supernatural.

With a production budget of $750,000, recording sessions took place between April and November 1982 at Westlake Recording Studios in Los Angeles. Assisted by Quincy Jones, Jackson signed four of the nine songs on the album. 

After the release of the second single 'Billie Jean', the album rose to the top of the music charts in many countries.

'Thriller' quickly became the best-selling album in the world, with 32 million copies sold in a single year, and was the first album (excluding soundtracks) to remain 37 weeks at the top of the Billboard 200. In 1984, it became the first album to become the best-selling record in the US for two years.

Jackson achieved another record by winning eight Grammy Awards in 1984, in three different genres: pop, R&B and rock. It won Album of the Year, and 'Beat It' won Record of the Year.

With 'Thriller', Michael Jackson acquired a new status: he became, at the age of 25, a global pop icon and one of the biggest stars of the second half of the 20th century. 

The album also had a pioneering impact on black-music genres and allowed Jackson to break down racial barriers through his appearances on the music channel MTV and his meeting with President Ronald Reagan at the White House. Indeed, prior to the success of 'Thriller', Jackson had struggled to get MTV airtime due to being Black.

The songs 'Thriller' (with its infamous 14-minute video), 'Billie Jean' and 'Beat It' looped on MTV - 'Billie Jean' holding the distinction of being the first video clip by an Black artist to receive heavy rotation on the network. It opened the door for other artists of colour to be featured on the channel.

'Thriller' has frequently topped greatest albums of all time lists and in 2008, it was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. In the same year, the Library of Congress added it to the National Recording Registry of "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant recordings".

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‘MJ’ Review: Michael Jackson Lives Again In Lynn Nottage’s Thriller Of A Broadway Musical

By Greg Evans

NY & Broadway Editor

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Has any Broadway production in recent (or even not so recent) memory arrived with as much emotional baggage – or carried it as lightly – as the visually and sonically ravishing MJ ? The Michael Jackson musical, as unlikely as such a prospect might have seemed a year ago, now appears poised to take Manhattan with the same hurricane force that the real Jackson funneled when he moonwalked into television history on Motown 25 .

If MJ can’t contain the shock of the new that turned his 1983 television performance into an era-defining moment, it is in no short supply of its own thrills, not least the reminder, after all these years of scandal and accusations, that we once observed, in real time, the blossoming of undeniable talent into unavoidable genius. That’s a transition, not since equaled, that director-choreographer Christopher Wheeldon, book write Lynn Nottage and an impeccable cast led by the star-is-born Myles Frost, bring to pulse-quickening life on the stage.

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To address the elephant man in the room: While MJ depicts Jackson’s drug problems, raises (if only to dismiss) charges of racial self-loathing, references the Bubbles-and-Joseph Merrick eccentricities, the third-rail allegations of child molestation go unstated if not entirely ignored. The approach is, historically speaking, defendable: The events of MJ are set in 1992 as Jackson rehearses his upcoming Dangerous world tour. The setting places the musical a year before the public accusations and police investigations that would shadow Michael Jackson until his death in 2009, and his legacy to this moment.

Within the musical’s universe, t he closest MJ comes to confronting the topic is a vague reference to a family being invited on tour with the singer, but even that comment is open to interpretation: Is the business associate raising the issue merely worried about the expense of additional people on tour, or is he fretting about putting a young boy in such close proximity to the star? Is the reference’s sense of foreboding rooted in concern for victims of child abuse, or for a victim of scheming blackmailers? MJ ‘s unspoken response: Decide for yourself.

