Exclusive: Review of Britney Spears’ concert in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi

The legendary Miss Britney Spears took her highly critically-acclaimed Femme Fatale Tour to Abu Dhabi this past weekend (11/11/11) as part of the F1 formula opening ceremony, and LOFT965.com had an exclusive press pass to give you all the inside details of what went down. It is safe to say that Britney spears has still got it, is using it and will probably have it for a long time to come. She certainly rocked the stage, and is probably going to earn her thrown as the queen of Abu Dhabi with her amazing, eye-popping, flashy dancing, and eye spectacle of a tour!

Upon arrival, it was clear that Yas Arena, where the concert was being held, seemed pretty packed. You always know if a concert is going to be good just by looking at the crowed. Doors opened for the show at 7:00 pm, and when inside there were two female DJ’s that took the stage and started playing some pretty decent dance tracks to hype up the crowed. Having a press pass gave me the privilege of being in the fan pit and very close to the stage, which was perfect because I was afraid the photos I would take wouldn’t come out clear due to distance, however they turned out to be good. At exactly 8:30 pm the girls on stage thanked the crowed and yelled if we are ready for Britney? The answer they received was very clear; “HELL YES WE WERE!!” A screen came on stage with Britney’s Femme Fatale album cover and had a countdown set for 30 minutes. With every passing minute the crowd grew bigger, and the anticipation got higher. The countdown came to 10 seconds with the crowd chanting out till zero and when it reached 00:00 minutes the infamous “It’s Britney, Bitch” was heard and the stage was lit up with hot pink neon words that flashed “Femme Fatale.”  The crowd went wild – myself included!

Click to view slideshow.

The show begins with a video introduction in which Britney is arrested by the police after a chasing sequence. As she says “I’m not that innocent”, the video screens part and she appears sitting on a metallic throne in a silver costume to perform “Hold It Against Me.”  The show is divided in five segments, and portrays a story in which Britney is a secret agent, who is chased by a stalker. The first section features her escaping from prison along with other female inmates. The second segment displays upbeat dance numbers and ends with a performance inspired by Marilyn Monroe (Amazing!). The third section features an Egyptian theme with fireworks and acrobatics. The fourth segment displays energetic routines and motorcycle costumes. The encore begins with a video interlude of Britney capturing the stalker, and is followed by two performances in which she defeats a group of ninjas.

Here is the set list of the songs that she performed in order:

1. “Hold It Against Me”
2. “Up N’ Down”
3. “3″
4. “Piece Of Me”
5. “Big Fat Bass”
6. “How I Roll”
7. “Lace And Leather”
8. “If You Seek Amy”
9. “Gimme More”
10. “(Drop Dead) Beautiful”
11. “Boys (The Co-Ed Remix)”
12. “Don’t Let Me Be The Last To Know”
13. “Baby One More Time/ S&M (Remix)”
14. “Trouble For Me”
15. “Slave For You”
16. “I Wanna Go”
17. “Womanizer”

Encore

1. “Toxic”
2. “Till The World Ends”

The show ended with Britney thanking the crowd and confetti everywhere. It was really a spectacle to see. From start to finish the show was energetic, high-amped and very well organized. I really liked the different looks that Britney had, and loved the fact that she kept changing up her outfits to fit her different personas throughout the show. The highlight for me was when she came out in an Egyptian inspired theme, with full Egyptian costumes, wooden boats, and slaves to perform “Gimme More;” that was really a sight to see. She sang most of her songs live, and perfromed her signature dance moves in songs such as “Slave For You” and “Womanizer”. There was a lot of speculation that she would tone down her show for Abu Dhabi, having it happening in the Middle East, however it was the exact Femme Fatale show, with the same set list, and same costume changes. Nothing was changed or altered for the region.

My only disappointment was with the song choices. Some of the songs being played were out of place. For example, I would have rather heard a recent single like “Criminal” or “Circus” from her previous album instead of “Don’t Let Me Be The Last To Know” or “Boys.” I was hoping for some more old school Britney but all we got was “Baby One More Time”, but even halfway though that song it transitioned into Rihanna’s hot single “S&M” where Britney sang her part from the remix. In-addition, I would have really liked to see Britney interact more with the crowed. She only talked with the crowed a couple of times, and I would have liked to see her really get the audience involved more.

Other than that it truly is an amazing show. Britney is a true entertainer, showgirl, and performer who challenges everyone’s expectations and more. The tour is a hit, the show is phenomenal. Whether you are a Britney fan or you were there for curiosity, Britney left everyone in the crowd wanting more. I personally enjoyed the show to the fullest, and would recommend everyone to go see it; no one will be left disappointed.

By Yousef Alsaleh for Loft965.com

Note: We would like to thank Yousef AlSaleh for attending, reviewing and photographing the event for the blog and also Think Flash for inviting us and providing press passes.

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