'Thriller' in Cebu Prison

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A video of Filipino prisoners dancing to Michael Jackson's "Thriller" in bright orange uniforms has become an instant worldwide hit on the video sharing website YouTube.

Inmates perform the coordinated dance routine as part of their morning exercise ritual at a prison in Cebu, central Philippines.
Clips of the men grooving in harmony for the famous Thriller sequence, complete with zombie moves, is a huge hit, attracting over one million views since it was posted last week.

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This month, the prison authorities tried to take their show, in a manner of speaking, on the road. Byron Garcia, a security consultant for the prison, tried to enter a troupe of 100 inmates in the Sinulog festival this Sunday, a lavish street-dancing festival in honor of the child Jesus and the biggest tourist event in Cebu.

Citing security concerns - 70 percent of the prison's inmates were convicted of serious crimes like murder, rape and narcotics trafficking - Mayor Tomas Osmeña, who oversees the festival, rejected the prison's bid. He told reporters: "Not even if Michael Jackson" - the real one - "joins them."

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But inside the prison, the beat goes on.

Inmates spend up to four hours a day practicing a growing repertoire of more than two dozen dances. In addition, those who signed up for auditions and made the troupe have continued rehearsing their Sinulog choreography. Although they have been barred from performing at the site of the main festival events, they are planning shows within the prison itself. The prison is giving away 200 free tickets to each of three shows Friday.

Visitors have their pictures taken with the prisoners from the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) following a dance performance at the prison in Cebu City, south of Manila April 26, 2008. The central Philippine island of Cebu is renowned as a holiday destination but these days it's the provincial jail not the balmy beaches that's drawing in the visitors. REUTERS/Darren Whiteside (PHILIPPINES)