Sabrina Carpenter Concert
“Oh, I leave quite an impression; five feet to be exact,” Sabrina Carpenter opens her Montreal, QC show last October. My friends and I were thrilled to finally see the pop star after driving through hours of traffic and missing the opener. After opening with her hit “Taste,” Carpenter showed off impressive choreography with her backup dancers to “Good Graces” for thousands of screaming fans.
Something I enjoyed about the show was the versatility of the performances. Sabrina not only performed her hit songs but also some of her lesser-known country tunes as well as more rock and R&B inspired songs. She even had a jazz band perform during one of her staged “breaks” so she could complete one of her many outfit changes. She even reworked her hit “Feather” in a jazzy production that felt like an NYC nightclub in the roaring ’20s. Carpenter’s versatility does not reflect someone who is looking for their sound and seeing what works, but rather an artist who has mastered their craft, which is what can be seen at her show. One of my friends who I attended the show with, Jolie Osborne ’27 (AKA The Truth), agrees, saying “Sabrina was my first concert and she 100 percent exceeded my expectations… [She was] worth the drive to Montreal.” Vocally, Sabrina is extremely talented, and she impressively can dance and sing at the same time with ease.
Perhaps what I found most enjoyable was the theatrical aspect of the show. I got the sense that every minute detail of the show was perfectly planned out and executed flawlessly. The set, which modeled a penthouse, made her seem like a real-life Barbie. She sings by the fireplace, in the bathroom, in the bedroom, and on a heart shaped sofa with her backup dancers. The show itself is set up like a TV show, where she acts as a host to her audience. Her acting skills from her Disney days have remained, as she was effortlessly funny and witty. Her costume change breaks were cleverly covered by fake advertisements on the screen that were relevant to songs on the Short n’ Sweet album or other Sabrina Carpenter pop culture moments. These advertisements helped keep the audience constantly entertained, which is already not difficult when Sabrina is on stage. There’s never a dull moment! She even played a game of spin the bottle with the audience to find out what the surprise song of the day was going to be (“Kiss Me” by Sixpence None the Richer!).
This feels like the return of the pop girl. It feels like we haven’t gotten this kind of dramatic and over-the- top kind of popstar since the early 2000s. In fact, this past year has been an interesting one for pop music. We have seen “late-bloomers,” or artists that have been around for a long time but are just now blowing up, reaching mainstream success. Sabrina Carpenter, Charli xcx, and Chappell Roan seem to be the holy trinity of this effect in 2024. All of these have been around for nearly a decade but are just now getting the recognition they deserve. Their talents have made them become the new pop it-girls, and after seeing Carpenter live, I understand why. The record and tour may be titled Short n’ Sweet, but its impact on pop music is much larger. We are witnessing what could be the ushering in a new era of pop music that is both reminiscent of the past, and innovative into what the genre could become.