The Greatest Show Ever Would Never Reach the Stage
bec
Posts: 6,387
This was Michael's creative process with us. He was so looking forward to what was coming next.
Michael always loved to push technology, to push the creative team to think outside the box and bring him ideas that were fresh and original and unique.
Michael kept saying, "we have to open so big, we have to be so brave when we open, the audience has to wonder, 'How are they going to top that?'
And somewhere in the middle of the show, when they least expect it, we have to come racing around the corner like a roller-coaster and hit them hard again.
I don't care if they're even applauding. They have to have their jaws on the floor."
His collaborators say it is important to understand why Michael agreed to return to the stage. It isn't only for the reasons most people have supposed. Michael's main motivation, according to the man who got him to say yes? His children. He wanted to show Prince, Paris,and Blanket something truly precious, something they'd never been able to see before.
After the press conference announcing the show(singular), Randy asked him, "Why now? Why did you decide to do this now?" Michael replied, "You know. It's funny. I took 12 years off to have a family. My kids are now old enough to appreciate what I do, and I'm still young enough to do it.
At the last rehearsal, June 24th at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Michael looked great. He was energetic and excited. He seemed at ease with the songs and the dance moves. To his inner circle, he exuded a real we-can-do-this confidence.
"we all had goosebumps," Randy says, "He was so incredible. At the end of the night, he put his arm around me and said, "Thanks for taking me this far. I can take it from here. I know I can do this."
Frank DiLeo:
"I was lucky enough to work on Michael's Victory and Bad tours, which were two of his best. I never saw Michael work harder then he did in preparing for This Is It. He had that spark in his eye, and that glow on his face, that I had seen so many times before. He was completely dedicated to creating something extraordinary that not only he would be proud of, but his fans and especially his children would be proud of."
Performing was his fuel. It was his food. "As long as I look out and see those fans, I'll be fine. No one has to worry about me getting through the performance."
Randy Phillips:
"London was only Phase One. The original deal was for 31 shows, 10 more then Prince did. The demand was enormous, 1.6 million pre-sales- I said, 'Mike, we'll not have any tickets for the general public.' I asked, 'What will you do?' He said 'I'll do 50'."
Kenny Ortega:
"He said, 'Kenny, if we do our jobs right, people should leave the arena and not be able to turn this off.'"
Randy Phillips:
"Since his death, Michael has been portrayed as weak, frail, manipulated. He was none of that. If anything, he was the manipulator. Healthy and in charge of everything, he knew just what he was doing. He was a clever business guy. He used to drive me crazy, but I loved him. We put together the press conference in London. The world had never seen anything like this for the announcement of a live performance. Three hundred and thirty news crews. Three thousand fans in the lobby. (333)
We had to cut it off at 3,000. It could have been 10,000, it was that crazy.
My comment here: Much like MJ, past tense useage is incorrect in that last comment.
Michael always loved to push technology, to push the creative team to think outside the box and bring him ideas that were fresh and original and unique.
Michael kept saying, "we have to open so big, we have to be so brave when we open, the audience has to wonder, 'How are they going to top that?'
And somewhere in the middle of the show, when they least expect it, we have to come racing around the corner like a roller-coaster and hit them hard again.
I don't care if they're even applauding. They have to have their jaws on the floor."
His collaborators say it is important to understand why Michael agreed to return to the stage. It isn't only for the reasons most people have supposed. Michael's main motivation, according to the man who got him to say yes? His children. He wanted to show Prince, Paris,and Blanket something truly precious, something they'd never been able to see before.
After the press conference announcing the show(singular), Randy asked him, "Why now? Why did you decide to do this now?" Michael replied, "You know. It's funny. I took 12 years off to have a family. My kids are now old enough to appreciate what I do, and I'm still young enough to do it.
At the last rehearsal, June 24th at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Michael looked great. He was energetic and excited. He seemed at ease with the songs and the dance moves. To his inner circle, he exuded a real we-can-do-this confidence.