Clearly, audiences shelling out big bucks to attend MJ have decided in favor of the man on stage, a fact the musical’s book, written by the double-Pulitzer winner Lynn Nottage, slyly acknowledges with repeated references to the art-versus-artist debate, here most often given voice by the musical’s single most clunky device: Nottage creates an MTV producer and cameraman to film Jackson as he prepares and rehearsals for the much anticipated world tour. While promising the star and his protectors that MTV’s interests and intentions are solely about the music, the producer can’t resist poking around for signs of, well, anything, her interest piqued by overheard references to pill-popping, the pervasive atmosphere of tension, rumors of bleached skin and bobbed noses and chimpanzees and Elephant Man bones and hyperbaric oxygen chambers. Anyone within the gravitation pull of Michael Jackson needn’t look far for signs of the mind-boggling eccentricity that will, at least in the public mind, very quickly begin to overshadow a monumental talent.

We’re told (if we need reminding) that the stakes for Jackson couldn’t be higher: Nine years after his enormously successful, groundbreaking and career-defining Thriller album will be scrutinized by the press, the public and, not least, by Jackson himself for even the vaguest hint that the King of Pop can’t hold his crown forever. The Dangerous tour and album will either return Jackson to the cultural pinnacle or simply return him to the earthly realm inhabited by the Madonnas and Bowies and Springsteens of the world. As Jackson says so often if becomes a mantra, the Dangerous show must be perfect .

Watching MJ , one easily suspects its top-flight creative team was motivated by the same near-maniacal drive. Aside from the pedestrian framing device, MJ pushes hard and unceasingly to move beyond the just-good-enough nostalgia that can turn even second-rate jukebox productions into crowd pleasers. It succeeds: MJ is a wildly entertaining marvel.

The thrills start early. Ten minutes before “curtain,” an assemblage of dancers, back-up singers, security staff and recording technicians begin to populate what we quickly recognize as a rehearsal studio. A buzz of excitement builds with every announcement that the star is five minutes away, then three, then…By the time Jackson – immediately knowable with his slight frame and hunched posture, his loose-fitting clothes, his presence – quietly ambles in, the rehearsal space – and the Neil Simon Theatre stage – is primed for action. Mingling and genial chatter gives way to the shapes, forms and sounds that we recognize from the very first note: “Beat It.”

No sooner has the song ended than MJ establishes its central theme: Jackson as a quiet but firm taskmaster, as exacting in his own quest for perfection as his abusive father had been. In the soft, fey speaking voice we all know, Jackson keeps everyone in line with his vision: “Thank you, beautiful work,” he all but whispers after the final notes of the first song. “Loved the harmony. But, Keith, you keep stepping all over my vocals. Can you pull back a little?…you gotta take your cues off of me. Remember, the melody is king, ease into the pocket and you’ll have no problems…And Rob, what if we change things up, just now I began seeing something more abstract…”

Over the course of its two acts, MJ presents one hit after another, the orchestrations and arrangements by David Holcenberg and Jason Michael Webb a fitting testament to Jackson’s impossible standards, and Gareth Owen’s superb sound design capturing each and every intricate rhythm. The songs breathe fire.

And what songs they are, nearly three dozen of them. Sticking roughly – very roughly – to real-life chronology, MJ offers up tunes from the Jackson 5 era (“ABC,” “I’ll Be There,” “I Want You Back,” “The Love You Save”) through Michael’s early “Rock With You” solo period, the triumphant Thriller  (“Thriller”, “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’,” “Human Nature,” “Billie Jean”) and beyond (“Bad,” “Smooth Criminal,” “They Don’t Care About Us”).

As with other stand-outs of the jukebox genre – Ain’t Too Proud, Jersey Boys, Tina – Nottage’s book and Wheeldon’s direction/choreography tap into collective nostalgia without sacrificing of-the-moment vitality. Will younger audience members be as delighted as Boomers by the faithful recreation of the still astonishing “Dancing Machine” (complete with Michael’s Robot)? Or with that culture-rocking Motown 25 rendition of “Billie Jean” that introduced the glove, the hat and the moonwalk? Hard to imagine they wouldn’t be.

Aside from an excellent cast (more about that later) and the speaks-for-itself source material, MJ is distinguished by a visual spectacle that would have dazzled the King himself. Set designer Derek McLane transforms that immense rehearsal space into, by turns, the intimate confines of the Jackson childhood home, the set of Soul Train and, in one of the musical’s showstoppers, the haunted graveyard of the “Thriller” video.

