You don’t need to understand the language of a song to understand a song, and this sentiment was powerfully evident when J Balvin performed at Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena on Wednesday night (September 4th).
As part of the Australia and New Zealand leg of his ‘Que Bueno Volver a Verte (It’s Good to See You) Tour’, Balvin is hitting all the hot spots, performing in Sydney, Brisbane and across the pond in Auckland following his Melbourne show.
Balvin is one of the biggest-selling Latin artists of all time, but there’s an obvious reason he can travel around the world performing in huge arenas to people of countless cultures and languages: he’s a phenomenal showman.
With an audience already appropriately hyped by opener SOFI TUKKER’s set, Balvin’s dramatic entry onto the stage was met with a wave of passionate screams in both English and Spanish.
As the sea of bodies jumped at Balvin’s command, he ascended a large cube that was centre stage. This remained the only real set piece, with every other possible surface used for projections of close-ups or a series of sci-fi graphics, including twerking aliens. (Which, I think, means they’re into it?)
Closely following their charismatic leader, the backup dancers, also alien-inspired on the night, never missed a beat. Their intricately detailed and fast-paced choreography served to heighten Balvin’s impressive showmanship.
Presumably intentional, the dancers’ costumes reminded me of Bolaki Badejo in the iconic alien outfit from Ridley Scott’s 1979 sci-fi classic. About mid-way through Balvin’s set, his dancers took a brief moment to slide into something more reminiscent of the bubble-wrap alien-loving cult in the 2000s peak stoner film Dude, Where’s My Car?.
@mglivetouring beam us up Balvin #jbalvin #latino #melbourne
As the show rolled on, Balvin never lost his pace, only ever stopping to share a moment with the crowd. Unsurprisingly, this was also the only time the crowd stopped, with everyone otherwise occupied singing Balvin’s lyrics and dancing just as passionately as anyone onstage.
Balvin moved from song to song fluidly and effortlessly, tying the whole show together with a satisfying unity.
However, for anyone looking for a show that’s just about the music, they might find themselves battling sensory overload. The theatrics were endlessly entertaining, certainly, but it was hard not to get caught up by all of the lights, projections and dancers, Balvin gamely doing well to remain the centre of attention amid the chaos.
But for his devoted fans who were out in force on Wednesday night, this mattered not; they were too well-versed in his panache and power.
Now, Balvin and his crew take their spectacularly-assembled show to Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena tonight (September 6th), Brisbane’s Entertainment Centre on Saturday, September 7th, before a final ANZ show at Auckland’s Spark Arena the following day.
Tickets to Balvin’s tour are available now here.
