On a fine Wednesday evening at the Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, thousands of Melanie Martinez fans came in dressed in various costumes, including overgrown toddlers, fairies, and school kids — everyone in attendance was ready for the Trilogy Tour.
There was already a basic premise of what would occur, thanks to Martinez's explanation that the shows on this tour would cover her album trilogy in three acts, letting fans enjoy classics from Cry Baby and K-12 as well as some new tracks from 2023's Portals.
Opener Sofia Isella started the evening off with a pretty solid set. Beach Bunny followed, and although the band isn't the most energetic, the audience still sang along to tracks like "Sports," "Prom Queen," and "Cloud 9," thanks to their popularity on TikTok. But everyone was gathered here to see what Martinez would cook up on stage.
With a setup that included a giant half-circle LED screen with lights around it and a live band occupying either side of the stage, Martinez emerged to roaring applause as she rose from beneath the stage on giant letter blocks as "Cry Baby" began to play. She followed it up with her 2014 debut single, "Dollhouse," joined by a group of dancers dressed up to match the dreamy, child-like vibe of her Cry Baby alter ego.
The first act of Martinez's performance was made up entirely of songs from Cry Baby, which felt like the most energetic part of the show in terms of fan engagement. This is the fan base's favorite era, and they let it be known. However, there wasn't ever a silent moment during the entire show, thanks to the visual spectacle Martinez delivered on stage. There was always something to look at, from the outlandishly costumed dancers to the visuals on the giant LED screen. Even Martinez herself moved about the stage throughout the show.
It's also worth noting that Martinez's setlist followed the order in which the songs appeared on each of her three albums. For Cry Baby, we went back into the troubled childhood of her alter ego and watched as she had her "Pity Party" on stage. The audience was brought back into the world that she debuted almost a decade ago as the pastel-colored everything gave a bit of an enjoyable sensory overload.
The crowd sang along to themes of love and despair, like "Carousel" and the viral hit "Play Date." A giant stuffed animal appeared on the screen while the crowd sang the chorus of "Mad Hatter" before eventually going black.
When the show re-emerged, an all-pink bus came down to the tune of "Wheels on the Bus," and Martinez reappeared in a schoolgirl outfit to kick off the K-12 portion of the show.
If you're unfamiliar with the album's narrative concept, it's basically about Martinez's superpowered alter ego finding herself in a totalitarian school run by an evil staff and her attempts to liberate herself and her fellow super kids.
The show continued with "Class Fight," which treated the audience to a bit of an illusion. A seesaw was displayed on the screen, while two lifts on opposite sides of the stage mimicked the motion of the playground staple, with Martinez and her dancers moving up and down.
During "Show and Tell," Martinez transformed into a marionette tugged and pulled by strings dangling from the rafters. Another highlight was the dance number during "Nurse's Office," where Martinez was semi-strapped to a gurney while nice camera work gave the audience different points of view of the movement on stage.
"High School Sweethearts" was the right song to transition to the Portals portion of the show. Martinez's soft voice and the elegant backdrop of a school ballroom were the perfect send-off for K-12.
Melanie Martinez's show was a three-act performance that highlighted the three albums she's released so far.
Photo by Larry Marano
Unlike the two previous acts, there wasn't as much emphasis on stage props. Instead, it resembled a traditional pop show, with the choreography playing a more prominent role.
For the finale, Martinez performed "Womb" as confetti and pyrotechnics started going off. It was at this moment that Martinez finally interacted with the crowd, thanking everyone for coming to the show.
The last thing she did on stage was ask everyone to scream out "Free Palestine!" with her as her dancers lifted a flag. Though the support for Palestine could be seen as controversial to some, no one seemed bothered, and the audience joined the chant.
Ultimately, the Trilogy Tour is a celebration of what makes Martinez such a unique pop star in today's musical landscape. During her live performances, she goes well beyond just running through her hit songs; instead, she invites you into her world, submerging you in an audio-visual experience that few other acts can deliver. Martinez makes sure there is something for everyone to enjoy about her performances, from diehard fans to someone relatively new to her music.
