Ariana Grande brought the house down as Wicked co-star Cynthia Erivo joined her on stage during the second night of her London residency.
The close friends, who both received Oscar nominations for their performances in the 2024 film before reprising their respective roles as Elphaba Thropp and Galinda Upland in Wicked: For Good, performed For Good and Happy Days at the O2 last night.
Fans’ ‘overwhelming’ support
Ariana thanked fans for their “overwhelming” support as she began her London stint on Saturday following the news that she is to step back from public life amid 'endless' scrutiny. After the show, the Thank U, Next singer shared a clip of the two on stage together to her Instagram Stories, with a heart emoji.
This weekend’s performances were the first of 10 nights at the venue. The set drew heavily on her 2024 album Eternal Sunshine with tracks from her latest album Petal, as well as her best-known hits such as Into You, Thank U, Next and 7 Rings, along with a cover of Lady Gaga’s Rain On Me.
Cinematic staging
Her elaborate staging saw her perform in a rundown house and the lighting rig being transformed into a police helicopter, while Ariana waved and blew kisses to fans throughout. Videos breaking up each act of the performance gave the concert a cinematic feel, which was added to by Cynthia's appearance on Sunday.
The show comes after the star announced last month that she would take a step back from the spotlight after she completes the residency, which will bring an end to her Eternal Sunshine tour.
Decision to step back
Speaking on stage at an earlier gig on the tour, Ariana said her decision to take a break from public life came from “a thoughtful and empowered place” and was “not a reactive or impulsive thing”.
She has also dropped out of the upcoming London revival of the Stephen Sondheim musical Sunday In The Park With George, in which she was due to appear opposite Wicked co-star Jonathan Bailey. Her role is due to be recast.
It follows her music video for Petal, the title single from her newly released eighth studio album, which sparked speculation about her health. The singer also appeared to confirm her relationship with dancer and photographer Ricky Alvarez on Instagram earlier this week.
The No Tears Left To Cry musician gave more details of her decision to step back last week, saying: "Sometimes when a story comes out that's not directly from me, things can get a little blown out of proportion, so I wanted to speak to my fans directly tonight because I love you so much."
"So basically, the announcement that was made yesterday was not a reactive or impulsive thing. It is something that I had decided, it's a plan that I had quietly made a long time ago, and it's a decision that was made from a thoughtful and empowered place."
"And I want you to know that many, many things can be true at the same time. I want to share this because I heard that, I heard that my fans were worried that negativity was ruining things for me. But I just have to say that could not be more than the opposite."
"I promise you, this is not what that is. And I just want to be very, very clear. Nothing can ruin... Multiple things can be true at the same time. Bound- Boundaries can need to be set. Human beings can need a break sometimes."
"And also, this can be, and will continue to be, the greatest experience of my professional and creative life, and nothing is getting in the way of that, or will get in the way of that. So, I just wanted to make that quite plain." She went on to add that despite "what noises exist," nothing will be able to "distort" the reality or "be real to me or louder to me than this love that we share, or even how it feels to make art with the people that I love and respect."
