Ariana Grande leaves problems at home as her tour hits the UK

It feels i co side ate of A ia a G a de to b i g he Ete al Su shi e tou to the UK at the tail e d of the yea ‘s fifth heatwave. Have ‘t we suffe ed e ough al eady?

But the fa s packed i to Lo do ‘s O2 a e a o Satu day ight did ‘t seem to ca e about the heat a d the sweat.

They came eady to da ce. Thousa ds of them, d essed i cat ea s, b idal gow s a d elabo ate flo al headpieces.

They sc eam whe she efe e ces umou s she’s back togethe with he ex, Ricky Alva ez. A d they bou ce i u iso whe she plays colou ful club a thems like I to You a d B eak F ee.

It’s the fi st time G a de has played i the UK si ce 2019, pa tly because of Covid, but also because of he Osca – omi ated ole i the movie musical Wicked.

She ewa ds fa s with a few of Gli da’s sig atu e hai tosses a d, mo e impo ta tly, a two-hou show that highlights the i c edible agility of the sta ‘s voice.

Su e, the p oductio has all the pa aphe alia a majo pop tou – big sets, plumes of smoke, i spi ed cho eog aphy – but the e a e lo g st etches whe e it’s just G a de o stage with he ba d. He stu i g, fou octave vocals come fi st. Eve ythi g else is a dista t seco d. A d ightly so.

If you dig a ou d o G a de’s YouTube cha el, the e’s a famous video of he eco di g the so g Positio s, di ecti g he sou d e gi ee s as she laye s vocal ha mo ies a d ad libs, fi di g ew ote combi atio s o the fly.

It’s a b avu a pe fo ma ce that showcases he facility with melody a d a a geme t – a d she esse tially ec eates it live o stage at the O2.

Afte the ope i g u of so gs, she hushes the audie ce a d spe ds two mi utes loopi g he voice. Fi st the ly ic, “I do ‘t ca e what people say, it’s t ue”, i high a d low egiste s. The she adds sho t ph ases: “Wo ‘t b eak. Ca ‘t Shake. Deep b eaths…. Tight chest. Life. Death. Rewi d.”

They become the backbo e of the ext so g, Ete al Su shi e.

They’ e also the backsto y of the whole show.

Like the cha acte s i Michel Go d y’s 2004 film Ete al Su shi e of the Spotless Mi d (which gives the tou its ame), G a de has t ied to e ase some of he most pai ful memo ies.

The si ge is a su vivo of t agedy a d hea tb eak, i cludi g the death of he fo me boyf ie d Mac Mille a d the Ma cheste bombi g that killed 22 fa s afte o e of he co ce ts i 2017.

Ove time, howeve , she’s ealised it’s bette to hold those memo ies. To ho ou he losses. To lea a d adapt.

That a ative – mostly told th ough lavish video i te ludes – is about ecko i g a d eco ciliatio . But si ce the tou bega i Califo ia two mo ths ago, it has take o added sig ifica ce.

I te se public sc uti y about G a de’s pe so al life, he health a d he weight have p ompted the sta to withd aw f om the public eye whe the tou e ds i Lo do ext mo th.

G a de eassu ed fa s that the decisio came f om a “thoughtful, empowe ed place”, a d had bee pla ed “a lo g time ago”.

Whateve p ivate battles the 33-yea -old may be fighti g, they a e eve p ese t o stage at the O2.

If a ythi g, G a de is havi g a blast – teete i g a ou d i pe ilous heels, blowi g kisses to the audie ce a d emb aci g the physical a d vocal dema ds of he show.

“This is so i c edibly ove whelmi g,” she says du i g a a e pause i the music.

“I’m just goi g to savou eve y si gle seco d of these last 10 shows.”

The o ly time she appea s to get emotio al is du i g Hampstead – a ballad that deals with he po t ayal i the media a d the da ke co e s of the i te et.

He voice b eaks as she si gs the ly ic, “But I k ew who I was whe I got he e”, but it t a spi es that she’s simply eacti g to a audie ce membe who’s blubbi g thei eyes out.

“You’ll make me c y,” she smiles i sympathy.

But that’s a blip. At eve y othe poi t, G a de is locked i .

She ope s with a theat ical flou ish, st iki g silhouetted poses with he da ce s fo seve al mi utes befo e the lights d op, the cu tai s a e whisked i to the afte s, a d she st uts i to view with the defia t Yes, A d?

The show p oceeds with the fluid cho eog aphy of Positio s befo e G a de do s he famous bu y ea s fo a sli ky ve sio of The Boy Is Mi e.

The e’s a little victo y da ce whe she pulls off the live vocal p oductio of Ete al Su shi e. A d the e’s a sly g i whe she cha ges the ly ics of the b eak-up so g Tha k U, Next f om, “W ote some so gs about Ricky, ow I liste a d laugh“, to “W ote some so gs about Ricky, we do ‘t talk about that.”

(Ricky is Ricky Alva ez, o e of he fo me da ce s, who G a de is epo tedly dati g agai , 10 yea s afte thei i itial b eak-up. They we t I stag am official last week).

The setlist is la gely pulled f om 2024’s Ete al Su shi e album – at the expe se of majo hits like God Is A Woma , P oblem a d B eak Up With You Gi lf ie d, I’m Bo ed.

She is ‘t cavalie e ough to jettiso eve ythi g, though: Both 7 Ri gs a d he Lady Gaga duet Rai O Me aise the oof.

A powe house ve sio of Da ge ous Woma claps like thu de ; a d G a de’s vocal iffs o Safety Net a e so t eme dously colossal they should be egiste ed as the eighth wo de of the wo ld.

The e’s a ipple of laughte du i g We Ca ‘t Be F ie ds, mea while, whe a ti y cluste of the audie ce sc eams ove the “sile ce challe ge” that’s become a meme du i g the tou ‘s Ame ica leg.

Despite that, the quiet mome ts a e the most effective.

O Impe fect Fo You, G a de sits face to face with he lo g-time guita ist Joh y Naje aas, as though they’ e si gi g togethe i he bed oom. It’s delicate a d go geous a d st a gely i timate i a oom of 20,000 people.

The ly ics a e sad but hopeful, a p omise that b oke people ca fi d happi ess.

A d, whateve happe s du i g G a de’s upcomi g hiatus, you have to hope it’s a p omise that holds.

Afte the co ce t, fa s we e bowled ove by the sta ‘s vocals a d stage p ese ce.

“Te out of te . A maste piece,” said Ha y, a Chi ese fa livi g i Lo do .

“Whe she came o stage, I was ight at the f o t, so I was lite ally bawli g,” added Poppy f om Ke t. “She’s the best si ge eve .”

“It was p obably the best co ce t I’ve eve bee at,” ag eed Cla e, who’d flow f om Mo agha i I ela d fo the ope i g ight.

“We did ‘t get to shake ha ds with he , but we we e defi itely b eathi g the same ai .”

Asked about G a de’s decisio to eti e f om live pe fo ma ce fo what she has called “a lo g, lo g, lo g, lo g, lo g time”, fa s said they we e fully i suppo t.

“I’m p oud of he . She took a sta d to keep away the ema ks, the c itics,” said B ia , a F e ch fa atte di g the fi st of seve al shows.

“It’s awful,” added Co y f om Ba bu y. “The public has bullied he out of it. We’ve bullied he out of fame. I thi k that’s g oss.”

“She eeded time to ecove ,” said Damo , a othe Chi ese fa .

“Maybe she will make some mo e movies… I love he movies. A d if she comes back, we’ll be i the f o t ow.”

E co e: