"This is It"
Last night I saw the cheapest concert I think I'll ever see. Lena and I met for our postponed date. We got our mochi crunch popcorn and settled in for the two hour MJ fest that is "This is It". I really believe that everyone is a fan of Michael Jackson. People will say they aren't, but they really are. Just like it's "cool" to dog on corporate America, Simon Cowell, and "The Real Housewives"...but secretly (or not so secretly as is the case with me) people love these things. Thrive on them even. It's the same with Michael Jackson. Whether you knew him as the little kid fronting "The Jackson 5", the 80's pop icon, the troubled adult with strange habits, or through all the other famous musicians and dancers he inspired along the way---everyone has something to say about him. The audience in the theater proved that Michael bridges generation, cultural, and economic gaps with his toe tapping rhythms. Seated behind us was a grandma and her grand kids. In front, a young couple. Beside us, teenagers. And of course, the thirtysomethings (that'd be me and Lena). From the minute he took the screen I knew I was watching history. The moves, the perfection, the pure joy his team expressed in their interviews---it's really a shame this final concert tour won't be happening...although I think they could send the dancers on a world tour (they were just that good). I am hoping that the business and money making machines behind this production decide to put this on DVD...maybe a television special on the anniversary of his death. It should be made more available for all to enjoy and witness the amazingness that is MJ. Half way through I wanted to wave my lighter (I know these days it's a cell phone...but you get the idea). I felt like I should be trying to sneak pictures...just like at a real concert. The real proof that Michael was a musical legend and genius is the fact that people...masses of them, worldwide know him. Play the intro to "Beat It" in Utah, China, or Samoa---they will all KNOW it. Masses paid tribute with the news of his passing. Masses mourned. Masses are going to see his final concert at the theater...and it's just a montage of rehearsals. Rehearsals by a supposedly fragile and ill man...could have fooled me. Not one moment of him being unprofessional. Not one moment when you couldn't literally see the music dance through his body. A performer like no other...this was captured in a fitting tribute to the King of Pop. This is it.
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