You have all heard the hype.
People walking out.
Complaints.
Cries of ‘how dare she charge $1500 to play her CD and prance around in her underwear with some flashing lights!’

This weekend, I went to see the spectacle for myself – the spectacle that is Britney Spears. I have to say I’m disappointed. Not in Britney, but in the people who have spent the past week complaining. Britney is no Pink, but at the same time the Circus stage show is exactly that – a show.

There are clowns and trapeze artists, men on stilts and juggling dwarves. Dancers hang from the ceiling precariously, others swing dangerously from ropes. The magician makes Britney disappear, while the theatrics of chopping the pop princess in half are made all the more amusing by the fact that she continues to ‘sing’ while her body is supposedly chopped in half.
While it is fair to admit that yes, she was lip synching (even the ballads), she does manage to be on stage for close to two hours and incorporate about six costume changes, spend equal time performing to each section of the audience and work up a sweat with her dance moves. For someone who has gone through more than her share of ups and downs (and probably a few more downs) she has certainly picked herself up and put herself back together again really well.

She looked fantastic and if I can ever hope to look anywhere near that good after having two kids, I’ll be a happy girl. No she wasn’t a stick figure – she was healthy and vibrant and that is so much better. For all the criticism her female dancers have received, I’d like to see the people bagging them get up on stage and dance they way they did for anywhere close to 20 minutes let alone 2 hours. All the dancers were amazing, and the ‘So you think you can dance’ style showcase giving them their own 30 seconds of fame was well deserved.

The songs spanned Britney’s career, with the original and classic ‘Hit me baby, one more time’ featuring, through to the concert namesake, ‘Circus’. A possible downside to the show was the odd introduction by Perez Hilton – strange, unnerving and very difficult to understand. Further, the audience enthusiasm was down, perhaps a reaction to this week’s negative build up. Britney did nothing to encourage participation, ignoring the audience for the majority of the show and only saying ‘hello Melbourne, how’re you doing tonight?’ once. I can live with the lip synching, but not interacting with your audience and supporters frustrates me.

So to Britney’s critics, its time to take a step back and have a good look at the girl. She has two young children, has managed a comeback from a breakdown and performs solidly night after night, all while under the glare of the media spotlight and constant negative degradation. I say kudos to her for braving the critics and holding her head high – all and she is not even 30 yet. Happy Birthday for next week Brit, I hope that the minority has not put you off returning to Australia in the future.

Visit www.pop-couture.com for a wrap up of the afterparty, including an exclusive chat with Britney’s dancers!