After two cancellations last year of her Summer Carnival dates, Pink finally made it to North Texas Wednesday night in Arlington. Amid a cool fall evening, her Summer Carnival was still going strong. Worth the wait? I’ll leave that to the fans, but she did not disappoint with her onslaught of hits, an energetic set filled with nonstop dancers, musicians and special effects and of course, her signature ascent into the air.
Performed in four acts, Pink appeared to a roaring audience and kicked off show with high-energy and the appropriate “Get the Party Started” with stage-centric aerials. The mood was set and in full-on party mode as she followed through with “Raise Your Glass.” Pink was our host for the night of her big festive celebration that offered a needed respite from the life-sucking results of Tuesday.
While she did banter a lot throughout the concert, she never directly mentioned the election which felt a bit ironic for the “Dear Mr. President” singer. Perhaps she didn’t want to pull a Dixie Chicks here in Red Texas, but instead, she seemed to speak louder through her visuals.
During her piano rendition of Bob Dylan’s “Make You Feel My Love,” cameras panned to a number of couples professing their affections through kisses and embraces. Several queer couples made the cut as did a diverse range of folks of all ages, races, sizes and genders. Later in the show, she went down to the audience to present a man proposing to his boyfriend. Perhaps these visuals were her way of defying current events.
Plus, they didn’t distract from the good vibes awashed over the venue.
What did distract was the sound. From my seats, the sound on her mic felt turned too high. This was more apparent in her talking bit and much was lost through reverb. Her singing was on point but her lyrics were hard to understand if you didn’t know the words — or even if you did. Video from closer seats didn’t seem to have this issue (thanks Instagram), but from the back and higher stands, the sound was often muddled.
But Pink’s performance was highly charged. Her energy was relentless displayed in complex choreo and her marathron running throughout the vast stage. Of course, Pink’s shows are part cirque with her sparse aerials in the first two acts and her trampolining dancers in the last act.
She saved the best for last with the night’s final track of “So What.” She lifted off to fly her way across the entire field. Even though it’s expected, the thrill of her taking off and soaring was nonetheless magnificent. When she’s feet in front of you, albeit in a blur, it’s hard not to feel a nanosecond of connection with pop greatness.
As the featured artist, Sheryl Crow gave a rock solid performance with her own set of hits. Fairly straightforward, she sounded in top form as did her band. Her bluesy Americana pop felt fresh without straying from its pure form. If anything, she worked hard to fill the big stage space walking the stage gauntlet, but her performance felt sincere and light as if all she wanted to do was have some fun.
–Rich Lopez