Review By: James Ouellette

P!NK’s Summer Carnival Takes Over Cincinnati and The Great American Ballpark, July 26, 2023

In her first US appearance presenting the Summer Carnival 2023 tour, Pink fills the 44,000+ stadium with

a night of music, fun, acrobatics and high-flying feats! Supported by DJ KidCutUp, Grouplove, and Brandi

Carlile, all of whom were thrilled to be a part of this elaborate stadium show.

The fans crowded in early in anticipation of the festivities. Giving Barbie a run for her money, Tons of

pink hats, wild florescent shirts and pants for that matter, really let everyone know that this crowd was

ready the Carnival for sure. This Wednesday night certainly looks like a wild Saturday night instead is

about to begin. I heard a few people planning to call out of work for Thursday before she even played a

note… sorry Boss.

Carnival colors fill the stage along with a glitter-full set of red lips high across the center. The show

begins as the sun goes down and we are welcomed by an animated face and voice of the star of our

show “Hello, hello, welcome to the here and now, you are free to dance…it’s a Carnival… let’s get this

party started.” And you guessed it, “Get The Party Started” kicks in as Pink herself appears in the now

parted lips, sporting a sequined leotard and attached to a harness. In true acrobatic fashion that we

have come to expect from the athletic singer, she proceeds to catapult up and down on a bungee type-

rope to a massive roar from the crowd. From here, everyone is up on their feet dancing and singing

along. Known for her ability to sing while in any position, including upside down, Pink continues with the

early acrobatic antics being suspended by her feet by two male acrobatic dancers. Wow… what a start to

the show! You can almost see the beaming light from her face as she first addresses the crowd.

Before the show, my friend Dave tried to bet me which song would be before the encore. Dave realized

he was wrong when “Raise Your Glass” kicks in and keeps the crowd up and dancing. “Who Knew” is up

next and following this, she tells the crowd how much she love us. I was thinking she may be having

more fun than we are. Next up is “Just Like A Pill”, a chart topping hit which brings a stadium full of fans

to a full on sing-along before slowing things down a bit.

In a true combination of simultaneous singing, dancing, high flying stunts with colorful costumes, the

show continues as only Pink can do. The tempo slows here for “Try” and eventually “What About Us”

progressing into an elaborate dance with fireworks. Two dancers appear at the foot of the runway

alongside a loud message “Breathe,…what can you hear, can you hear the birds, my voice…now

breathe..breathe..you are safe, you are not alone..” she then progresses into “Turbulence”, then

“Funhouse”, going all the way back to the 2008 release of the same name. Pink manages to span several

genres of music during this performance as in her career. From pop to rock, and maybe even a little

country, Pink can bring harder rocking tunes along with well-placed ballads during this evening’s set.

This is testament to her diversity as is the wide age range of the crowd.

After a quick outfit change, adding an elegant long skirt, then we have a couple of more touching

moments. Here she sings and plays the piano, a beautiful version of “Make You Feel My Love” originally

by Bob Dylan (also covered by Adele). Following this was the unexpected tribute to Sinead O’Connor

who was found deceased on the day of this show. Obviously, this was a shock to the industry and a sad

end for this troubled soul today. To honor her, Pink and Brandi Carlile team up to sing an incredible

rendition of “Nothing Compares 2 U”. A fitting tribute to honor the legend.

Getting back into the rhythm of the setlist, another love song follows from The Truth About Love album

“Just Give Me A Reason”, with Jason on piano, as the audience can again sing along. Well into the

second half of the set by now, the performance keeps the entire stadium engaged. Next, Pink goes

straight into the song she wrote for her daughter, “F**kin Perfect” from her 2010 greatest Hits So Far

album in 2010. Then onto the rockin’ “Just Like Fire”, mixed with Pat Benatar’s Heartbreaker in the

middle of it, as the performers charge into a literal fire on stage. I wasn’t close enough to feel it, but I

bet they did in the front. Hope it didn’t get our photographer Toby up there.