I say one of the showstoppers because they come fast and furious: A press conference table – upended with Michael atop it – becomes a small stage within a stage. Or later, when Jackson acknowledges his dance heroes by showcasing (and augmenting) the styles of Bob Fosse, Fred Astaire and the Nicholas Brothers. Or when a wall explodes into glass shards, tabloid headlines projected onto each one. (Peter Nigrini’s gorgeous projections make yet another case for a separate Tony Award category, so much do they add to Natasha Katz’s flawless lighting design).

Like Diana, The Musical before it, MJ even gets applause for its (yes, overused word) iconic costumes. Not only does costume designer Paul Tazwell get every last stitch of Jackson’s famous fashions just right, from the black sparkly jacket, the too-short pants, the gold brocade waistcoat, the “Beat It” red leather), but he takes great care in outfitting the supporting players in styles that are as appealing as they are era-correct. (Oddly, the only notable slip-up comes with that press conference, when Tazwell dresses the flock of reporters in long black coats, apparently to resemble a flock of vultures; flapping around in a choreographed manner nearly identical to a similar scenein Diana , the effect, then and now, is on-the-nose and silly).

As the primary Michael – there are three incarnations – Myles Frost, in his Broadway debut, brings a fully formed presence to a career-launching performance. His singing and dancing mimicry – that’s not a slam – is immaculate and his acting chops are more than up to the task of giving emotional dimension to this endlessly imitated man. Nottage’s book goes heavy on the armchair psychology – Michael Jackson’s artistic brilliance was inseparable from his self-destruction, and both stemmed from the stern (to put it ludicrously mildly) no-excuses heavy hand of father Joseph Jackson (well- played by Quentin Earl Darrington, doubling, in the production’s clever approach, as Rob, the Dangerous tour boss).

As the middle (post-Jackson 5, pre-Dangerous) Michael, Tavon Olds-Sample nails the jitters and impatience of an artist just beginning to come into his own, while Christian Wilson (at the reviewed performance; he shares the role of Little Michael with Walter Russell III) does that famous purple hat-and-fringed-vest ensemble proud.

Also notable among the large cast: Ayana George as Jackson matriarch Katherine, and Gabriel Ruiz as the star-struck MTV cameraman Alejandro. Only Whitney Bashor, a fine singer when she finally gets the chance, is let down by her material: As the MTV producer Rachel, she can do little to enliven the reams of Wikipedia exposition heaped on her.

Could a jukebox musical survive without such audience-leading devices? We can only wonder. Nottage, winner of two Pulitzer Prizes for drama (for Ruined and Sweat ) and author of this season’s excellent Clyde’s and Intimate Apparel , hasn’t come up with an alternative, and if anyone is up to the challenge it would be her. Time and again in MJ she demonstrates a real ability to walk thin lines, perhaps most notably in the Joseph Jackson character. While giving voice (maybe too much voice) to the familiar apologia (offered most recently by Jackson’s sister Janet Jackson) that the family owed its success to the patriarch’s unforgiving and demeaning approach, Nottage and MJ ultimately make clear that the abuser was (hint, hint) a monster to rival any horror film.

As for what would come for Michael Jackson – the child molestation allegations, the ever-more-serious addictions, the spiraling paranoia, the tragic, absurd and lonely demise – MJ stops before it all starts. How could it otherwise? Not even a writer as gifted as Nottage could walk a line so thin that she squares the Michael Jackson of Thriller with the Michael Jackson of Leaving Neverland . The rest of us can only try to forget one for the other, and MJ makes it thoroughly, unnervingly easy to do.

