The show was established in 2006 and first previewed in London at the Dominion Theatre. The show was created by author Adrian Grant who is the Theatrical Producer. He has been a huge fan of Michael and the Jackson 5 for years, starting the official British fan club in 1988. He was then invited out to Los Angeles by Jackson himself when he was working on recording Dangerous. He has written three books including Michael Jackson - The Visual Documentary which was approved by Jackson. He is definitely very well qualified to write the musical which is why it has remained so popular and true to the singer.
Before settling in London's West End, Thriller Live went on a national tour of the UK beginning in 2007 and later that year continuing on to a European tour. Production then began in 2008 for the West End version of the show with open auditions being held to find young actors to play Jackson. In the end it was decided that six people would play the singer showing him at various stages of his career.
Finally on 21 January 2009, Thriller Live premiered at the Lyric Theatre in London and was only supposed to run until May 2009, however due to its high popularity it has been extended many times since then. The tragic death of Michael Jackson on 25 June 2009 has also drawn more public interest to the show.
Michael Jackson is known as one of, if not the world's greatest entertainer and is the undisputed King of Pop. His career spanned 40 years and he has sold 750 million records worldwide. His Thriller album is still the world's best-selling recording and he continues to sell records in the millions and gain new fans every day. For the die-hard Jackson 5 and Michael Jackson fans, this is your show. The cast of Thriller Live are exceptionally talented from the singers, actors and dancers to the live band performing eight times a week, every day except Monday with a matinee performance on Saturday at 4pm and Sunday at 3.30pm. The performance runs for 2 hours and 30 minutes including one interval and expect to hear all your favourites including I Want You Back, ABC, Can You Feel It, Off The Wall, The Way You Make Me Feel, Smooth Criminal, Beat It, Billie Jean, Dirty Diana, They Don't Care About Us and Thriller plus of course many more.
"Quite literally thrilling", "A total blast", and "A great tonic in these gloomy days", are what some of the critics are saying. Thriller Live at the Lyric Theatre in London is one show not to be missed!