Zombie flash mob thrills Burbank crowd to the tune of Michael Jackson

One by one, they headed toward the concrete steps beside AMC Theater 16 in Burbank on East Palm Avenue. Shredded shirts covered their twisted bodies. Splotches of ghostly white and dark paint covered their faces as they staggered out of Johnny Rockets, a nearby elevator and Pinkberry.

Onlookers paused with looks of confusion. They didn’t know what to expect from the deathly walkers. Spectators whipped out their phones to record.

And the music began.

Roughly 50 zombies performed as a flash mob to “Thriller,” the iconic ghoulish music video of the late Michael Jackson. Teri Richardson, a dance instructor with the city of Burbank, began teaching her performers in September, helping toddlers to adults perfect the routine. The performance coincided with “Thrill the World Day,” a worldwide performance of the song’s music video that remains a staple of pop culture more than 30 years since it first aired.

PHOTOS: Zombie flash mob performs Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” in Burbank

Last year, more than 6,000 zombies participated in the event that spanned 22 countries, according to Thrill the World’s website. And three more of Richardson’s students who couldn’t make the performance — siblings Dylan, Vivian and Logan Williams — performed the routine on the deck of their cruise ship near Galveston, Texas.

“He was my inspiration to dance,” Richardson said about Jackson, who died five years ago after an overdose of the powerful anesthetic propofol. “This is a tribute to him.”

Despite gazing at the crowd with lifeless eyes, the zombies of all walks — from mummies to school girls dressed in tattered tutus — fidgeted their moves to “Thriller.” Families and couples dining at Johnny Rockets placed their forks down during the routine. Spectators may have spotted Marirose Occhiogrosso in the rear. She’s a marriage and family therapist by trade but during the performance, transformed into what she calls a “worker” zombie. She paired her silver-colored face and wild, crinkly hair with a ripped blazer.

Occhiogrosso confessed Saturday was the first time she performed in front of a crowd. She never let it show as she hit every slide and step with near-perfection.

“I practiced at home, too,” she said with a laugh, noting Halloween is her favorite holiday.

Khari Youngblood, 21, stood on the sides and danced simultaneously with the zombies. He took a break from collecting donations for his organization, USA for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, which aids displaced people internationally, to watch the performance.

At first, Youngblood thought about joining the zombies to perform for the crowd. He changed his mind a few seconds into the performance.

“It was too organized to mess up,” Youngblood said laughing. “The outfits were amazing. They did a good job.”

Richardson said although new dancers join the performances each year, former students return. The performance wasn’t a first for Kristi Allen, who dirtied her face to match a torn pink track suit. She was joined by her 7-year-old daughter, Paige. They’ve performed “Thriller” for the past three years alongside Kristi’s sister, Ashley Saye of Santa Monica.

“It’s the only flash mob we do all year. We have a blast,” Allen said, noting she is 17 years older than Saye.

All agree that Richardson’s flash mob performances is how they bond. But it’s more than just the dancing that keeps the trio around.

“Just to see everyone’s faces when we do this, it’s great,” Saye said. “This is what we look forward to every year.”

And it’s a tradition that Allen, Saye and Paige aren’t likely to stop. The thought made a zombiefied Paige grin.