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Dangerous World Tour: The Setlist

All of the songs performed on Michael Jackson’s 1992-1993 Dangerous World Tour

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Michael Jackson

Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'

Thriller 25 Super Deluxe Edition

Human Nature

Smooth Criminal (2012 Remaster)

Bad 25th Anniversary

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The Way You Make Me Feel (2012 Remaster)

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‘MJ’ a thriller of a tribute to Michael Jackson’s music

The glossy new stage musical lets you know with its first big number that this is a celebration of the king of pop..

Michael Jackson (Roman Banks) and the cast of “MJ” at the Nederlander Theatre.

Matthew Murphy/MurphyMade

If you were lucky enough to see Michael Jackson in concert, you know the seemingly impossible star power he exerted on stage and over a crowd. He was a luminous, peerless performer whether he was in an arena on tour or on the small screen dancing his heart out with his brothers as the Jackson 5 on “Soul Train.” When he debuted his robot dance as a teenager, Jackson had only begun to reveal the impact he’d have on not just pop culture, but culture. Period. 

The glossy new musical “MJ” lets you know with its first big number — an eye-popping, dance-inducing rendition of “Beat It” — that this is a celebration of the King of Pop enacted by a crew of performers up to the extraordinary task of capturing the essence of the Grammy-winning artist and his music. 

Directed and choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon (who won a Tony for his choreography), the musical that launched its first national tour in Chicago this week is at its best during its astonishing production numbers, epic renditions of “Billie Jean” and “Smooth Criminal” among the nearly three dozen Jackson tunes featured.

Wheeldon, a former soloist and resident choreographer with the New York City Ballet, has an exhaustive dance vocabulary (he re-invented “The Nutcracker” for the Joffrey Ballet here). He creates a jaw-dropping spectacle that includes Jackson’s signature moves merged with Wheeldon’s own high-octane legwork. When everyone on stage is in motion, it’s a breathtaking vision of athleticism and grace.

As the title character, Roman Banks is a force of nature, capturing the moves, the energy and the revolutionary creativity Jackson embodied. 

In two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage’s book, the musical begins in 1992, as the rehearsals for Jackson’s “Dangerous” world tour are in their final days. From the rehearsal room, “MJ” moves between flashbacks and the present — from the Jackson 5’s genesis in their Gary, Indiana, home to an audition for Motown’s Barry Gordy to ultimately the incandescent opening moments of the tour.

Michael (Roman Banks) reluctantly converses with MTV producer Rachel (Mary Kate Moore) in “MJ.”

Jackson is played in his teen years by a charismatic Brandon Lee Harris and as a child by an endearing Josiah Benson (who alternates in the role with Ethan Joseph). Throughout, a two-person MTV documentary crew (Mary Kate Moore and Da’Von Moody) follows the action and tries to get Jackson to open up about his music and more importantly, his life.

The 1992 setting means all that embroiled Jackson later — the 1993 allegations of sexual battery on a child, his arrest on child molestation charges in 2003, and the 2005 trial that acquitted him on all counts — aren’t a factor. In this telling, Jackson is a tortured artistic genius who always delivers despite being hunted by the media, haunted by his past and under unmanageable pressure in the present. 

Still, Jackson’s demons are never far from the surface in “MJ.” We see him popping pain pills, and mortgaging his Neverland ranch to fund the tour as his inner circle becomes increasingly concerned.

The Jackson 5 — (back row) Josh A. Dawson (Tito), Jay Mackenzie (Jackie), Bryson Jacobi Jackson (Jermaine) and (front row) Jaylen Lyndon Hunter (Little Marlon) and Ethan Joseph (Little Michael) — begin to establish themselves as a music powerhouse in “MJ.”

Michael Murphy/MurphyMade

“MJ” shows the terrible pressures Jackson faced as a child at the hands of a simultaneously loving and abusive father, Joseph (Devin Bowles, who is also cast as Rob, Michael’s tour manager). If Joseph has to backhand the youngest member of the Jackson 5 into rehearsing, so be it.

The musical remains at its most glorious during the big production numbers, which include a rich catalogue of Jackson hits, with Jackson’s ruthless perfectionism shining through in Banks’ almost mind-blowing performance. If you didn’t know better, you’d swear that was Jackson himself moving through the sinewy, rueful “Human Nature” and the crackling rage of “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’ ” or the celebratory “Black or White.”

