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Image: Vasili Papathanasopoulos ©
Last night, global superstar P!nk kicked off her record breaking Summer Carnival Australian tour. The run of performances marks the singers first stadium tour of Australia, having previously performed over 180 shows across the nation throughout her career. “This love affair is my favourite one!”, she proclaims during the show of her bond with Australian fans.
Armed with a setlist full of classic hits, P!nk has released two albums since her last Australian outing; 2019’s Hurts 2B Human and 2023’s Trustfall - which leaves a lot to catch up on. As the lights dim and a pre-recorded message from the singer plays across the monitors, she soon greets the crowd from high above, dropping out of the tours staple lips logo. Kicking off with a bang, it’s clear that the following two hours will be a spectacle to remember. As she plays through songs such as Raise Your Glass, Who Knew, Just Like A Pill and Try, the shows first act as a nostalgia-driven vehicle of hits from the past before ending it with an 80’s inspired upbeat dance remix of What About Us.
Boasting tightly choreographed routines, pyrotechnics and an overall sensory production, the star of the show truly is P!nk’s sensational live vocals. Her inimitable smokey tone never falters as she effortlessly moves within her range, expertly showcased in the shows second act. She played a game of ‘name that tune’ with pianist Jason Chapman - Chapman starts to play a song from the singers discography and the singer must guess the song by singing along. Sydney were treated to Glitter in the Air, followed by a cover of Bob Dylan’s Make You Feel My Love where P!nk accompanied herself on the piano. She took a quick break to try out some Australian candy, quickly realising she loves Boost chocolate bars and calling her son on stage to share a bite. The family fun continued later in the show, when her daughter Willow joined her to perform their hit single, Cover Me In Sunshine. P!nk’s vocals shone on songs like Fuckin’ Perfect and Just Give Me A Reason, which featured a video cameo of collaborator Nate Ruess.
Image: Vasili Papathanasopoulos ©
Throughout the evening P!nk interacted with the crowd, telling them "I've gotta mum all of you. I will give you advice, I will make you hydrate." She shared stories with them, made jokes and had great banter. She joked how the rain had transformed the performance into a wet t-shirt contest, dedicated When I Get There to a fans late father and preluded Irrelevant by proclaiming to the audience, "If anything is messing with your mental health just fucking get rid of it."
Whilst the singer shared the stage with her own family, during Our Song a fans family began to grow. Upon entering the stadium earlier in the evening, a heavily pregnant woman walked past me and I thought to myself this proves the commitment of P!nk’s fans. Fast forward about forty minutes and the singer stopped the song due to rumblings in the crowd shouting for help. “Somebody’s having a baby?” she asked, shocked having confused the crowds gestures for ‘going in to labour’ as playing the video game Minecraft. What a way to start her Australian tour. Songs such as Irrelevant and Never Gonna Not Dance Again prompted a riotous sing-a-long from the crowd, with the singer dancing across the stage and sharing this mighty moment with her devoted audience. TRUSTFALL featured some of the shows most mesmerising production, with dancers leaping from a platform on stage and bouncing back up on trampolines whilst scaling the rails.
Known and adored for the acrobatic routine laced within her live shows, the move from arenas to stadiums showed no signs of slowing down. P!nk fearlessly soars above the stage through tracks such as Get The Party Started and Turbulence - which provided beautifully crafted duo choreography with spotlights beaming behind. However it’s in the shows epic finale, So What, where P!nk truly got up close and personal with her fans as she leaped off the stage and flew throughout the stadium. Coming face-to-face with fans seated up in the upper sections of the stadium, P!nk creates a core memory for all those who attend the Summer Carnival tour.
Image: Vasili Papathanasopoulos ©