Next, another outfit change as she is now sporting a pink fur jacket and mini skirt. Harmonizing with the

back-up singers in an acoustic rendition of “Please Don’t Leave Me”. Pink inserts many delights for us all

during this evening. She receives gifts from the crowd, stopping to put on the apron sent up to her (I

couldn’t read what it said). Also during the set, she brings on her 12-year-old daughter Willow on stage

to help with the show (entertainer in training maybe?). Somewhere in there, a frog painting made its

way up to the stage which may now make its way to Willow’s room we are told.

Pink now gets intimate in a duet with her guitarist at the foot of the runway, with “Kids In Love” written

by one of her favorite duos apparently, First Aid Kit. It’s now time for a tribute to her much loved and

missed dad “When I Get There”, which she dedicates to the people who are missing someone. The

shining torches have now returned, she says her dad told her that he was still waiting for his one

signature song. This is a gospel-tinged/ country song “I Am Here” from the Beautiful Trauma record.

Next up is the politically charged “Irrelevant”, a powerful song, where the backdrop shows images of

protests from rights to abortion to racism and politicians. Pink tells the crowd, ‘So many people told me

to shut up and sing and also that I had a penis and I am irrelevant, so I wrote this song….’

“No Ordinary Love” (Sade) shows us her beautiful and sensual side alongside the dancers in black in a

well-choreographed piece. Next up, a new one, “Trustfall” (2023 release) is an all-out dance and

trampoline fest. This seemed to be a challenging one for her aerobics dancers, as they bounce up and

down from a high platform onto trampolines underneath reminiscent of a gymnastic performance. I kind

of wish I could do those things, but hey, leave it to the professionals. More gymnastics and big red lip

costumes all around stage signify the dynamic “Blow Me (one last kiss)” leading up to the band

introductions. This is followed by the latest single, “Never Gonna Not Dance Again”, where Pink leads

the way down the runway while the screens look like someone is playing Just Dance on the Wii in my

basement (Am I dating myself here?).

As Pink closes out the night, she moves onto the encore with “Last Call” and the grand finale “So What”

with an amazing flight through the air, soaring across the entire stadium, with fireworks and confetti and

ending in an explosion of smoke cannons. I have to say the only fans who could have been disappointed

were the ones running to the parking lot early. My friend Mike in the upper deck said she flew right by

their seats. Kudos to the aerial crew for sure. So, to sum it up, whether you’re a full-on Pink fan, or

someone who was enticed by a loved one, you could not help but be entertained tonight. A

performance filled with music, dancing, gymnastics, acrobatics, and a light show…How could you not

feel good after that. Thanks Pink and the entire crew.

Setlist:

Act I

Intro Montage

1. Get The Party Started (Includes Elements Of "Sweet Dreams" By: The Eurythmics And "Gonna Make You Sweat" By: C&C Music Factory)
2. Raise Your Glass
3. Who Knew
4. Just Like A Pill
5. Try
6. What About Us (Dance Remix)

Act II

 7. Heartbeat (Interlude)

 8. Turbulence

 9. Funhouse (Piano Interlude)

10. Make You Feel My Love (Bob Dylan Cover)

11. Nothing Compares 2 U (Prince cover) (with Brandi Carlile) (Tribute to Sinéad O’Connor)

12. Just Give Me A Reason

13. F**kin' Perfect

14. Just Like Fire (includes elements of "Heartbreaker" By Pat Benatar )

Act III

15. Please Don't Leave Me (Acoustic)

16. Kids In Love

17. When I Get There

18. I Am Here

19. Irrelevant (Extended Outro)

Act IV

20. Smoke (Interlude)

21. No Ordinary Love (Sade Cover) (Extended Outro)

22. Are You Gonna Fall? (Spoken Word interlude)

23. TRUSTFALL

24. Blow Me (One Last Kiss) (With Band Introductions; Includes Elements Of "The Final Countdown" By: Europe )

25. Never Gonna Not Dance Again (With Dancer Introductions; Extended Outro)

Encore # 1:

26. Last Call (Extended Outro)

Encore # 2:

27. So What (Aerial Stunt; Extended Intro And Outro)

Setlist: