Experience

The Michael Jackson Experience has been touring for just over a year. Venues are mainly in smaller towns: Chatham, North Bay and Saskatoon. They recently played a sold-out show at Stage West, a 300-seat dinner theater in Mississauga. It’s quite the night out. A $60 ticket gets you access to a sprawling buffet of roast beef, butter chicken and an ice-cream bar. When the lights dim for the performance, you can hear the murmur of anticipation. Much of the audience is dressed in their Sunday best.

Lamothe is protective of Soul. “Probably 99 per cent of Michael Jackson tribute artists in the world don’t do live singing,” he says. “Bishop does. It’s really tiring out there. I’m working really hard to pace him.” On the road, they stay in nice hotels. They rarely do two shows back to back.