MELANIE MARTINEZ BRINGS CRY BABY TO GLASGOW FOR AN “ENTIRELY BONKERS” STAGE SPECTACLE | THE TRILOGY TOUR
LIVE REVIEW | MELANIE MARTINEZ ‘TRILOGY TOUR’ | GLASGOW OVO HYRDO 23/09/24 by Anne Kelly
For the second time in less than 12 months, conceptual American pop-star Melanie Martinez has returned to the UK. Having taken her third studio album ‘Portals‘ on a world tour in 2023, Martinez made her return to Glasgow’s OVO Hydro this week with the highly anticipated ‘Trilogy‘ tour which see’s the singer bring the greatest hits of her three album discography [Cry Baby (2015), K-12 (2019) and Portals (2023)] with a theatrical farewell to the much adored Cry Baby character. For those unfamiliar with Martinez’ Cry Baby universe; all you need to know is that the character has evolved throughout the three album aesthetic from a baby to a school girl and finally, a ‘creature’, representing the death of Cry Baby. Now, I’m not here to take you through the meaning of Melanie Martinez’ creative universe (try fandom for that), but instead to share how that same universe came to life inside Glasgow’s largest indoor venue on a dark drizzly September evening.
It’s evident from the moment I stepped out the iconic ‘Smartie Tube’ tunnel beside the Hydro that Melanie Martinez fans are more than just your usual passive fans. Made up of primarily young women with an average age of around 15, most accompanied by their unsuspecting parents; these young fans have decorated themselves alike to Martinez’ different style aesthetics. The level of effort involved in costumes and well put together outfits capture the Lolita/Doll/Croquette-core style Melanie does so well.
CRY BABY
After hosting opening acts Sofia Isella and Elita, the Trilogy show finally gets started and the room is elated. Making her grand entrance to the sounds of Cry Baby, the screens depict a haunting dollhouse, mirroring the melancholic ambience of the singers first album. The first nine songs are performed chronologically to it’s original album tracklisting, running through favourites such as ‘Dollhouse‘, ‘Carousel‘ ‘Pity Party‘ and ‘Madhatter‘ amongst others. Every track is brought to life in it’s own unique way, making the show a spectacle to be seen. ‘Carousel‘ see’s a rabbit headed merry-go-round brought on stage for Melanie to ride whilst the screen backdrop depicts the carousel which zooms out to toy version that subsequently melts away as the fictional dollhouse burns down accompanied by pyro flames on stage. The show is so immersive, bringing down that fourth wall and making the arena floor an extension of the stage. During ‘Soap‘ real bubbles are floated throughout the arena and during ‘Pity Party‘ hundreds of heart shaped balloons dropped from the ceiling into the heart of crowd. Whether or not you were there as a super fan or a chaperoning plus one, you can’t not appreciate the spectacular on stage.
K-12
Finishing up ‘Act 1’ of the two hour show with ‘Madhatter‘, there is a brief interval where the premise for Melanie’s K-12 era is established. The immersive experience doesn’t stop there and the lighting works with the storytelling to create an underwater experience which leads into the introduction of ‘Act 2’ which see’s the symbolic K-12 bus displayed submerged in water – a reference that doesn’t pass fans by as screams echo around the arena as the sounds of ‘Wheels On The Bus‘ kick in.
The storytelling aspect of Melanie Martinez music is fascinating. Whilst on the surface we are presented with childhood innocence, the music themes are indeed particularly dark. Following the same Cry Baby character into boarding school, the theatrical settings continue. ‘Nurse’s Office‘ see’s Martinez perform the entire song laid on her back, being pushed around the stage by her entourage of dancers on a hospital bed, whilst the big screens are used to display the singer from a birds eye view.
Probably the shortest of the trilogy ‘acts’ with only eight songs performed, at least three of which were shortened versions of the originals. Ending with ‘Teachers Pet‘ and ‘High School Sweethearts‘ the latter boasts some of the most theatrical elements of the show so far. Oversized Love Heart sweeties lit up with profanities are moved around the stage by the incredible team of dancers before the dramatic ending of Cry Baby taking her own life on stage with an arrow to the chest. Okay, so maybe not the most ‘family friendly’ show in the world, but the powerful storytelling aspect of Melanie’s musical aesthetic more than makes up for the darker moments.
PORTALS
Another interval, as Cry Baby’s next transformation prepares to emerge on stage; this time as a four eyed, pixie style ‘creature’ from Martinez’ ‘Portals‘ era. The most extensive section of the trilogy, we are treated to 11 tracks from the 2023 album of the same name. ‘DEATH‘ ‘VOID‘ capture the melancholy, whilst ‘Faerie Soiree‘ and ‘Spider Web‘ offer some lighter moments (at least audibly, lyrically they may have much darker messages) .
I feel Melanie is at her most comfortable during the Portals section of the show, her confidence shines through her lucid movements. This feels more authentic; more Melanie as opposed to Cry Baby. Having seen the ‘Portals‘ tour last November, I expected this section of the show to be much the same, but I was pleasantly impressed. The team have cranked the stage direction up a few notches and as a result, I left feeling much more connected to the story as a whole. In fairness, I still don’t completely understand the story’s narrative at this point, but I do feel oddly connected to the character; and that’s a much more powerful feeling to be left with. After all, not everything needs to make logical sense in order to mean something.
Towards the end of the show it’s all about packing in as much last minute spectacle as possible. Flames engulf the stage from the well position pyro’s before cannons of confetti are popped from the roof across the floor. As fans rush to scoop up as much confetti souvenirs as they can, Melanie and her entourage of of backing dancers and band come together to thank the audience for coming to see the show. They have one brief final message to share before the lights go on, and that’s “FREE PALESTINE” as they all embrace the Palestinian tri-coloured flag. That was a message from Melanie, however, Cry Baby still has one last memo for her adoring fans; as the lights go on there’s a sudden shriek of sparks and broken glass from the stage before a giant teddy bear comes on the screen reminding fans it’s time to ‘GTFO’. And so we do, clutching some floor confetti and and feeling like we’re part of something too ludacrous to possibly have been real.
The UK leg of Melanie Martinez’ Trilogy Tour has now come to an end, but the star will continue across Europe in October before finishing up in South America! More info HERE!
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