Michael Jackson Dangerous World Tour

General Information

Following the huge success of the Bad World Tour, Michael’s first solo world tour where he earned $125 million, Michael stated that he would not tour again, and would instead concentrate on making films and records. On February 14, 1992 in a Pepsi press conference, it was announced that Michael would be touring again. The announcement coincided with a new deal between Micahel and Pepsi, with a reported $20 million deal to sponsor the tour.

“The only reason I am going on tour is to raise funds for the newly-formed Heal the World Foundation, an international children’s charity, that I am spearheading to assist children and the ecology. My goal is to gross $100 million by Christmas 1993. I urge every corporation and individual who cares about this planet and the future of the children to help raise money for the charity. The Heal the World Foundation will contribute funds to paediatric AIDS in honour of my friend, Ryan White. I am looking forward to this tour because it will allow me to devote time to visiting children all around the world, as well as spread the message of global love, in the hope that others will be moved to do their share to help heal the world. ”

The stage used for the tour required more time to set up than before. This was seen in the tour schedule where a considerable number of concerts were one-stop performances. Equipment, which in total weighed over 100 tons, required two Boeing 747 jet aircrafts and multiple lorries to transport to each venue.

Before the tour began, Michael and his band (which had changed little since the Bad Tour) rehearsed, where the footage has been leaked onto the Internet. However, the exact date and location of the performances is not clear. The rehearsals included performances of “Remember the Time” and “The Way You Make Me Feel”.

For the tour’s design, Michael was influenced by the uniform worn in the military. For “Jam”, the first performance on the tour’s set list, Michael wore two variations of a faux-military uniform. Costumes worn for the performances of “Workin’ Day and Night”, “Bad”, as well as his later HIStory World Tour, were examples of this. During the first leg, the uniform included grey-green jacket with one bolted strap which both sparkled with multicolour. For the second leg, Michael wore a black uniform with three gold bolted straps, one going from his collar to his waist in one direction and the other two in another, he also used this costume at the Super Bowl XXVII halftime show in 1993.

The tour also incorporated several stage illusions. Each concert on the tour ended by a stuntman, Kinnie Gibson, who secretly switched with Michael as he kneels down a trap hole in the stage, dressed in a full astronaut costume (therefore appearing as Michael), flying out of the arena using a rocket belt. Each concert also began with a illusion-like stunt dubbed “the Toaster” in which following the ringing of bells and the roar of a panther, Michael catapults on to the stage through a trap door in the front, sending off pyrotechnics and electrifying the crowd. A similar version of “the Toaster” stunt was used in the beginning of Michael’s Super Bowl XXVII Halftime Show performance in 1993. In the first leg, the transition from Thriller to Billie Jean was another stage trick. When Michael walks into a small space between two set “buildings,” he secretly switches with a werewolf-masked backup dancer while he changes for Billie Jean. The backup dancer posing as Michael is placed into a coffin which disappears when dancers posing as skeletons and zombies drape a cloth over the coffin and pull it out. Michael appears fully dressed for Billie Jean in the upper stage level as it lowers down. This stage illusion was removed in the second leg of the Dangerous Tour.

The original set list for the first leg featured songs “The Way You Make Me Feel” and “Bad”, but these were taken out after the eighth concert in Oslo, Norway. However, these two songs were returned for the first four performances in Tokyo, Japan.

During the Europe leg in 1992, MTV was allowed to film backstage and broadcast six fifteen minute episodes on the tour. The show was called Dangerous Diaries and presented by Sonya Saul. Michael sold the film rights to his concert in Bucharest on October 1, 1992 to HBO for $21 million. The deal was the highest ever paid for a live concert. The concert was broadcast live on radio and shown on television across 61 countries, and received the highest TV ratings in the history of the HBO network, it later received the highest ratings in cable history, in which Michael was honoured with a CableACE Award. In 2004, the concert was released on DVD as part of Michael’s Ultimate Collection box set and in 2005, was released as a separate DVD known as Live in Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour. The footage used on the released version is actually a mixture of footage from Bucharest – The BBC broadcast, HBO live telecast (pay per view) and the HBO TV version, however for the DVD shots of many fans were included to give the show a feeling of hype.

On December 31, 1992 during the New Year’s Eve concert in Tokyo, Japan, Slash made a special guest appearance for the performance of “Black or White”. Slash also made a special appearance for “Black or White” at the concert in Oviedo, Spain that September.

The day the third leg began on August 24, 1993 in Bangkok, the accusations of child sexual abuse against Michael was made public. Three days beforehand, a search warrant was issued, allowing police to search Michael’s Neverland Ranch, Santa Ynez Valley, California.

On August 29, Michael performed in front of 47,000 on his 35th birthday in Singapore.