Tour manager Rob (Devin Bowles) discusses the seemingly impossible requests about the tour’s production numbers with the perfectionist Michael (Roman Banks) in “MJ.”

The epic “Thriller” scene somehow manages to be as riveting as the original, ground-breaking video. Here, the first monster to emerge morphs from within a looming silhouette of Jackson’s father. “They Don’t Care About Us” becomes a song of raging defiance punctuated by dance that’s all stabbing angles and angry stomps. When the Jackson 5 run through “ABC” in a montage of hits, they deliver the infectious, rhythm charisma of the group’s seminal performances on “Soul Train” and “The Ed Sullivan Show.”

Paul Tazewell’s often literally dazzling costumes feature instantly recognizable renditions of Jackson’s indelible looks, from the billowy white shirt to the iconic silver-sequined glove to the red “Thriller” and military-style jackets Jackson wore with such panache.

Like the costumes, the sets (by Derek Lane) and cinematic projections (Peter Nigrini) create a world of ever-shifting color and light, and an environment that feels as elaborate as an actual Jackson tour’s massive production numbers.

Wheeldon and Nottage also take great care to acknowledge Jackson’s varied influences: Bob Fosse slinks across the stage. Fred Astaire glides by in top hat and tux. The acrobatic tap dancing of the Nicholas Brothers turn the stage into a space of jubilation.

“MJ” doesn’t truly delve who Michael Jackson was beyond an iconic, perfectionist, performer. It’s a pop psychology portrait of an icon that avoids really digging deep or dealing with the most hellacious headlines and accusations Jackson faced. It’s irresistible, nonetheless.

• As tour begins in Chicago, team behind Michael Jackson musical wants to be startin’ somethin’ great

"MJ" highlights Michael Jackson's creative genius in musical coming to Denver Center for the Performing Arts

I n 10 days the creative genius of Michael Jackson will be brought back to life at the Buell Theatre, as the Denver Center for the Performing Arts hosts "MJ" the musical for two and a half weeks.

"MJ" is a two-and-a-half-hour musical that uses Jackson's greatest hits to tell a story of how he created the Dangerous World Tour. However, the cast and crew do a great job at also telling the story of how Jackson developed a dedication to perfecting his craft.

"It is really inspiring to have art that outlasts you," said Roman Banks, the actor who was cast to portray Jackson in the national tour.

Banks said he has grown an even greater respect for Jackson through his role and has learned so much about why Jackson was so committed to entertaining to the highest level.

"He was so intentional with what he wore, how he wore his hair, how he moved and talked, the way he staged performances, the way he choreographed," Banks said. "Everything was so geniusly (sic) interpreted to not only serve the current time he was living in, but the time he wouldn't be here after."

CBS News Colorado's Dillon Thomas traveled to Salt Lake City for an exclusive advanced preview of the show. Afterward, he spent his day with the cast and crew backstage. There, all of those who spoke with Thomas talked about how they grew up not only listening to Jackson, but also imitating his dancing and singing.

Now that they are cast in the production, they said they've learned how well-rounded of an artist Jackson was.

"You can't just be a one trick pony," one of the cast members said.

Backstage the cast is consistently striving to make sure they imitate Jackson as best as possible for the audiences, something the production also educates audiences about.

"(MJ) talked about wanting to perfect perfection," Banks said. "It is continuing to be excellent, never settling."

"We are limitless, and MJ strived to be limitless to the end of time," said Jamaal Fields-Green, the alternate for MJ. "His fanbase is massive. So, there is a lot of expectations from people who come to see the show."

Those who are part of the show said they hoped audiences would walk away from the musical with a better understanding of Jackson's commitment to his art, while also feeling like they had a night to relive Jackson's music on stage.

