Behind the scenes with MJ and a kick-ass femme guitarist

I’m a sucker for DVD extras so when I found myself browsing the shelves at the movie store I fell right towards the recently released This Is It documentary of Michael Jackson’s last concert rehearsals. I am not an MJ fan per se, but having grown up in the 80’s and 90’s, I couldn’t help but get a little caught up in the MJ craze in the months following his death.

But if the film was a treat to watch (which it was) is wasn’t because I needed to know any more about Michael Jackson but because the entire film is a glimpse behind-the-scenes of the production of what was to be a spectacular show. This Is It is basically a whole DVD of DVD extras, plus the actual extras, which for This Is It are the behind-the-scenes of the behind-the-scenes that is the feature. As a former performer, I was swept up watching the artists in action—dancers and vocalists, videographers and costume designers, producers, directors, musicians and of course, Jackson himself.

The best part, though, was discovering this 24-yr-old guitar “prodigy” as she has been called, who was to be the lead guitarist for the show. For those who haven’t already done so, meet Orianthi.