A top-hatted usher stalks on stage, pledging spectacle. “This is far more than a musical presentation” the cackling host promises, as Janelle Monae’s android alter-ego flickers on screen to set up Archandroid’s elaborate mythology. A hooded trio emerge and pronounce tonight’s commandment: “you will dance, or die,” and the band launch into the song of the same name. It’s an exhilarating opening to an exceptional show: Dance Or Die flows into Faster which flows into Locked Inside, echoing the album sequence. The dancers reappear as nuns and the unbroken run pauses for its first breather. Three songs in, and the show seems unstoppable.
Unfortunately, a momentum-killing warble through Smile (originally covered on the Metropolis EP), stalls the tempo and outstays its welcome. Thankfully, it’s tonight’s only misstep: zombies materialise for Sincerely Jane, only to be culled by Monae’s dancing, each strike accompanied by a Batman-style horn stab; a confetti cannon is fired during Wondaland, emphasising tonight’s carnival atmosphere; while Cold War and Tightrope are conjoined in an unbeatable duo.
Light-sabre battles play out in the background – fitting, since “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away” perfectly summarises Monae’s retro-futuristic visual style and musical aesthetic. An encore of Come Alive ratchets up the theatricality further, the ABC coaxed to its knees in a semblance of sleep, before exploding on command, the stage a manic display of revelry. The whole affair is wrapped up in little more than an hour, but comfortably fulfils its opening promise.
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