Performer perfects Michael Jackson’s moves for Rio show

Ice —- he goes by only one name —- appears as the late pop icon in the show "2 Kings" at the Rio, 3700 W. Flamingo Road. Transforming himself means spending more time at his makeup table than he does on stage.

"Nothing about me is real," the Summerlin-area resident said while backstage in his dressing room. "My natural speaking voice is nothing like his. I hear people swear up and down that I’m lip-syncing, which is a compliment, but it’s also a little depressing when you put all this work into your actual vocals."

He separates his role from his real life so much that his contract stipulates that the media use only his stage name. Reporters aren’t allowed backstage until he’s in full makeup. Only Charlie Franks, who stars as Elvis Presley in "2 Kings," gets to see Ice before he transforms himself. Franks recalled seeing a write-up on the Internet that tried to determine Ice’s ethnicity.

"One of the people who came … said, ‘We were trying to figure out if it was a man or a woman and whether he was white or black,’ " Franks said. "And it turned out, (speculating) he was an Asian woman."

The role is a strenuous one with nearly nonstop movement. There was the Moonwalk, signature poses, robot moves and gravity-defying footwork that had him gliding across the floor.

"I don’t work out during the week," Ice said. "This is all the cardio I get, doing this."

His prosthetic nose has to be glued on so securely that it takes Goo Gone to remove it.

His theater training and hours of studying the legendary singer paid off when he took the stage. Ice was so convincing that audience members abandoned their seats to take ones closer to the stage and leaned forward in their chairs.

Arn Lieberman, who lives near Vail, Colo., was at the show April 20.

"He does a really good job," he said. "He’s really trying to impersonate Michael Jackson, where I think (others) just sing the songs."

His wife, Barbara, was more blunt.

"He took your breath away," she said.

Ice may be only 26, but he’s been emulating the King of Pop for years. He even grew up in the same town. It all began in middle school when his show choir teacher had him do "Thriller."

"I had no idea what the song was," he said. "I thought the lyrics were stupid. They didn’t make a lot of sense. I went home and looked it up online, and I learned a couple dance moves. And when I did it, people were in absolute shock. And I started getting noticed, and (someone) asked, ‘Can you come do this for my son’s birthday party?’ and I said, ‘Sure.’ I’m 12, 13, I thought, ‘I can do that.’ "

Ice said he was paid $150.

"I’m a kid in middle school," he explained. "So I started doing it, and people in Chicago would start (calling), and after a while, I’d start missing school on Fridays and fly out for the weekend, doing gigs, making $1,000 a week … I flew to Houston, New York, Tennessee, Florida, California."

His mother, Penelope, traveled with him.

"I grew up in a Christian household, very sheltered, so I had no chance to get into the Michael Jackson fad," he said. "My exposure wasn’t a lot, so when I’d see people go crazy over this, I’d go, ‘Why?’ I didn’t get it. I was watching him, and I started getting intrigued, so the admiration began."

Before "2 Kings," Ice was in "Legends in Concert" 2010 and 2011.

He has a degree in theater with a minor in music from Columbia College Chicago. He said his "passion is music and singing and acting. You know, my own, though. … Eventually I do want people to see the real me and see the person under the makeup and get to know me, versus the Michael Jackson character. Until that happens, I’m more than happy to (turn into Jackson) and get up on stage and entertain people."

"2 Kings" is performed in the Rio’s Crown Theater at 5:30 p.m. nightly except Mondays. The show will be dark on Sunday.

Tickets are $39.95, and VIP seating is $69.95. For more information, call 777-7777.

Contact Summerlin/Summerlin South View reporter Jan Hogan at jhogan@viewnews.com or 387-2949.