By Lizzy Tsuang
Staff Writer
As Miley Cyrus strutted through the crowd in bedazzled onesies, danced with midgets, and rode a massive hot dog suspended from rafters, her intentions were loud and clear: Hannah Montana and her Disney days are long gone.
Although Cyrus’ Staples Center performance on Feb. 22 contained racy content and unusual props, she countered it with outstanding vocals and a captivating personality. With the help of well timed lighting effects, Cyrus was entertaining and unpredictable, but at the same time expressed her humble mind and passion for her work.
The 21 year old Nashville born singer is currently promoting her hip hop and country inspired album, “Bangerz”. Her performance at Staples was the fourth date of her Bangerz World Tour. Opening for Cyrus’ tour were pop artist Sky Ferreira and electro house duo Icona Pop.
The selective 20-song set list established a strong connection between Cyrus and the crowd. She set a positive mood at the very beginning of her performance, opening with upbeat tracks “SMS (Bangerz),” “4×4,” and “Love Money Party”. She kept a good balance of slow and fast paced songs throughout the concert and never failed to surprise the audience with what was to come next. Cyrus ended with her most popular hits “Wrecking Ball” and “We Can’t Stop”, and topped off the performance with her 2009 hit single “Party in the USA” as the encore.
The set list was diverse and the songs worked to complement each other, both beginning and ending in high spirits. It even included a semi-acoustic segment where Cyrus performed covers of the hip hop duo Outkast’s “Hey Ya” and country star Dolly Parton’s “Jolene”. She stunningly delivered the songs with minimal instrumental help, which accentuated her natural talent of singing. Cyrus interacted with the audience in a more personal way, too, by engaging them in conversation and accepting presents from the crowd.
The stage, designed mostly by Cyrus herself, was vivid and enticing to the audience. It was adorned with hundreds of strobe lights and laser beams, also featuring pre taped video projections of Cyrus. With dancers dressed as huge plush stuffed animals and an automatic gold mini vehicle, the arena turned into a circus like atmosphere and did not fail to entertain.
Cyrus took advantage of the slower paced songs such as “My Darlin’”, “Adore You”, and “Wrecking Ball” to feature her intensely captivating vocals with minimal assistance from her back up vocalists. She sang timely with her band and was able to connect with the audience on a more serious, emotional level during these songs.
Aside from her vocals and stage presence, Cyrus showcased nine different outfits, ranging from huge fur coats to full length black gowns. Cyrus fearlessly expressed herself through her eccentric clothing and really caught the crowd’s attention, making her the prime star of the show.
Cyrus’ performance was lively and intriguing from start to finish. She fully expressed her outstanding talent as a singer, and her outfit and prop choices were out of the ordinary, but proved to be amusing and made the experience all the more entertaining.
Ticket prices range from $70 to over $1,000. Miley Cyrus will continue the Bangerz Tour throughout the United States and Europe for the next few months.
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