Thriller in Cebu
About 1,500 inmates (complete with a ladyboy) of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center, Philippines recently did a re-enactment of Michael Jackson’s Thriller dance (Michael should be right next along with them) in what appeared to be their prison yard. As to why, your guess is as good as mine.
I found two similar videos but I’m not so sure if they are one and the same. I think these ghoulish vids sends a creepy message to all Pinoys: When you commit a crime, you do the time, then you get to get down and end up at youtube. Well, maybe this punishment aint so bad after all.
This is suppose to be just their practice routine:
http://www.bradsucks.net/archives/2007/07/20/thriller-by-prisoners-in-the-philippines/
This is the other vid:
http://www.poetv.com/video.php?vid=19841
Did anyone dance to the beat? hehe…Does this video really make you proud to be a Filipino? I wonder if the warden forced the prisoners to do this song and dance and were those who wouldn’t join the dance placed in solitary confinement? What about the prisoners who did, when they get released, will they all have real-world skills that will help them re-integrate with society? Well, at least they can dance. :)) The big question is who were they preparing to dance for? Your tax pesos at work, people!
Well, boogie on, everyone! We might as well join ‘em.
UPDATE
I just came across this news blurb about the video. I think it explains why the inmates did this dance and some other ones too:
It’s morning exercise for inmates at a prison in the central Philippines who do a faithful rendition of the 1980s dance routine right down to choreographed zombies and a rolling coffin. Not to mention the pelvic thrusts of the lead dancer in a shiny red suit.
The choreographed dance routine is the brainchild of Byron Garcia, who oversees the prison and has taken a novel approach to reforming offenders.
At first, he wanted to adapt synchronized morning exercise as a way to foster camaraderie and break down gang factions among inmates. He says the intended participants were at first unimpressed with the idea and when the outside choreographer first arrived at the prison a year ago to teach the dance moves, he was pelted with slippers.
He admits that the dance numbers were an experiment.
"This programme is an experiment. After six months, we concluded that the experiment was successful. This has changed, it has aided our administration in rehabilitating our inmates," he said.
Garcia loaded the unorthodox dance videos, which include other favourites like Queen’s "Radio Gaga" and "I will follow you" from "Sister Act" complete with nuns in habits, onto the Internet because he said he wanted other prisons to learn from the experience.
In the meantime, they have become some of the most talked about in cyberspace, with "Thriller" clocking up over three million hits in its first two weeks on video sharing site YouTube.
"It is the duty of the cell leader to brief this inmate. For example, ‘This is your toothbrush, your toothpaste, your slippers, your pillow,’ and the next thing they say is, ‘Here are your dance steps for tomorrow’s exercise,’" said Garcia.
Inmates say the new routines took a bit of time to master.
"It was difficult at first, but eventually we inmates got used to it," said Mario Benito.
Meanwhile, the girls enthusiastically perform "Sister Act".
While the online audience is certainly amused, only time will tell if the dance routines is an effective tool in rehabilitation of the inmates under Garcia’s charge.
