Michael Jackson Birthday Celebration in Gary

The gala will kick off at the Jackson family's childhood home, at 2300 Jackson St., and the city will also hold events at the Leonard Douglas Stadium at Roosevelt High School.

It will feature musical performances, a circus, fireworks, food and vendors.

The festivities in front of the old Jackson home are free, but tickets for the concerts and circus at the Leonard Douglas Stadium are $23 for adults and $12 for children.

Twenty percent of the proceeds from the event will go to help the city of Gary.

City spokeswoman LaLosa Burns says Gary wants to preserve the legacy of Michael Jackson and the Jackson family, which left and moved to California in 1969 after the Jackson 5 struck it big.

Promoter Ivan “Primetime” Woodard said that events will start around 3 p.m. Friday. Jackson Street will be closed to traffic between 23rd and 24th Avenues to allow for vendors and The Legend’s Stage to be set up. Music will start at 4 p.m. and continue until 7 p.m. Events on Jackson Street are free of charge.

On Saturday and Sunday, events on Jackson Street will kick off at 11 a.m., with music starting at 2 p.m. The events will culminate on Monday, which would have been the King of Pop’s 53rd birthday, with music, fireworks, and even the cutting of a cake imported from Canada at 6 p.m.

Since parking will be limited near Jackson’s birthplace, organizers suggest that attendees use a free parking and shuttle service, which takes off from behind the Village Shopping Center at 35th Avenue and Grant Street.

The concerts start at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 6 p.m. on Sunday; they will last about three hours. Woodard said the Chi-Lites and other “A-list” entertainers will be featured.

The International Afro Centric Circus will pitch its tent at Roosevelt Park, located at 21st and Jackson Street. Shows will start at 4:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Friday through Sunday, with a 1:30 p.m. show added on Saturday and Sunday.

Woodard confirmed that several members of the Jackson family will be on hand. And he wants the weekend to become an annual event.

“I didn’t going into this thinking that it was going to be so adventurous,” Woodard said. “There have been some stops and gos, but we already have people on board for next year.”

The event is sponsored by the City of Gary, LGR Partners, Inc., the Jackson Family Foundation, and the Jackson Development and Marketing Corporation.

Sources: MJFS / chicagotribune.com / posttrib.suntimes.com