A large billboard of Dua Lipa’s album cover stands on the walls of The Forum in Inglewood on March 23 to promote her concert. It emphasized that both nights were sold out. Photos by Timothy Gay
English singer-songwriter Dua Lipa‘s 2022 Future Nostalgia Tour showed the artist’s work ethic and creativity to put on a spectacular concert.
Lipa had her second show of two back-to-back nights at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif., on March 23. This was the 24th concert of the singer’s world tour to support her sophomore dance-pop and disco inspired album, “Future Nostalgia.”
“It’s been such an honor being here two nights in a row,” Lipa told the audience. “Thank you for being such an amazing crowd!”
At the beginning of Act I, Lipa entered up from under the stage in a yellow neon bodysuit to perform “Physical” — a perfect opener that hyped up the crowd. She then transitioned to singing her breakout hit “New Rules” while doing an umbrella routine with her backup dancers, who wore blue to contrast Lipa’s look.
The first act included performances of songs “Love Again,” “Pretty Please” and “Break My Heart,” which showed strong rehearsed choreography between Lipa and her dancers. She also invited two roller-skaters on stage to perform a circular routine around her as she stood with the mic stand to sing “Cool.”
Before performing the final song of Act I, Lipa expressed her appreciation to the audience.
“LA has always been a home to me,” Lipa told the crowd. “To get to be here tonight, performing these songs for you means a lot.”
Lipa closed the first part of the show with “Be the One,” a song from her self-titled debut album. This performance had the most interaction between Lipa and the crowd of the night. Her bodysuit glowed in the dark as she told the crowd to chant, “I could be the one!”
As Lipa was backstage making a quick costume change to prepare for Act II, the roller-skaters came back out to do a restaurant-themed routine to “IDGAF,” another song from her first album.
Lipa began the second act in a sparkling silver one-sleeved top singing “We’re Good,” a song from the deluxe edition of Future Nostalgia. She sat in front of a large inflatable lobster for the duration of the performance to recapture the restaurant theme from the music video.
She then got up and walked down to the stage’s runway to perform “Good in Bed.” Her dancers came back out dressed in all white to perform with her.
Lipa put on the biggest spectacle of the night with “Fever.” She first started the performance at the top of the stage, while her dancers were in the middle stage pit surrounded by smoke. Lipa then came down to the smoke to join in on the choreography.
To close Act II, Lipa came up to the top of the stage from pit with a long white skirt attached to her top. She stood and sang her ballad “Boys Will Be Boys” as her skirt flew in the wind. This performance allowed the audience to focus more on Lipa’s vocal capability.
Before the final chorus of “Boys Will Be Boys,” the track switched to the Zack Witness remix of the song as Lipa escalated down underneath the stage. Her dancers came back out in different costumes to perform a set of routines to songs from the “Club Future Nostalgia” remix album while Lipa was backstage changing for Act III.
The third act began with Lipa entering at the far front of the stage, closer to the audience, joining her dancers in a black jacket with pink stockings. Lipa performed her 2018 hits “One Kiss” and “Electricity” and created a dance club vibe with green lights and balloons.
Lipa and her dancers walked back up to center stage to perform a chair routine of “Hallucinate.” She had a moment at the beginning of the final chorus where she showcases the pipes in her vocals. Lipa closed Act III singing her Elton John collaboration “Cold Heart,” and everyone in The Forum put their phone flashlights up to join in on the performance.
In the final act of the night, Lipa appeared in a sparkling black suit for her last costume. She performed her hit song “Levitating” on a moving platform above the crowd, and captured the essence of the song with large space props. She then came down to the main stage to do the choreography with her dancers before exiting.
Then the show was over, or was it?
The crowd chanted loudly for an encore from Lipa, so she came back out with flashing lights to perform two last songs. She first performed the album’s title track, which highlighted how much stage presence Lipa has without her backup dancers. Finally, she performed the song that started the album era, “Don’t Start Now.”
She began “Don’t Start Now” with her and her dancers referencing the “One Kiss” choreography from 2018 she got criticized for. Lipa then proved that she did a full 180 by showcasing the most choreography of the night in the performance. In the end, she brought the confetti out, thanked LA, walked up to the top of the stage and exited underneath.
With four costume changes, 20 hit songs, rehearsed choreography, stage props and live vocals and instruments, Lipa put on a captivating and creative presentation. Audience members who go and see her live can appreciate the hard work she put in to make it all happen.
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Email Timothy Gay: timothy.gay@pepperdine.edu
