Melanie Martinez @ Jacobs Pavilion ( 7/5/23)
Melanie Martinez is currently on her Portals World Tour, which sees the singer playing her latest release, Portals, in its entirety. As someone who prefers to listen to music as whole albums, this is such a cool way to see an artist touring. It made sense for the show to be laid out this way considering the conceptual nature of the album, and the amount of performance art we were about to witness.
Before the show started I looked around the sold out Jacobs Pavilion to see so many excited fans, many of which were dressed up for the show. I saw lots of pointed ears, wings, flowing dresses, and even a few people with head to toe body paint. As we waited for Melanie to come on stage, the crowd started chanting her name and I could feel the anticipation. When the stage crew came out to drop the curtain, revealing the set for the first time, the crowd went insane. The stage was adorned with giant mushrooms, hanging vines, and a large screen that played accompanying visuals for each song. Melanie came out wearing the mask that is featured in all the promotional material for the album and tour. She seems to embody a different character for each album, and becomes that character for the duration of the tour. I think this is so cool, and I highly respect that commitment to the concept behind her work. Melanie opened the show with the first song on Portals "DEATH" followed by "VOID". Melanie performed along side a full band and a team of dancers who she regularly joined in choreography with. I appreciate how much effort was taken to make each song visually different, to embody the meaning of it. For the song “SPIDER WEB” a giant spider web was strung across the stage. For other songs a video played behind Melanie as her backup dancers told the story of the song. The show made me feel like I was witnessing a music video, live in front of me. I also appreciate how accessible the concert felt for people (like myself) who weren't familiar with the story being told. It felt very easy to follow and enjoy even without knowing the intimate details.
My favorite moment of the night happened as I was walking through the pit section of the venue towards the end of the night. I stopped and watched two early teenaged girls screaming every word to the song that was playing, dancing together so freely. I know I was witnessing a core memory being made between two friends and that felt very touching to see. There are plenty of dates left for the Portals tour so make sure to grab tickets if you have the chance!
Photos and words by; Shelly Duncan