"(The story is about) being the best artist, but also being the best person you can be in whatever you do. Giving it your all and owing it to yourself and others to give it 100%," Fields-Green said. "You get to see the human behind the icon. It really humanizes Michael. Of course, you are going to have the music, of course you are going to have the dance. But the story of it all is what pulls the audience in. To completely see who this juggernaut was. And he was a human being at the end of the day."

MJ plays the Buell Theatre April 10 through the 28. For more information on tickets from the DCPA visit the officials website . 

CBS News Colorado is a proud partner of the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.

Michael Jackson's Kids Make Rare Joint Appearance Amid Grandmother Katherine's Legal Woes

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Michael Jackson's three children came together for a rare public appearance to honor their late father's memory.

Prince Jackson , 27, Paris Jackson , 25, and Bigi Jackson , 22, were dressed to the nines as they walked the red carpet at the Prince Edward Theatre in London for a preview performance of MJ: The Musical on Wednesday.

Prince rocked a black suit with a burgundy button-down and a black tie, while his younger brother wore a black suit as well, but opted for a white dress shirt and no tie.

Paris, meanwhile, stunned in a copper colored gown with semi-sheer sleeves and a pleated skirt.

The public outing came in support of MJ: The Musical, based on the music of their world-famous father, and is based on the making of his Dangerous World Tour in 1992.

The appearance in London comes amid Bigi's ongoing legal battle with his grandmother, Katherine Jackson, over his father's estate.

As  ET previously reported , Katherine wants the estate to cover the legal fees she racked up in the process of appealing a judge's prior ruling that allowed the estate to move forward with an undisclosed business transaction.

Bigi had initially been on board with his grandmother, but ultimately sided with the estate to move forward with the business transaction. Katherine, however, decided to appeal the decision, and she now wants the estate to cover the legal expenses for said appeal.

For his part, Bigi wants the court to deny her request because, according to court documents, he "did not appeal the Court's ruling," while adding that "it was apparent that the Court was acting within its discretionary powers... the chances of a reversal on appeal were quite slim and Bigi did not wish to incur further expense in pursuing an appeal."

For more on the legal battle, check out the video below.

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Michael Jackson’s Son Bigi “Blanket” Jackson’s Rare Outing Will Make You Feel Old

Michael jackson's youngest son bigi "blanket" jackson looked so grown up when he was spotted at the movies in los angeles march 14..

The way Bigi Jackson  makes us feel... is really old. 

Michael Jackson 's youngest son, 22, stepped out for a trip to the movies in Los Angeles March 14, and his grown-up appearance will make you do a double take. 

For the outing, Bigi—whom the late King of Pop nicknamed "Blanket" as a kid—kept it casual in a  Star Wars  Darth Vader T-shirt and black athletic shorts to soak up the sunny California weather. He paired the look with Nike socks and sneakers, and tucked his long hair behind his ears as he headed out of the theater. 

But becoming a full-blown adult isn't Bigi's only accomplishment as of late: He's also a budding filmmaker. In fact, his brother Prince Jackson —who Michael shared with Debbie Rowe along with daughter  Paris Jackson , 25—recently praised Bigi for winning Best Drama at the Santa Monica Film Festival for his directorial and screenwriting debut, Rochelles .

"Bro is killing it!" Prince, 27, wrote in a Feb. 22 Instagram Story. "Chasing his dreams and winning awards."

Along with the sweet message, Prince also shared a photo of the pair at the film festival, with Bigi towering over his brother as he held his trophy. 

And while the snap showed that Bigi's appearance has changed a lot over the years, it also proved one thing has remained same: his dreams. After all, in an adorable clip of young Bigi from the 2012 documentary Jacksonology: Our Story , he said, "When I grow up, I want to be a director because it's fun."

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Bigi—who was only 7 years old when his dad died in 2009—went on to add that he loves to create "little movies when I'm at my house with cousins and friends and different things."

