"Michael Jackson ONE" at Mandalay Bay: what a ticket from €92.94 gets you – and why you should check the start time twice

Among the Las Vegas listings we source from GetYourGuide, “Michael Jackson ONE” has the tenth-most reviews: 1,435, averaging 4.8 stars. In the shows category, only “O” at Bellagio ranks higher. Tickets start at €92.94 per person, and according to the booking page all processing fees are included. The ticket is non-refundable.

The booking page promises acrobatics, costumes and the music of the King of Pop. It doesn’t mention that several guests missed the start because the time on their ticket was wrong, or that criticism tends to focus on the same three things: volume, a cold auditorium and mismatched expectations. That’s what this article is about.

What you actually see

“ONE” is a Cirque du Soleil production at Mandalay Bay, at the southern end of the Strip. The show runs for 90 minutes. According to the booking page, four outsiders follow the music of their idol, gradually taking on his agility, his courage, his playfulness and his love. The evening is carried by acrobatics and dance set to the well-known songs.

Important for setting expectations: there’s no Michael Jackson impersonator on stage re-enacting his concerts. That’s exactly what irritated a couple in a German-language one-star review. They had expected an impersonator and got “circus acrobatics and dance troupes” instead. Anyone looking for a tribute concert is in the wrong place. Anyone who wants to see Cirque du Soleil with a story and music everyone knows is in the right one.

According to a review from February 2026, the audience is drawn into the show. One couple left after 15 minutes because nobody had warned them beforehand. Anyone who’d rather avoid that now knows in advance.

The booking page describes the meeting point in detail: from the Mandalay Bay reception, head straight towards the Foundation Room, turn left past Hazel towards the casino, then right towards the trams, then left onto the path to the House of Blues. The theatre is then on your right. Mandalay Bay is large, so allow time to get there.

The start time: check it twice

This is the most important point in this article. Three reviews from 2025 report the same thing: the ticket said 7pm, but the show started at 6.30pm. One couple writes that on Saturdays the show starts at 6.30pm, and they missed 25 minutes. Another arrived shortly before seven and had missed 30 minutes, without having been told about any change. A third guest arrived at 6.45pm to find the show already under way. A fourth review describes the same pattern later in the evening: the ticket said 9.30pm, but on arrival at 9pm the show was already running.

We don’t know whether this has since been fixed. You can protect yourself, though: check the start time the day before, either directly with Cirque du Soleil or at the box office at Mandalay Bay, and arrive 45 minutes before the time printed on your ticket. That way you’ll still be on time even if the show starts half an hour early.

Other individual cases: in September 2025, a group of ten people from the UK arrived to find the performance cancelled, with, according to their account, no notice and no refund. In 2024, a couple reports an interruption of more than 40 minutes. What happens if a show is cancelled and the ticket is non-refundable isn’t stated on the booking page. Clarify that with the operator before you buy.

Loud, bright, cold

Loud. Several guests describe the volume as unbearable. Someone who says they regularly attend concerts left after 40 minutes. Another couple also gave up after 40 minutes. Anyone sensitive to noise should take that seriously.

Bright. One guest had to leave the show after ten minutes because of white strobe effects. According to this review, a staff member wanted to refund the ticket, but couldn’t, because it had been bought through a third-party seller. Anyone sensitive to flashing lights should ask the organiser before buying what lighting effects the show uses.

Cold. This is the most surprising one in the desert. Reviews spanning three years describe a freezing auditorium with a constant draught from the air conditioning. One guest writes of less than 16°C, another of 15°C, and a family left two-thirds of the way through the show because they were so cold. Bring a jacket, even if it’s hot outside.

Where you sit

As with “O”, the booking page doesn’t say how seats are allocated. A couple wrote in March 2026 that they had expected seats near the front and ended up “high up and far back”. By their own reckoning, the same seats would have been cheaper booked directly through the theatre. Anyone who wants a specific area should buy from a seller that shows a seating plan with the exact seat before payment. Anyone who just wants to be there already has the fees included in this price.

With children

According to the booking page, children under five aren’t suitable, and minors may not attend unaccompanied. For school-age children who know the songs, “ONE” is probably the more accessible of the two big Cirque shows, since the music holds the evening together. But the three points above apply doubly to children: volume, flashing lights and cold. A child who gets cold quickly or covers their ears at loud noise won’t enjoy this evening much. More evenings for families are covered in Las Vegas with kids aged 6 to 12 and in the family budget guide.

“ONE” or “O”?

Both run for 90 minutes, both have a minimum age of five, and the prices are close: “ONE” from €92.94, “O” from €98.57. The difference lies in the evening itself. “O” is a show over and in a huge pool of water, strong on visuals, weak on plot, and that’s exactly what its poor reviews criticise. “ONE” has the thread that “O” lacks: music everyone knows. In exchange, it gets loud, and the criticism is more often aimed at sound, lighting and air conditioning than at the show itself.

On the value-for-money rating, the two are close as well: “ONE” at 4.5, “O” at 4.4. Anyone who doesn’t fancy either can find more tickets at Las Vegas shows and tickets, including “KÀ” at MGM Grand from €64.77. Anyone who’d rather see technology than acrobatics can take a look at the Sphere.