Cirque du Soleil debuts Michael Jackson tribute ‘The Immortal’ in Montreal

In California, a courtroom debate rages over how Michael Jackson died. But Sunday, on a cold, rainy night on the opposite side of North America, Cirque du Soleil set out to resurrect his heart.

The heart -- as in the red Valentine kind -- was a dominant image of "The Immortal," Cirque's sports arena tribute to Jackson that bowed to a capacity hometown crowd at the Bell Centre in Montreal, the company's headquarter city.

Jackson was a known fan of Cirque du Soleil and took in many of the company's Las Vegas-based titles, including "Mystere" with his children in 2008. "I think it's a perfect match," Cirque co-founder and chief executive Guy Laliberte told reporters on the red carpet before the show. "This guy came from the same planet that we're coming from."

On Cirque's planet, however, that means strange sites such as (a costumed actor as) Jackson's pet chimp, Bubbles, as the dee-jay, spinning tracks from an aerial pod as aerialists performed underneath.

It also meant a break-dancing mime and a rockin' female cellist with a bare midriff. And a childhood representation of Jackson giving one of those red valentine hearts away after coasting to the stage in a hot-air balloon. The hearts even lit up on the chests of menacing robot figures who marched down the stage for "They Don't Care About Us."

The venture in cooperation with Jackson's estate will tour for two years, including a Dec. 3-27 stint at the Mandalay Bay Events Center. A different incarnation will eventually settle into the theater now hosting "The Lion King" in 2013.

"This is the biggest thing we've ever done," Laliberte told reporters before the show. "This guy was so big. Not only in a certain generation but the entire span of generations."

The arena tour has seen record pre-sales, he said. "When we announced this project our Internet site crashed because there were so many people trying to get information."

The product that awaits them, at least in its debut, is one in which Cirque's acrobatics take a backseat to Jackson's music, recreations of his inimitable dance moves and sometimes spoken-word recordings of his own voice. Crowd reaction was strong for segments that most closely matched their source video, such as zoot-suited gangsters on a nightclub set in "Smooth Criminal."

"The Immortal" embraced every aspect of the pop legend's legacy, from a whimsical depiction of '70s era Jackson 5 to an environmental message in "Earth Song" and a dance sequence that paid homage to all his show business influences from ballet to tap.

The tribute also ventures far from the greatest hits and aims for poignant moments. All human performers vanish during footage of Jackson as a boy performing "I'll Be There" on the giant video panels.

The gates of his Neverland estate and a symbolic "Giving Tree" from the ranch were among the many show elements representing Jackson's loss of a normal childhood in the show designed for sports arenas.

The live band was in the hands of Greg Phillinganes, a musical collaborator with Jackson in life. "It's not like this is a career move. It's a labor of love ... to maintain Michael's legacy, Phillinganes told reporters on the red carpet.

Asked if he felt the pressure of Jackson's brothers and children attending the tour debut, Phillinganes answered, "We put the press on ourselves. It's not like, 'Oh, the family's here. We better get it right.' "

Phillinganes noted that on one visit to Cirque's headquarters, Jackson "got stuck in the costume department and didn't want to leave."

The red carpet festivities were mostly limited to Jackson's family and the show's creative team, with one odd exception: Acoustic-folk leaning singer-songwriter Rufus Wainright.

A friend of the show's costumers, he said he had never covered a Michael Jackson song in one of his own shows.

"But I'm from Montreal originally so it makes sense. I usually come here for a hockey game."

Contact reporter Mike Weatherford at mweatherford@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0288.