During his visit to Moscow in September, Michael came up with the song Stranger in Moscow which would be released on his 1995 album HIStory. It was during a time when Michael felt very alone, far away from his family and friends, yet every night throughout his tours fans would stay by his hotel and support him.

Before the tour was canceled, Michael was scheduled to perform in Dubai but the country barred Michael from appearing there after unsigned pamphlets were circulated in Dubai urging a boycott of the concerts. The tour was to last longer, but it was the huge pressure from the child abuse accusations (which was generating huge media and press attention), as well as various health problems and injuries that made Michael end the tour in Mexico. This left out possible planned concerts in Australia and the United States, where Michael would not tour until his later HIStory Tour in 1996 and 1997.

Performers

Lead performer, Vocals, Dance, Choreographer
Michael Jackson

Dancers
LaVelle Smith, Eddie Garcia, Randy Allaire, Michelle Berube, Jamie King, Taco Falcon, Yoko Sumida, Cris Judd

Band members
Music Director: Greg Phillinganes
Assistant Musical Director: Kevin Dorsey
Keyboards & Synthesizers: Greg Phillinganes, Brad Buxer
Drums: Ricky Lawson
Lead Guitar: Jennifer Batten
Rhythm Guitar: David Williams
Bass Guitar: Don Boyette
Vocal Director: Kevin Dorsey
Vocals: Kevin Dorsey, Darryl Phinnessee, Dorian Holley, Siedah Garrett

Setlist

First Leg

Carmina Burana “Brace Yourself” Introduction
“Jam”
“Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’”
“Human Nature”
“Smooth Criminal”
“I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” (Duet with backup vocalist Siedah Garrett)
“She’s out of My Life”
Jackson 5 Medley
“I Want You Back”
“The Love You Save”
“I’ll Be There”
“Thriller”
“Billie Jean”
Black or White “Panther” Video Interlude
“Workin’ Day and Night”
“Beat It”
“Someone Put Your Hand Out” Instrumental Interlude
“Will You Be There”
“The Way You Make Me Feel” (June 27 – July 15, December 12–19, 1992)
“Bad” (June 27 – July 15, December 12–19, 1992)
“Black or White”
“We Are the World” Video Interlude
“Heal the World”
“Man in the Mirror”
Rocket Man Finale

Second Leg

Carmina Burana “Brace Yourself” Introduction
“Jam”
“Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’”
“Human Nature”
“Smooth Criminal”
“I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” (Duet with backup vocalist Siedah Garrett)
“She’s out of My Life”
Motown Medley:
“I Want You Back”
“The Love You Save”
“I’ll Be There”
“Thriller”
“Billie Jean”
Black or White “Panther” Interlude
“Beat It”
“Someone Put Your Hand Out” Instrumental Interlude
“Will You Be There”
“Dangerous” (Last few concerts only)
“Black or White”
“We Are the World” Video Interlude
“Heal the World”
“Man in the Mirror”
Rocket Man Finale

Televised Concerts

All concerts were professionally filmed by Nocturne Productions, Inc. which filmed all of Michael’s tours and private affairs. Just one concert, from Bucharest on October 1, 1992 was broadcast on television across the world. This was released officially on DVD called Live in Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour.

Tour Schedule

1992 Leg

Date, City and Country – Venue
06/27/92 Munich, Germany – Olympiastadion
06/30/92 Rotterdam, Netherlands – Feijenoord Stadion
07/01/92 Rotterdam, Netherlands – Feijenoord Stadion
07/04/92 Rome, Italy – Stadio Flaminio
07/06/92 Monza, Italy – Stadio Brianteo
07/07/92 Monza, Italy – Stadio Brianteo
07/11/92 Cologne, Germany – Müngersdorfer Stadium
07/15/92 Oslo, Norway – Valle Hovin
07/17/92 Stockholm, Sweden – Stockholms Stadion
07/18/92 Stockholm, Sweden – Stockholms Stadion
07/20/92 Copenhagen, Denmark – Gentofte Stadion
07/22/92 Werchter, Belgium – Werchter Festival Park
07/25/92 Dublin, Ireland – Lansdowne Road
07/30/92 London, England – Wembley Stadium
07/31/92 London, England – Wembley Stadium
08/05/92 Cardiff, Wales – Cardiff Arms Park
08/08/92 Bremen, Germany – Weserstadion
08/10/92 Hamburg, Germany – Volksparkstadion
08/13/92 Hamelin, Germany – Weserberglandstadion
08/16/92 Leeds, England – Roundhay Park
08/18/92 Glasgow, Scotland – Glasgow Green
08/20/92 London, England – Wembley Stadium
08/22/92 London, England – Wembley Stadium
08/23/92 London, England – Wembley Stadium
08/26/92 Vienna, Austria – Praterstadion
08/28/92 Frankfurt, Germany – Waldstadion
08/30/92 Ludwigshafen, Germany – Südweststadion
09/02/92 Bayreuth, Germany – Volkstadion
09/04/92 Berlin, Germany – Friedrich Ludwig Jahn Sportpark
09/08/92 Lausanne, Switzerland – Stade Olympique de la Pontaise
09/13/92 Paris, France – Hippodrome de Vincennes
09/16/92 Toulouse, France – Stade de Toulouse
09/18/92 Barcelona, Spain – Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys
09/21/92 Oviedo, Spain – Estadio Carlos Tartiere
09/22/92 Madrid, Spain – Vicente Calderón Stadium
09/26/92 Lisbon, Portugal – José Alvalade Stadium
10/01/92 Bucharest, Romania – Lia Manoliu Stadium
12/12/92 Tokyo, Japan – Tokyo Dome
12/14/92 Tokyo, Japan – Tokyo Dome
12/17/92 Tokyo, Japan – Tokyo Dome
12/19/92 Tokyo, Japan – Tokyo Dome
12/22/92 Tokyo, Japan – Tokyo Dome
12/24/92 Tokyo, Japan – Tokyo Dome
12/30/92 Tokyo, Japan – Tokyo Dome
12/31/92 Tokyo, Japan – Tokyo Dome

