By Gio Battaglia / Programming Director
On March 5, Dua Lipa stopped at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo as a continuation of her Future Nostalgia Tour, with support from Lolo Zouaï and Caroline Polachek.
Zouaï opened the show, which happened to take place on her birthday. She had an awesome stage presence and was very focused on engaging with the crowd during each song and giving an energized performance, even if the audience did not know the entirety of her set. The incorporation of dance into her pop sound made for an intriguing performance and was not an opening act that you waited for to end.
Polachek came out next, and completely wowed the audience. Her unique sound combined with the stage visuals was captivating and left all of us in awe. Polachek differed from Zouaï as her vocals were breathier, but still fully supported as she snuck in some higher falsetto pitches that were absolutely show-stopping. I added some songs of hers to my playlist after seeing her live. They were the perfect openers to a night of pop music.
Then it was time for Lipa to begin the show. Dua Lipa did not miss with the visuals of this show. She kept the theme of a workout video for the opener, “Physical” as well as had props for the song that created a visual appeal in coordination with her choreography. Lipa sounded great, the sound in KeyBank Center is not the best, but she had such a clear and concise tone that sounded like she is taking good care of her voice while being out on tour.
The dancers in the show are incredible. The show features two guys on roller skates, dancers that engage with the audience to create energy as well as just do each move like it’s the first time, and to perfection. Lipa added to the dancing as well, she took the criticism she would receive back in 2018 and worked on her performance skills, and it shines through with each song.
Lipa kept this energy up for the rest of the show performing hits such as “New Rules,” “Break My Heart,” as well as “Hallucinate.” The crowd was on their feet the entire time and Lipa engaged with everyone, and it was clear that she was in her element. Everything on this tour was thought out down to the last detail.
Lipa slowed it down throughout the show to deliver breakout performances of “Boys Will Be Boys,” as well as “Cold Heart” with Elton John where she waved around a pride flag and created a sense of unity and community and she sat and swayed with her dancers, it was truly a magical moment in the show.
The encore of this show was absolutely. spectacular. Lipa returned to the stage for a performance of the title track, “Future Nostalgia,” and claimed the title “rockstar.” She claimed that stage and microphone and showed the fans who was boss. Lipa closed off the show with “Don’t Start Now” which was a true celebration of the entire night and blended everything together. The dancing, the singing, the visuals, it was all there to close off a fantastic night.
More information on where Dua Lipa and her team are coming next can be found here.