"we all had goosebumps," Randy says, "He was so incredible. At the end of the night, he put his arm around me and said, "Thanks for taking me this far. I can take it from here. I know I can do this."
Frank DiLeo:
"I was lucky enough to work on Michael's Victory and Bad tours, which were two of his best. I never saw Michael work harder then he did in preparing for This Is It. He had that spark in his eye, and that glow on his face, that I had seen so many times before. He was completely dedicated to creating something extraordinary that not only he would be proud of, but his fans and especially his children would be proud of."
Performing was his fuel. It was his food. "As long as I look out and see those fans, I'll be fine. No one has to worry about me getting through the performance."
Randy Phillips:
"London was only Phase One. The original deal was for 31 shows, 10 more then Prince did. The demand was enormous, 1.6 million pre-sales- I said, 'Mike, we'll not have any tickets for the general public.' I asked, 'What will you do?' He said 'I'll do 50'."
Kenny Ortega:
"He said, 'Kenny, if we do our jobs right, people should leave the arena and not be able to turn this off.'"
Randy Phillips:
"Since his death, Michael has been portrayed as weak, frail, manipulated. He was none of that. If anything, he was the manipulator. Healthy and in charge of everything, he knew just what he was doing. He was a clever business guy. He used to drive me crazy, but I loved him. We put together the press conference in London. The world had never seen anything like this for the announcement of a live performance. Three hundred and thirty news crews. Three thousand fans in the lobby. (333)
We had to cut it off at 3,000. It could have been 10,000, it was that crazy.
My comment here: Much like MJ, past tense useage is incorrect in that last comment.
Comments
Thanks, Bec. It's good to read through old information again. Doesn't it seem odd that Randy would ask that question AFTER the press conference? They obviously had met over negotiations probably more than once. If I were the one in charge this question would have been one of my first before signing the the contract, not after it was all signed and in motion. Maybe it's just me but this seems out of order.
The use of "show" (singular) is more interesting to me because I think we are watching the "show" right now and that would indicate that MJ was announcing the hoax at the O2, not TII. See you in July=show starts in July. Just looking at it a different way. I mean, the show really did start then didn't it? The media gave MJ a few days grace period, with 24hrs for a respectful mourning period that takes us to Friday afternoon the 26th, which officially became the weekend and the end of the 15 minute news cycle for the most part. Nothing much gets reported that's hot and gossipy until Monday morning, rather we had tributes and such on the news reports. So then Monday morning rolls around, which was July 1st, and that's when the vultures descended if you remember. Happy July 1st morning! We have a circus.
Remember?
WOW! Great insight, Bec! WOW! Talk about turning something upside down and finding out it all makes COMPLETE sense!
That being said, I still wonder though if Michael could ever have know how much outpouring of love would come to him from his "death"....despite the elaborate plans he made for years that were set into motion on June 25, 2009.....could even HE have predicted the amazing turn of events since that fateful date? Even when you factor in the "vultures", who woulda thunk that so many people worldwide would be SO affected by his losing him? Who else ON EARTH could inspire an entire prison population in the Phillipines to convert themselves into a "Dancin' Machine", all coming together to pay tribute?..... or groups of fans around the world pulling off Flash Mobs to his music? Had the world even heard of such a thing before? Here was a man who had literally given himself to the world from a very young age and reached the pinnacle of global fame, adoration and unprecedented impact who had tragically spiraled into this Persona Non Grata, a nomad, a man without a country, if you will...for such a long, long time...how utterly GRATIFYING it must be to him to find out how much he was still adored by so many! It really makes my heart nearly burst to know that he may have underestimated his legacy....he truly is unlike any other man before him or probably after...what a life story....it HAS to have happened for an important reason....a person with this kind of power is destined for greatness...and my feeling is that the greatness we've already witnessed is just the tip of the iceberg!
We have to view every bit of this hoax from every angle...sometimes the obvious is right under our noses....we just have to look at it the right way.
I have always liked this statement by MJ, to me it says death hoax! His children would not necessarily have to be a certain age to appreciate a concert, but they would to understand why their father was pretending to be dead!