Dangerous World Tour

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Dangerous World Tour
Promotional image for the tour
World tour by Michael Jackson
Location	Europe, Asia, South America, North America
Associated album	Dangerous
Start date	June 27, 1992
End date	November 11, 1993
Legs	3
Shows	40 in Europe 18 in Asia 6 in South America 6 in North America 70 played 10 indoor 60 outdoor

The Dangerous World Tour was the second worldwide solo concert tour by American recording artist Michael Jackson. The tour, sponsored by Pepsi-Cola, included 70 performances. All profits were donated to various charities including Jackson's own "Heal the World Foundation". The tour ran from June 27, 1992, to November 11, 1993. In November 1993, Jackson ended the tour due to, as he announced, illness that required hospitalization. The performer became dependent on painkillers, having suffered from dehydration, migraines and injuries. Originally, the Dangerous World Tour was supposed to run until Christmas of 1993.^[1]

Overview

Following the huge success of the Bad world tour, Jackson's first solo world tour, where he earned $125 million, the star claimed that he would not tour again, and would instead concentrate on making films and records. On February 3, 1992 in a Pepsi press conference, it was announced that Jackson would be touring again. The announcement coincided with a new deal between Jackson and Pepsi, with a reported $20 million deal to sponsor the tour.
In an interview, Jackson stated, "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."^[2]

Preparations and set designs

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 aircraft and multiple lorries to transport to each venue.
Before the tour began, Jackson and his band (which had changed a little since the Bad world tour) rehearsed the whole concert. The footage of the rehearsals has been leaked into the Internet. However, the exact date and location of the performances is not clear, but it was rumored that the rehearsals took place in Jackson's Neverland home. The rehearsals included performances that never made it into the final show, including "Remember the Time", "The Way You Make Me Feel", "Bad" and "Rock with You," among others.
For the tour's design, Jackson was influenced by the uniform worn in the military. For "Jam", the first performance on the tour's set list, Jackson 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 and second legs, the uniform was a grey-green jacket with a one bolted strap which sparkled with multicolour. For the third leg, Jackson 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 first Dangerous Tour concert in Munich, first second leg concert in Tokyo, the Super Bowl XXVII halftime show in 1993, and later at the Royal Brunei Concert (pre-HIStory World Tour concert) in 1996.^[3][4]
The tour also incorporated several stage illusions. The Dangerous era was considered one of Jackson's best. Each concert on the tour ended by a stuntman, Kinnie Gibson, who secretly switched with Jackson as he kneels down a trap hole in the stage, dressed in a full astronaut costume (therefore appearing as Jackson), 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, Jackson catapults on to the stage through a trap door in the front, sending off pyrotechnics that electrified the crowd. "That opening was kick-ass," admired Janet Jackson. "I'm sitting in the sound tower and all the kids are everywhere. And when he jumped out of whatever the hell that thing was, I was yelling so loud, the kids in front of me were looking back and I didn't even know it. My friend Tina is saying, Jan, they're looking at you. Because I was going, Fuck yeah, Mike! That was the shit to me. That was so bad-ass. Why didn't I think of that? When he thought of that shit, he hit it."^[5] A similar version of "the Toaster" stunt was used in the beginning of Jackson's Super Bowl XXVII Halftime Show performance in 1993.
In the first and second legs, the transition from "Thriller" to "Billie Jean" was another stage trick. When Jackson walks into two pillars, he secretly switches with a werewolf-masked backup dancer while he changes for Billie Jean. The backup dancer posing as Jackson is placed into a coffin which disappears when dancers posing as skeletons and zombies drape a cloth over the coffin and pull it out. Jackson appears fully dressed for Billie Jean in the upper stage level as it lowers down. The coffin portion of this stage illusion was removed in some of first leg shows and the entire third leg of the tour, and replaced with the Jackson impersonator and the backup dancers performing an encore of the "Monster Breakdown" (the dance sequence in "Thriller").

