The Circus of Britney Spears

Jun 18, 2017

All eyes were definitely on Britney Spears in the center of the SM Mall Of Asia Arena last June 15.

Just like a circus, the Manila leg of her “Piece Of Me” tour was a feast for the eyes— an elaborate 90 minute production decked out with lavish sets and props, full LED backdrops, prismatic lights, fabulous quick costume changes and fierce dance numbers that drove the audience crazy.

The 35-year-old performer who was fit, sassy and charming as ever, sang 23 of her most popular dance hits from the past 18 years. 90s babies in attendance (some even dressed in their favorite Britney look) rocked out and sang their hearts out to the songs that defined their childhood. She opened the show with “Work Bitch” and worked her way to seamlessly incorporate “Baby One More Time”, “Oops I Did It Again”, “Me Against The Music”, “Crazy”, “Stronger”, “I’m A Slave 4 U” and “Toxic” with relatively new ones like “Break The Ice”, “Piece Of Me”, “Womanizer” and closed out the show with “Til The World Ends” triggering the right flashes of nostalgia when you least expect it.

You’ll be let down though if you expected stylized vocal runs or high notes in a Britney concert because ever since her early days as a performer, it’s no secret that she mimes to her songs. While being a good vocalist in her own right, Britney is the icon she is because of her incomparable stage presence, her unique character and her skill of rendering one of a kind performances. The arena crowd’s unrelenting and infectious energy gives truth to that.

True enough, there’s only two types of people in the world— the ones that entertain, and the ones that observe. And Britney is definitely a put-on-a-show type of girl.

(Words and photos by DJ Alice)

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