Dua Lipa is a superstar. There’s been little doubt about that for a while now, but her performance tonight at London’s Royal Albert Hall feels like an inaugural moment. She’s got dates booked and sold out at the UK’s biggest stadiums, she’s headlined festivals and toured the world, but for a self-proclaimed ‘London gal’, the prestige of performing here, backed by a full orchestra and watched by 5000 very lucky pop fans, can’t be overstated. The theme, we were told, was ‘dress to impress’, and the moment Dua emerges in her bright red Gaultier gown, complete with opera gloves and a flowing cape, the atmosphere in the room lifts to another level – Dua acknowledges the significance of the venue in characteristic style: “People who have been on this stage… Winston Churchill, Charles de Gaulle, Einstein… they didn’t have a dress almost as nice as this.”
She opens with the live debut of ‘End of an Era’, a symbolic beginning and the first of a handful of live debuts from latest album ‘Radical Optimism’, all of which are arranged for the orchestra to stunning effect. Dua’s band is also here, but its the moments that are almost unfamiliarly reimagined that have the strongest impact – ‘Maria’ on record is pretty mellow, but ‘Maria’ tonight is almost operatic, swelling with brass and Dua’s immense, soaring vocals. Likewise, and although it’s not the first time she’s played it live, ‘Falling Forever’ is a highlight – the disco bop of the verses set straight against the serious, ascendant chorus is completely compelling. This doesn’t sound like Dua doing orchestral covers of her own songs, this is a wonderfully considered elevation, seamlessly brought together – sometimes literally, as Dua meanders through the orchestra with a smile during French Exit.
The stage is a sleek S-shape with the orchestra, band, and backing singers split in two and giving everyone in the Hall the opportunity for a front-row seat at various moments throughout the show, and Dua uses every millimeter of it to huge effect. She’s in her element as a performer, even – maybe especially – tonight, where her usual choreography is stripped back to a magnetic strut here, carefully planned mic-stand motions there, a flourish, a spin. It seems like it could all just be off the cuff, except for how intentional it all seems. Dua is well aware that she’s performing for an audience, and she is really, really good at it – she’s worked hard to perfect her stage presence, it’s worked. You really can’t take your eyes off her.
Though she’s absolutely ‘on’, her joy and affection for her craft shines through as well. She speaks warmly of her choice of cover, Cleo Sol’s ‘Sunshine’, saying “it just moves me every time I hear it”, and is brimming over with excitement to introduce Elton John to join her for ‘Cold Heart’, beaming in a way that’s at odds with her outfit change, as she becomes a dark, dramatic black swan dripping in diamonds. And the warmth continues as she introduces ‘Be The One’, telling us adoringly ‘I think I’m gonna have to sing this song for the rest of my life’ before delivering it from atop a grand piano, dancing with sheer delight.
After calling attention earlier to the stripped-back nature of the performance, here in the encore, Dua can’t wait to tell us a secret: “there’s just one thing that could make this a little bit better” – she doesn’t even pause for suspense – “and that’s my dancers!!!” And out they come for the totally unexpected live debut of Barbie smash ‘Dance the Night’. Somehow it’s an even bigger surprise than legend Elton John turning up, and it’s a complete celebration.
A moment of appreciation has to be saved for conductor Ben Foster, who performs almost as much as Dua does, leading the near-hundred strong orchestra, band, and choir. The grandiosity of the evening, the precision of the show, and their mutual passion for their art is a joy to watch come together. Dua is at her best, and if she can translate the special, theatrical magic of tonight into the stadiums she’s playing next year, they’ll be a spectacle.
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Words: Ims Taylor
Photography: Ben Gibson
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