This is it

I am a grown man in a patriarchal society. I have been raised to believe a man who shows emotion is weak. The bravado of the ‘gangsta rap’ music I grew up to didn’t help much either.

So maybe it is a good thing the cinema was empty at 9.30am last Friday morning, when I was the lone figure watching Michael Jackson’s This Is It. I had to fight back the tears as I watched a master at work. There will never be another.

The man

Seen as weird - ‘freakish’ even - most of his adult life, This Is It gives a different perspective of Michael Jackson. He comes off as a regular hard working man who just wants to get the best out of people – especially himself.

There is the pale skin, reconstructed face and funny – outlandish even – wardrobe choices to contend with but all that is old news. Anyone still stuck on that has missed the point of this experience.

His global influence is captured during the opening sequence when a dancer from Australia tells of how he heard about auditions just two days before they held and left everything to fly out to the States. This is what Michael meant to people.

The method

The man’s attention to detail is amazing. He’d beat box sounds that seemed mechanical and stand with instrumentalists until they got what he wanted. He was a part of everything.

This hands-on dedication and quest for perfection is inspirational but on the flip side, could be taken as egoism by professionals who are supposed to have mastered their craft. However, you get the sense that the latter hardly – or never – happened during these rehearsals.

Michael was 50 when he died but he was still at the top of his game. At certain points, he did seem to have lost a step, with some ‘old man’ steps even sneaking in but that could be attributed to saving himself for the 50 shows ahead.

Regardless, it all flowed naturally. Walking in on a dress rehearsal for “They Don’t Care About Us”, he joins in, re-choreographing the movements right there. He was just always in ‘go’ mode.

He let them know where to hold a beat; where to slow the tempo; where to hit high notes; where to dim the lights; everything. He was involved in every process and it became clearer why he was the world’s greatest entertainer.

At 50, he could have slowed it down, he could have cut corners, we would have just been happy to see him on stage again but MJ was going the whole nine yards with this one. All notes would be sung in the proper pitch and every dance sequence would be seamless because that’s how Mr. Jackson wanted it.

The magic

The word best describes Michael. The stage, the costumes, the video montages and the moves all came together to produce the fascinating spectacle that never was.

Thankfully, a few rehearsals were conducted in full garb to give a feel for what was in the offing. If nothing else, This Is It highlights Michael Jackson the showman.

His set was to feature an updated version of “Thriller” with the filming of a fresh graveyard scene that was to be integrated into the performance.

“Smooth Criminal” did away with the futuristic visitations of Moonwalker and went instead for vintage gangster movie sequencing, which featured Michael superimposed in classic black and white movies being chased by goons.

For Michael, it was all about maximum entertainment and satisfaction; for himself and his fans. He would do whatever was necessary to put on a show, something that had never been seen before.

He danced and professional dancers watched in awe.Professional musicians relied on his ear for that right note or melody. He directed his director. And none of it was in an ‘I’m better than you’ type way, it was just Michael. He was, pardon me, is music married to perfection. He is the border between fantasy and reality.

Watching Michael Jackson, with the knowledge that he is no longer with us, in the last days of his life, doing what he knew best, for us, his adoring fans, I can’t help but think that God figured our cruel world was undeserving of such genius.

Especially with the judgment and ridicule we subjected him to. Like Moses and the Promised Land, he just let us see what we were missing. And indeed, ladies and gentlemen, This Is It!

We love you Michael but not as much as you loved us. Thanks for the memories.