On a sweltering, sticky, 27-degree Melbourne night, Dua Lipa emerged from a bomb of smoke atop a wave-shaped screen, bringing her Radical Optimism tour to an ecstatic crowd at Rod Laver Arena (20 March).
The moment she appeared, cloaked in beige corsetry and glittering boots, the audience erupted into an almost deafening roar. The tour, which marks the Australian leg of her global spectacle, is a masterclass in pop performance—equal parts theatre, dance party, and emotional catharsis.Act I
The show opens with hypnotic ocean visuals, the sound of crashing waves intertwined with whale calls, before launching into 'Training Season', a fitting opener for an artist who has dominated the last few years of pop music.As she segues into 'End Of An Era', a song that feels like a declaration of transformation, the stage morphs from deep blue hues to fiery red. By the time 'Break My Heart' rolls around, the choreography takes centre stage, with dancers carrying Dua above them, a symbolic gesture of surrender and reinvention.
Dua Lipa - image © Jayden Guarnaccia
Then, with a commanding march, she makes her way to the centre of the arena before launching into 'One Kiss'. It's at this moment the show transitions from spectacle to full-blown club euphoria – canons erupt, and the crowd is fully on their feet.
Act II
Dressed in a black, sequined leotard with silver teardrop earrings, and seated on a single white chair, Dua slows things down for 'Whatcha Doing'. The mood is intimate, reflective.Then, she flips the energy back up with 'Levitating'; before launching into the song, she teases the crowd: "Melbourne, are you guys ready to go to the moon?" With that, she floats across the stage, bathed in a celestial glow, as thousands chant the iconic "yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah," hook.
She then descends into the crowd, hugging fans, sharing a moment, accepting a white fur scarf that serendipitously complements her look. Back onstage, she introduces 'These Walls', one of the more introspective cuts from 'Radical Optimism'.
Dua Lipa - image © Jayden Guarnaccia
The moment is a welcomed breather before she gives the audience a taste of her versatility, covering Kylie Minogue's 'Can't Get You Out of My Head'. Having already surprised Melbourne fans on previous nights with AC/DC's 'Highway To Hell' and Natalie Imbruglia's version of 'Torn', Dua's appreciation for Aussie music royalty is clear.
Act III
Dua dials up the tempo again, playfully teasing the crowd: "It's been three years since our last class, are you ready to work out with me," before diving into 'Physical'. The entire arena transforms into a high-energy cardio session, a pulsing mass of bodies moving in unison.'Electricity' follows, another dance-floor igniter, before 'Hallucinate' turns Rod Laver Arena into a strobe-lit fever dream. The visuals are intoxicating, evoking the feeling of being in a packed underground nightclub with Dua as its hypnotic centrepiece.
She rounds out the act with 'Illusion', the stage a kaleidoscope of light and movement, a perfect representation of the song's dreamlike allure.
Act IV
The visuals shift – galloping horses strobe across the screens, the sound of drums pounding in sync. Dua, now in a sultry red dress, strides up the stairs to perform 'Falling Forever', a song dripping with raw emotion.Fog engulfs her as she ascends into the clouds, delivering 'Happy For You', her voice carrying a poignant ache. The moment is theatrical, grandiose, and deeply moving.
Then, a single, red light illuminates a violinist; before a single note is played, the crowd already knows. 'Love Again' begins, and Dua, centre-stage amidst swirling fire, commands the arena. She follows with 'Anything For Love', levitating on a podium draped in a crimson coat, her vocals soaring through the arena.
As the final notes fade, she transitions into 'Be The One', the audience responding with a deafening sing-along. The collective energy feels almost spiritual: hands clapping in perfect unison, confetti cascading down in a glittering farewell.
Act V
From the darkness, a single ding echoes signalling the encore. Red and blue visuals flash as dancers flood the stage. Dua reemerges in a striking black corset adorned with gold chains, launching into a club-infused remix of 'New Rules', a nod to her dance-floor dominance.The energy remains feverish as she barrels through 'Dance The Night' and 'Don't Start Now', both met with euphoric screams. However, it's 'Houdini' that delivers the show's final gut punch. Her performance electrifying, the guitar solo at the end an unexpected, exhilarating highlight. Then, just as suddenly as she appeared, she's gone, vanishing into the stage as the final note reverberates through the arena.
Dua Lipa - image © Jayden Guarnaccia
Dua Lipa's Radical Optimism tour is a triumph; not just in its meticulously crafted production, but in its ability to transport an entire arena into a shared experience of joy, nostalgia, and unfiltered euphoria.
Between feathers, confetti explosions, and some of the slickest choreography in pop, she solidifies her place as one of this generation's most electrifying performers. Underneath the high-octane spectacle, though, there’' something more – an artist reflecting on love, loss, and the power of moving forward.
If 'Radical Optimism' is an ethos, then Dua Lipa is its preacher, delivering gospel one dance banger at a time.
