The reaction was visceral. “It feels like a play! An opera!” exclaimed a woman leaving the Movistar Arena in Madrid on Monday night, her sentiment echoed by her companions. Rosalía’s Lux tour, currently captivating audiences with 17,000 fans per night, isn’t easily categorized. Since launching the tour on March 16 in Lyon, France, comparisons have flooded social media and professional reviews: ballet, contemporary dance, performance art, symphonic music, electronic beats, even flamenco. References to Goya, Degas, the Mona Lisa, and the Venus de Milo abound. It’s a whirlwind of artistic allusions, easily digestible in bite-sized clips online, but ultimately insufficient to capture the full experience.
Just as a recorded performance can’t replicate the energy of a live theatrical production, a concert viewed through social media snippets falls short of the real thing. These are “live arts,” disciplines that have endured since ancient Greece, thriving not in spite of, but perhaps as of, the omnipresence of screens. To truly appreciate – or even understand – Rosalía’s Lux, one must experience it directly. While fans with tickets to upcoming shows have lamented spoilers circulating online, the anticipation, much like knowing the ending of Romeo and Juliet, doesn’t diminish the power of witnessing the story unfold.
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Las referencias artísticas del ‘Lux Tour’ de Rosalía
Beyond Instagram: The Coherence of Lux
While undeniably “Instagrammable,” the true strength of Lux lies in its live presentation. Despite the seemingly disparate languages, styles, and aesthetics, the present maintains a remarkable internal consistency across narrative, visual, and conceptual fronts. The stage design, minimalist yet powerfully symbolic, encapsulates the essence of Rosalía’s latest album: two staircases that shift position throughout the four acts, alternately inviting ascent towards the heavens and descent into the raw energy of a dance floor. The two large screens framing the stage aren’t merely for amplification. they function as dramatic tools, focusing attention, framing moments, and amplifying emotions in a manner reminiscent of contemporary theater.
However, these elements would be hollow without a compelling performance at their core. Rosalía isn’t just a vocalist; she’s a captivating presence. She can convey profound emotion, even tears, during her most intimate songs, then instantly connect with the audience, melting hearts with a single smile. Critics have noted, as reported by El País, that she isn’t an opera diva or a ballet virtuoso when performing certain movements, but that isn’t the intention. These are fleeting moments, sparks of inspiration designed to transport the audience to other worlds.
A Synthesis of Disciplines
This hybridization of artistic languages is a hallmark of contemporary performing arts. Even before the concert began at the Movistar Arena in Madrid, the pre-show soundscape – fragments of operas and classical pieces – signaled this blending of genres. The familiar tuning of strings, typically associated with opera or symphonic concerts, felt deliberately jarring in a pop context. The placement of the Heritage Orchestra, positioned centrally rather than in a traditional pit, further underscored this unconventional approach.
Onstage, a closed curtain depicting the back of a canvas hinted at the show’s two primary visual narratives: the recreation of iconic paintings and sculptures, and the uninhibited display of the backstage world of performing arts – a nod to the avant-garde tradition of breaking the fourth wall. Rosalía, emerging from a prop trunk dressed as a ballerina, embodies this rejection of convention, presenting herself as a doll sprung to life from a music box.
From this “zero zone” devoid of artifice, Rosalía navigates a spectrum of emotions, supported by a world-class dance ensemble and choreography that is both effective and nuanced, rivaling the best of contemporary European dance. The choreography is primarily by the French collective (LA)HORDE, with the exception of the viral sensation from the Lyon concert, conceived for the song La perla by Greek choreographer Dimitris Papaioannou.
Four Acts, Multiple Interpretations
The concert’s division into four acts has drawn comparisons to opera, but it’s the grand scale of certain segments, the emotional shifts, and scenes like the “confessional” – where Rosalía invites friends to share their worst heartbreak stories (featuring YouTuber Soy Una Pringada and rapper Metrika in Madrid) – that truly set Lux apart. This isn’t simply a concert; it’s a carefully constructed experience.
But to define Lux as opera, theater, dance, or even pop music would be limiting. Rosalía operates by her own rules, and the show should be appreciated as such. Perhaps it’s best understood through a quote, famously (though anonymously) attributed to Lola Flores: “It’s not opera, it’s not ballet, it’s not theater, but don’t miss it.”
As the Lux tour continues across Europe and beyond, Rosalía is redefining the boundaries of live performance. The next confirmed stop is Amsterdam on April 2nd, with further dates scheduled throughout the spring, and summer. Tickets and tour information can be found on Rosalía’s official website.
What did you think of the show? Share your experiences and thoughts in the comments below.