First and second legs (1992)

The original set list for the first leg featured "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 (the second leg).
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.
Jackson sold the film rights to his October 1, 1992 concert in Bucharest, Romania 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, in which Jackson was honoured with a CableACE Award. In 2004, the concert was released on DVD as part of Jackson's The Ultimate Collection box set. It was released in 2005 as the separate DVD 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.^[6]
The Toulouse, France concert performed on September 16, 1992 featured a special instrumental performance of the first half of the song "In the Closet" as an interlude between the songs "Heal the World" and "Man in the Mirror". Princess Stéphanie of Monaco, who was the "Mystery Girl" in the actual song, was in attendance at this concert. This concert marked the first and only time that this song was performed on the tour.
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 in September 1992.

Super Bowl XXVII

Unlike many previous years, Jackson was the only performer in the entire Super Bowl XXVII halftime show. The show started with Jackson dancing on certain jumbotrons, followed by impersonators that posed on top of the screen, which gave the illusion of Jackson moving from one side of the stadium to the other. Then Jackson himself catapulted on stage and simply stood frozen in front of the audience. Jackson's set included songs "Jam" (with the beginning of "Why You Wanna Trip on Me"), "Billie Jean" and "Black or White". The finale featured an audience card stunt, a video montage showing Jackson participating in various humanitarian efforts around the world, and a choir of 3,500 local Los Angeles area children singing "We Are the World", later joining Jackson as he sang his single "Heal the World".
It was the first Super Bowl where the audience figures actually increased during the half-time show. The selection of Jackson for the halftime show was in response to sagging interest in recent performances, notably in the two years immediately prior. The NFL and FOX network officials decided it was necessary to sign top acts for the halftime in future years to boost future viewership and interest. The NFL donated $100,000 to Jackson’s Heal the World Foundation.^[7]

Third leg (1993)

The day the third leg began on August 24, 1993 in Bangkok, the accusation of child sexual abuse against Jackson was made public. Three days beforehand, a search warrant was issued, allowing police to search Jackson's Neverland Ranch, Santa Ynez Valley, California.
On 29 August, Jackson performed in front of 47,000 on his 35th birthday in Singapore.
During his visit to Moscow in September, Jackson came up with the song "Stranger in Moscow" which would be released on his 1995 album HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I. It was during a time when Jackson 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.^[8]
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 Jackson end the tour in Mexico. Jackson began taking Valium, Xanax and Ativan (known as lorazepam in the UK) to deal with the stress of the accusations made against him. After the tour ended, Jackson voluntarily entered a rehabilitation program. In a taped statement, he credited Elizabeth Taylor, his sister Janet Jackson, and his family for support during the accusations and dealing with his drug addiction.
"Michael's show, I loved," said Janet Jackson. "The only thing – and I told him – that I wish he had done was to play more songs from the new album. And I wish he had played 'Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough'. He goes, 'I know, Jan, and the other brothers told me that, but you know what? I was really pressed for time.' And that's the thing, when you become so busy. So it was pretty much the same show as he's been doing for some time."^[5]

Opening acts

• Kris Kross
• Rozalla
• D'Influence (England only)
• Snap! (Bucharest only)
• Culture Beat (1993 European dates only)