Keep reading for more photos of Bigi, Prince and Paris over the years:

Winning Awards

Bigi appears with his brother Prince and friends at the Santa Monica Film Festival in February 2024. Michael's youngest son had won the award for Best Drama for his short film  Rochelles , his directorial and screenwriting debut.

Prince and Bigi appear at their family's annual  Thriller Night celebration in 2022.

Prince and Paris attend the Michael Jackson Diamond Birthday Celebration at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.

Prince and Paris appear together at the 2022 Harold and Carole Pump Foundation Gala at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, Calif. in August 2022.

Prince and Paris appear in a YouTube video in 2021.

Prince and Bigi appear at their family's annual Thriller Night celebration in 2019.

The two pose at Prince Jackson's Heal LA and TLK Fusion Present The 2nd Annual Costume For A Cause at Jackson Family Home on Oct. 27, 2017.

Walking hand-in-hand, the two attend the mothers2mothers and The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation Benefit Dinner on October 24, 2017 in Beverly Hills, Calif.

Prince wrote, "It was an honor to be a part of @officialsiggyjackson wedding with my sis @parisjackson."

The sibling showed off their silly side over the summer on Instragram.

The trio of siblings arrived at the Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour in Los Angeles on January 27, 2012. 

Prince and Paris attend the hand and footprint ceremony at Graumann's Chinese Theater in Los Angeles January 26, 2012.

Honoring Dad

Bigi, Prince Jackson and Paris appear together at the hand and footprint ceremony.

The duo stood together as they attended the press conference for Goin' Back To Indiana: Can You Feel It at the Majestic Star Hotel Lakeshore Ballroom on August 29, 2012 in Gary, Indiana. 

On Aug. 30, 2012, the siblings attended the St. Paul Saints Vs. The Gary SouthShore RailCats baseball game at U.S. Steel Yard in their father's hometown of Gary, Indiana.

Dad's Memorial

The trio appeared on stage during the memorial service for their father at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on July 7, 2009.

The kids celebrate together with dad in this throwback pic shared by Prince.

Prince shared this family photo on what would have been Michael's 64th birthday on Instagram.

Prince, Paris and Bigi, then nicknamed Blanket, appear with their dad in this throwback pic the eldest of his children shared on what would have been his 64th birthday in 2022.

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Prince, Paris and Bigi Jackson Make Rare Red Carpet Appearance Together at 'MJ: The Musical': See Their Looks!

The trio honored their late father, Michael Jackson, in London on Wednesday

Alan Chapman/Dave Benett/Getty

Michael Jackson ’s three children made a rare red carpet appearance as a trio to honor their late father.

On Wednesday Prince , 27, Paris , 25 and Bigi , 22, looked all grown-up for the preview night of MJ: The Musical at the Prince Edward Theatre in London. 

The guys coordinated in classic black suits, but switched up how they styled each of theirs. Prince layered a maroon button-down shirt and glittery tie under his blazer. He also tied his hair back into a sleek bun. Bigi (formerly known as Blanket) wore a white shirt with a few of the top buttons left undone for a more casual vibe.

Paris, who recently hung out with Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney at Stella McCartney’s Paris Fashion Week show on March 4, wore a romantic rust colored dress with a pleated skirt and elegant sheer sleeves, as well as maroon heels. Her signature bohemian flair found its way into her jewelry — large hoop earrings and stacks of bracelets — and her soft wavy hairstyle.

Some of her chest, shoulder, hand and arm tattoos were also on display. (Paris shocked everyone when she arrived at the 2024 Grammys on Feb. 4 completely bare of body art after a Cover FX makeover hid all of her 80+ tattoos .)

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Prince and Paris, who were born to Jackson and his ex-wife Debbie Rowe, have made a couple of red carpet appearances together in the past couple of years. 

In June 2022, the two stepped out for the 75th Tony Awards dressed in monochromatic ensembles — she in a blush pink off-the-shoulder gown with gold detailing and he in an all-black suit with his long hair down.

