Melanie Martinez is back on the road for her sold-out Trilogy Arena Tour, and we’re not kidding when we say it’s one of her best shows yet.
The 29-year-old recording artist made her way to the Kia Forum in Los Angeles last Wednesday (May 15), where the Celeb Secrets gals — along with tens of thousands of other fans — gathered to see Melanie perform songs off her three studio albums — Cry Baby, K-12 and Portals.
When it comes to her photography, music, shows, and any project that she produces, Mel is known to bring out-of-this-world artistic visions, creative endeavors and visuals, so it’s no surprise that this show is everything fans could hope for and more. If you’ve been following along Melanie’s musical journey, you’ll know that she hasn’t shown her face in quite awhile; she has been performing and posting publicly as a reborn version of her character “Cry Baby,” where she dons pink skin, fae-like clothing and features, including ears adorned with numerous lobes and jewelry, and 4 eyes.
For the Triology Tour, Melanie decided to showcase all three eras of her music career by performing as herself/the original Cry Baby character for the first time since the K-12 Tour over four years ago. It’s a huge deal, as it gave fans who weren’t given the opportunity to see Melanie in her “Cry Baby” era a chance to see it.
Melanie kicked off her 2.5 hour set with the iconic “Cry Baby,” followed by 8 more tracks from her debut album. We were able to photograph the last 3 songs of this era, starting with her song “Pity Party,” which incorporated so many fun props and visuals from giant inflatable candles to heart shaped balloons — which were later handed to fans — and the cutest pink axe that Mel used to pop the balloons during her pity party.
The second song we got to see up close and personal was “Play Date,” which, like most of her set, heavily included her amazing dancers playing ring around the rosie around Melanie during this song. Our third and final song (in the photo pit), was one of our personal favorites from the “Cry Baby” era, not to mention probably the most energetic song from that album, “Mad Hatter.” You might notice the setting for this song is very dark, red, and sinister, as it gives off dark Alice in Wonderland vibes. The ending of this song specifically gives way for an effortless transition from “Cry Baby” to the “K-12” set, which began with Melanie’s first track on K-12, “Wheels on the Bus.”
Throughout the “K-12” set, the audience could witness the stage lights and visuals getting more dark and sinister, almost foreshadowing how the “K-12” era would come to a close, as “Cry Baby” was shot in the chest with a heart shaped arrow by cupid at the end of “High School Sweethearts” and is laid to rest. Melanie was simultaneously lowered beneath the stage to transform into her “Portals” era costume and makeup.
As we can imagine, this portion of the set takes the most time to transition into, however, Mel and her team figured out a way to keep the show running and the audience engaged. While we were transported into the “Portals” era, two of Melanie’s dancers performed the most magical lyrical and interpretative dance that spanned the entire stage before ending with Melanie appearing on a platform from the back of the stage singing her song “DEATH.” For those who don’t know, “DEATH” tells the story of Cry Baby’s rebirth and resurrection as this new being, saying her energy and self still exist, she’s just back in a new form. This theme is heavily carried through this album and set, and this portion of the night definitely had the most insane effects and visuals out of all 3 eras.
The “Portals” portion not only had SO many lasers and lighting effects, but also included a vast amount of visual effects, insane props and an ungodly amount of pyrotechnics that encapsulated Melanie and her dancers into the “Portals” world. The fire effects never cease to amaze us, especially during songs like “Battle of the Larynx” where she fights off a dragon and her song “Evil,” that sort of dragged us all to hell.
The stage itself is such a unique layout; featuring 3 tiers decorated in greenery, the countless risers and doors allowed the crew to lift and lower Melanie (and props) from below the stage in various locations, making it a one-of-a-kind show with smooth transitions.
If you’ve ever wanted to see Melanie Martinez in concert, THIS is the tour to see her on. This is probably her most ambitious and visually stimulating tour yet, and it’s definitely an experience to be had for new and old fans.
You can check to see if Melanie is visiting your city this year by checking out her tour dates here.
With writing, reporting and photos by Ashly Nicole and edits from Juliet Schroder.
