Cher, Auckland NZ, 2018

Cher

21st September 2018
Spark Arena, Auckland, New Zealand.

Review by Sarah Kidd. Images courtesy of Garry Brandon.

New Zealand, it must be said has more than its fair share of strong women, so it seemed appropriate that last night Auckland welcomed one of the ultimate examples of female strength in the entertainment industry today, the one and only Cher.

With no support act announced fans eagerly poured into Spark Arena early only to find that no, Cher had not suddenly reached the stage in her life where all shows would now be served straight after dinner and that they would be waiting quite a while indeed before she would be making an appearance.

To entertain them however was Australian Andrew McClelland, a comedian, writer and DJ. Imbuing the audience with an outstanding selection of hits from Shania Twain’s ‘Man! I Feel Like a Woman’ to Nena’s ’99 Luftballons’ the aisles were alive with song; Aretha Franklin’s ‘Respect’ seeing many rejoice in her memory. Dressed in an immaculate three-piece suit complete with gold pocket chain, McClelland danced up a storm back and forth across the stage; however, after an hour of such frivolities the crowd began to grow restless.

Upon taking his leave of the stage, anticipation filled the room as thousands of eyes watched the curtains displaying the singular word of ‘Cher’ for the slightest of hints that the show was about to begin. As the lights dimmed and the roar rose, ‘Woman’s World’ came loud and strong through the PA system accompanying ten-foot images of Cher projected against the curtains; taking the audience by the hand they ran them through a timeline of Cher’s illustrious career as not only a singer, an actress but as an entertainer. The curtains fell and an audible gasp could be heard throughout the arena as before them lay an intricate and highly ornate set, Cher’s back-up band, split in two and hidden slightly in it’s shadows on either side of a set of doors that would become a pivotal centre point from which the show would revolve around.

A bevy of dancers whirled across the stage in costumes reminiscent of roman times as from the ceiling descended the queen herself, making an entrance as only Cher could, swathed in shimmering gold.  Atop her huge auburn wig that was the colour of the setting sun sat an elaborate headpiece, the combination having it’s desired effect as those in the audience turned in disbelief to each other at just how outrageously show stopping she truly looked. Delivering a live version of ‘Woman’s World’ which morphed into ‘Strong Enough’ she dropped her golden cloak to revel a skimpy spartan style uniform of her own and it was abundantly clear that Cher meant business.

Pausing and allowing the audience to give exuberant thanks to her presence, Cher smiled and declared that both her and her wig needed a drink before she then launched into what, at times, was a slightly rambling tale of turning forty and thinking that life was amazing as she flirted with Rob Camilletti (who at the time was just twenty-two) at her birthday party before her illusions were brought crashing down to the ground when she received a call from George Miller who was casting for the film The Witches of Eastwick to inform her that both himself and Jack Nicholson thought she was “too old and not sexy”. Fans of Cher would be well familiar with the story as it is one she has been telling for a while, but never the less it was humorous and honest and one that every woman in the room could relate to, the hands of time dealing their blow to all in one way or another. But more importantly its overall message was empowering, Cher not only going on to reprise the role but many more following it.

Back to the show and Auckland was whisked away to the lands of India, Cher appearing on stage atop a breathtaking animatronic elephant to the rhythms of ‘Gayatri Mantra’. In fact Cher and her world class troupe took Auckland to several continents, Cher walking the fine line of cultural misappropriation but never crossing it thanks to the show being more a celebration of said cultures. Paying homage to her time with ex-husband and lifelong friend Sonny Bono a touching duet with a moving portrait of Bono for ‘I Got You Babe’ brought a tear to many an eye before the audience was whisked away to the circus where Cher appeared as a gypsy for the stirring ‘Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves / Dark Lady’ double header.

It would be easy to get swept up in the moment and declare that Cher was note perfect throughout but this would be a disservice to the woman standing before all, her voice at times faltering, and particular tracks being held-up with combinations of lip synching and auto tune. But it genuinely mattered little. This was a world class show worthy of it’s run at Las Vegas and certainly it’s tour of the world. From the realms of burlesque to that of Abba, Cher took her fans and led them through numerous elaborate costume changes and set pieces, her troupe of dancers filling in the spaces in between with ebullient choreography that included phenomenal aerial acts against starry skies.

Several film montages gave glimpses into Cher’s music, film career and that of her life, the footage of her performing as Elvis to ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ tantalizing as they morphed into the familiar opening notes of ‘Walking in Memphis’, Cher appearing in a simple crisp white top and blue jeans. But undoubtedly it was the final two songs of the set that drew the biggest reactions of the night a blistering guitar solo that would have been more at home on the stage of Ozzy Osbourne, ushering Cher in wearing an updated version of that iconic outfit for ‘If I Could Turn Back Time’ the thrilling anthem culminating in her skipping off stage before returning moments later following a full Skrillex inspired EDM breakdown for ‘Believe’ wearing nothing more than a dress made of diamante strings.

Elaborate, entertaining and a consummate visual feast, this is a show worthy of jubilant celebration; Cher proving once and for all that age is nothing but a trivial number. To quote the diva herself; “What is your granny doing tonight?”

Were you there at Spark Arena for this high energy arena pop show? Or have you seen Cher perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!

Cher has one remaining show left in Auckland (TONIGHT) with limited remaining tickets still available from Live Nation – but get in quick as this show WILL sell out!

Setlist:

1. Woman’s World
2. Strong Enough
3. All Or Nothing
4. The Beat Goes On
5. I Got You Babe
6. Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves
7. Dark Lady
8. Half Breed
9. Welcome To Burlesque
10. Lie To Me
11. Waterloo [ABBA cover]
12. SOS [ABBA cover]
13. Fernando [ABBA cover]
14. After All
15. Walking In Memphis [Marc Cohn cover]
16. The Shoop Shoop Song (It’s In His Kiss) [Betty Everett cover]
17. I Found Someone [Laura Branigan cover]
18. If I Could Turn Back Time
19. Believe [encore]

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