The siblings joint appearance comes on the heels of Bigi  objecting in a court filing  to his grandmother Katherine Jackson using funds from the King of Pop's estate to pay her legal fees in an  ongoing dispute with the executors  over the singer's catalog sale to Sony. (The collection of songs is currently valued at $1.5 billion.)

Katherine hit back this week arguing that "the Executors cannot in good faith contend that the Estate does not have sufficient available funds to allow the Trust to make the requested payment," per the filing.

MJ: The Musical takes audiences inside Jackson's creative process, depicting the singer, who died on June 25, 2009 at 50, rehearsing for his 1992 Dangerous world tour. It features over 25 of the singer's biggest hits and is directed and choreographed by Tony Award winner Christopher Wheeldon with a book by Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage and stars Myles Frost, who reprises his role as Jackson during the musical's stint in London.

As the production hits the West End, the cast and crew behind the King of Pop’s biopic are filming ahead of the movie’s release on April 18, 2025. Jackson’s nephew, Jafaar Jackson, was seen on set in L.A. wearing his uncle’s varsity jacket , which is only one out of many of the looks fan can expect to see from the uncanny transformation.

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One of Michael Jackson’s iconic ‘Thriller’ jackets is up for auction

The item is expected to fetch between $300,000 and $500,000

One of Michael Jackson ’s original ‘Thriller’ jackets from 1983 is available to buy now via an online auction.

The red jacket with black trim, red lining, ribbed shoulders and collar, stud fasteners, with belts to waist and sleeves, was originally owned by Jackson’s manager Frank DiLeo from 1983 to 1989.

It was then sold at Sotheby’s in 1993, and is now available for bids until April 12 via the ‘Gotta Have Rock and Roll’ memorabilia site here .

The minimum bid for the item is $100,000 (£79,000), and it is listed as having an estimated sale value of $300,000-$500,000 (£240,000-£400,000).

The item’s listing states that Jackson wore the jacket for promotional events, although it is not the particular article worn by the singer during the shooting of the ‘Thriller’ video.

That jacket itself went to auction in Los Angeles in 2011, just two year’s after Jackson’s death. It was sold to the Texan gold trader Milton Verret for $1.8million, who said he intended to use the jacket to raise money for children’s hospitals around the world.

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Late last year, Jackson’s estate claimed that over two dozen unreleased master tapes of the late singer’s music that were up for auction from the same site were “unquestionably stolen” .

The items, claimed to date back to 1994, were estimated to sell for up to $4000 (£3100).

However, Jackson estate attorney Jonathan Steinsapir ordered Gotta Have Rock and Roll to “cease and desist from any and all efforts to further auction these tapes” and immediately return them.”

According to the letter, Steinsapir wrote: “Neither Michael Jackson nor his record company, Sony Music Entertainment, ever sold or gave away master tapes from his recording sessions at The Hit Factory (or anywhere else). These tapes were unquestionably stolen or otherwise taken without authorisation. Accordingly, they are the property of the Jackson Estate.”

In other Jackson news, it was announced in January 2023 that Michael Jackson’s own nephew, Jaafar Jackson , will play the King of Pop in the biopic of his life, Michael . Jaafar is the son of Michael’s brother  Jermaine . This will be the 27-year-old’s film debut, although he has appeared in the Lifetime reality show  The Jacksons: Next Generation .

The role of Michael’s father  Joe Jackson will be filled by Colman Domingo.  Domingo has been nominated for an  Oscar  this year for his portrayal of civil rights leader Bayard Rustin in  Rustin , and he has also appeared in  Euphoria ,  Selma  and  If Beale Street Could Talk .

Miles Teller  will play John Branca, Michael’s manager after his father, and the man who was instrumental in launching his solo career. Branca is also listed as an executive producer on the film. Teller is known for his appearances in  Whiplash ,  Fantastic Four  and  Top Gun: Maverick .

Jackson’s son, Bigi, aka Blanket, has also taken his grandmother to court in an attempt to prevent her from using funds from his father’s estate as part of a legal battle.

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