1993 Leg

Date, City and Country – Venue
08/24/93 Bangkok, Thailand – Suphachalasai Stadium
08/27/93 Bangkok, Thailand – Suphachalasai Stadium
08/29/93 Singapore, Singapore – Singapore National Stadium
09/01/93 Singapore, Singapore – Singapore National Stadium
09/04/93 Taipei, Taiwan – Taipei Municipal Stadium
09/06/93 Taipei, Taiwan – Taipei Municipal Stadium
09/10/93 Fukuoka, Japan – Fukuoka Dome
09/11/93 Fukuoka, Japan – Fukuoka Dome
09/15/93 Moscow, Russia – Luzhniki Stadium
09/19/93 Tel Aviv, Israel – Hayarkon Park
09/21/93 Tel Aviv, Israel – Hayarkon Park
09/23/93 Istanbul, Turkey – Inönü Stadium
09/26/93 Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain – Santa Cruz de Tenerife Port
10/08/93 Buenos Aires, Argentina – River Plate Stadium
10/10/93 Buenos Aires, Argentina – River Plate Stadium
10/12/93 Buenos Aires, Argentina – River Plate Stadium
10/15/93 Sao Paulo, Brazil – Morumbi Stadium
10/17/93 Sao Paulo, Brazil – Morumbi Stadium
10/23/93 Santiago, Chile – Estadio Nacional de Chile
10/29/93 Mexico City, Mexico – Estadio Azteca
10/31/93 Mexico City, Mexico – Estadio Azteca
11/07/93 Mexico City, Mexico – Estadio Azteca
11/09/93 Mexico City, Mexico – Estadio Azteca
11/11/93 Mexico City, Mexico – Estadio Azteca

The remainder of the tour was cancelled when Michael announced he was seeking treatment for his dependency on painkillers. He explained that his stress from the child molestation charges, which was settled out of court, caused him to become dependent on painkillers to get through the tour. The scheduled concert on the 25th in Thailand was cancelled and rescheduled for the 26th. The concert is again cancelled because Micahel had not fully recovered from dehydration. Michael released an audio taped message to his fans saying “I promise all my fans to perform at the National Stadium in Bangkok on August 27. I will see you Friday. I love you all.”

Moments before the second concert in Singapore on the 30th August 1993 Michael collapses backstage suffering from a severe migraine. The next day Michael undergoes a brain scan in hospital. A second audio taped message is released saying “I was suddenly taken ill last night and I am sorry for the cancellation of my performance and I apologise for any inconvenience it might have caused my fans in Singapore. I look forward to seeing you at the stadium tomorrow. Thank you for your continued support and understanding. I love you all. Thank you.”

Credits

Executive Director: MJJ Productions
Artistic Director: Michael Jackson
Choreographed by: Michael Jackson & LaVelle Smith
Staged & Designed by: Kenny Ortega
Set Designed by: Tom McPhillips
Lightning Designer: Peter Morse
Director of Security: Bill Bray
Costumes Designed by: Dennis Tompkins & Michael Bush
Hair & Make-up: Karen Faye
Tour Coordinator: Sal Bonafede
Production Executive: Benny Collins
Production Manager: Chris Tervit
Tour Manager: Paul Gongaware, Jack Nance
Assistant Tour Manager: Nelson Hayes
Production Coordinator: Caprise Arreola [1st Leg], Tour Management Coordinator [2nd Leg]
Personal Management: Gallin Morey Associates