Tour dates

Date	City	Country	Venue
First leg[11]
Rehearsal concert
June 25, 1992[12][13]	Munich	Germany	Olympiastadion
Europe
June 27, 1992	Munich	Germany	Olympiastadion
June 30, 1992	Rotterdam	Netherlands	Feijenoord Stadium
July 1, 1992
July 4, 1992	Rome	Italy	Stadio Flaminio
July 6, 1992	Monza		Stadio Brianteo
July 7, 1992
July 11, 1992	Cologne	Germany	Müngersdorfer Stadion
July 15, 1992	Oslo	Norway	Valle Hovin
July 17, 1992	Stockholm	Sweden	Stockholm Olympic Stadium
July 18, 1992
July 20, 1992	Gentofte	Denmark	Gentofte Stadion
July 22, 1992	Werchter	Belgium	Werchter Festival Ground
July 25, 1992	Dublin	Ireland	Lansdowne Road
July 30, 1992	London	United Kingdom	Wembley Stadium
July 31, 1992
August 5, 1992	Cardiff		Cardiff Arms Park
August 8, 1992	Bremen	Germany	Weserstadion
August 10, 1992	Hamburg		Volksparkstadion
August 13, 1992	Hamelin		Weserbergland Stadium
August 16, 1992	Leeds	United Kingdom	Roundhay Park
August 18, 1992	Glasgow		Glasgow Green
August 20, 1992[14][15]	London		Wembley Stadium
August 22, 1992
August 23, 1992
August 26, 1992	Vienna	Austria	Prater Stadium
August 28, 1992	Frankfurt	Germany	Waldstadion
August 30, 1992	Ludwigshafen		Südweststadion
September 2, 1992	Bayreuth		Volks Stadium
September 4, 1992	Berlin		Friedrich Ludwig Jahn Sportpark
September 6, 1992[A]	Gelsenkirchen		Parkstadion
September 8, 1992	Lausanne	Switzerland	Stade Olympique de la Pontaise
September 11, 1992[B]	Basel		St. Jakob Stadium
September 13, 1992	Paris	France	Hippodrome de Vincennes
September 16, 1992	Toulouse		Stadium Municipal de Toulouse
September 18, 1992	Barcelona	Spain	Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys
September 21, 1992	Oviedo		Estadio Carlos Tartiere
September 23, 1992	Madrid		Estadio Vicente Calderón
September 26, 1992	Lisbon	Portugal	Estádio José Alvalade
October 1, 1992[16]	Bucharest	Romania	Lia Manoliu Stadium
October 4, 1992[C]	Istanbul	Turkey	İnönü Stadium
October 7, 1992[D][17]	Izmir		İzmir Atatürk Stadium
October 10, 1992[E]	Athens	Greece	Olympic Stadium
Second leg[18]
Asia
December 12, 1992	Tokyo	Japan	Tokyo Dome
December 14, 1992
December 17, 1992
December 19, 1992
December 22, 1992
December 24, 1992
December 30, 1992
December 31, 1992
Super Bowl XXVII halftime show
January 31, 1993	Pasadena	United States	Rose Bowl Stadium
Third leg
Asia
August 15, 1993[F]	Hong Kong	Hong Kong	Sha Tin Racecourse
August 16, 1993[F]
August 24, 1993	Bangkok	Thailand	Suphachalasai Stadium
August 27, 1993
August 29, 1993	Singapore	Singapore	Singapore National Stadium
September 1, 1993
September 4, 1993	Taipei	Taiwan	Taipei Municipal Stadium
September 6, 1993
September 10, 1993	Fukuoka	Japan	Fukuoka Dome
September 11, 1993
Europe
September 15, 1993	Moscow	Russia	Luzhniki Stadium
Asia
September 19, 1993	Tel Aviv	Israel	Yarkon Park
September 21, 1993
Europe
September 23, 1993	Istanbul	Turkey	İnönü Stadium
September 26, 1993	Tenerife	Spain	Port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife
South America
October 8, 1993	Buenos Aires	Argentina	Estadio River Plate
October 10, 1993
October 12, 1993
October 12, 1993[G]	Rio de Janeiro	Brazil	Estádio do Maracanã
October 15, 1993	Sao Paulo		Estádio do Morumbi
October 17, 1993
October 21, 1993[H]	Santiago	Chile	Estadio Nacional Julio Martínez Prádanos
October 23, 1993
October 26, 1993[I]	Lima	Peru	Estadio Nacional Jose Diaz
North America
October 29, 1993	Mexico City	Mexico	Estadio Azteca
October 31, 1993
November 7, 1993
November 9, 1993
November 11, 1993