Live Review
The Spanish visionary kicked off a two-night run at Madison Square Garden, staging a set that was part opera, part ballet, part pop extravaganza — and entirely her own
When Rosalía released her album Lux last year, one of the best parts of listening for the first time was discovering the baroque, spiritually divine world she’d created and letting it unfold like a magical, moveable book. But to hear it is one thing; to get a full look into the expansive, ambitious imagination behind the record is something different — and that’s exactly what happens when you see Rosalía perform the music live.
On Tuesday, the radical, shape-shifting Spanish visionary brought the album to Madison Square Garden in all its grandiose glory, staging a show that was crushingly beautiful, intensely artistic, and somehow also exhilaratingly fun and full of whimsy, too. The performance was part of a two-night run at the 19,000-person arena — both shows got postponed twice because of the Knicks’ NBA Finals run — and fans arrived expecting a religious experience, decked in celestial whites, lots of halos and headbands, and the occasional robe. But the second the Heritage Orchestra walked onstage, it was clear this wouldn’t be your regular Sunday service: The U.K. ensemble that has served as Rosalía’s backing band on this tour sauntered to the pit while Jimi Hendrix’s “Angel” blasted through the loudspeakers.
