renaissance tour book scans

All the Photos From Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour

She stole the show in custom pieces from Fendi, Gucci, and more

The Renaissance has begun. Beyoncé has stayed incredibly quiet since releasing her critically lauded seventh studio album last summer and now, devout members of the Beyhive are finally able to witness songs such as “Break My Soul,” “Cuff It,” and “Virgo’s Groove” live. Bey opened her first show in a custom shimmering, metallic suit courtesy of Alexander McQueen while she thanked everyone in the crowd who traveled from all over the world to be with her for the tour’s opening night. “You could have been anywhere in the world tonight, but you choose to be here with me,” she said to the crowd after taking the stage. It’s safe to say fans across the world will continue to show up for Queen Bey as the tour progresses from now until the fall. Ahead, see all of the photos from the ongoing Renaissance World Tour.

Beyoncé in Stockholm

The superstar wears custom Alexander McQueen and Tiffany & Co. jewelry for the opening night of the Renaissance World Tour, on May 10, 2023.

Beyoncé onstage on night one of the Renaissance World Tour.

Beyoncé wearing custom Courrèges alongside her dancers.

Beyoncé onstage wearing custom Gedebe boots in Stockholm.

Beyoncé onstage in Stockholm.

Beyoncé in custom David Koma.

Beyoncé onstage in Stockholm in custom Loewe and gold custom booties by Gedebe.

Beyoncé in custom Alexander McQueen and Tiffany & Co. jewelry.

Beyoncé wearing custom Coperni.

Beyoncé in London

Beyoncé in custom Roksanda.

Beyoncé and Blue Ivy in London

Beyoncé and Blue Ivy coordinating in Loewe .

Beyoncé in Mary Katrantzou .

Beyoncé in custom Alexander McQueen .

Beyoncé in custom Off-White.

Bianca Betancourt is the culture editor at HarpersBAZAAR.com , where she covers all things film, TV, music, and more. When she's not writing, she loves impulsively baking a batch of cookies, re-listening to the same early-2000s pop playlist, and stalking Mariah Carey's Twitter feed. 

Quinci LeGardye is an LA-based freelance writer who covers culture, politics, and mental health through a Black feminist lens. When she isn’t writing or checking Twitter, she’s probably watching the latest K-drama or giving a concert performance in her car.

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Beyoncé's Renaissance Tour costumes as books: What to read with Beyoncé on the brain

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Beyoncé’s epic Renaissance World Tour is here, and we're smitten.

In a review of Beyoncé's American tour opener in Philadelphia, USA TODAY's music critic Melissa Ruggieri wrote, "Beyoncé is an unstoppable force of precise movement and vocal dynamics, a superstar who, two months shy of turning 42 and in the where-did-the-time-go third decade of her career, has raised – and cleared – her own ambitious bar yet again."

One crucial ingredient to the tour's impact? The costumes. During her three-hour set, Beyoncé’s wardrobe is striking, full of gorgeous, custom-made piece by top designers. Her looks are so instantly iconic, we had to pair them with equally striking book covers that match the vibe.

Here's what to read when you've got Beyoncé on the brain.

Check out: USA TODAY's weekly Best-selling Booklist

See photos: Beyoncé's eye-popping outfits on the Renaissance World Tour

'All of Our Demise,' by Amanda Foody and C.L. Herman

This show-stopping Loewe catsuit reminds us so much of the cover of “All of Our Demise,” the second in the “All of Us Villains” duology (and check out the red nails on the catsuit). This YA fantasy series is like if "The Hunger Games" had dark magic with some very rich, pretentious kids fighting against each other for their family’s right to control all the magic in their city. If you like morally gray characters and messy teen romances, you have to check this series out.

• "All of Our Demise" at Amazon for $10
• "All of Our Demise" at Bookshop for $18

'All Systems Red,' by Martha Wells

We love the futuristic metallics on this tour and how they embody some of our favorite science fiction covers. This bodysuit pairs perfectly with “All Systems Red,” the first of Wells’ novellas in her Murderbot Diaries series, which follows a self-aware security android given to a planetary exploration team in a corporate-dominated future. This series has swept the science fiction scene and its seventh installment, “System Collapse,” comes out Nov. 14. 

• "All Systems Red" at Amazon for $17
• "All Systems Red" at Bookshop for $15

Beyoncé Renaissance tour 2023 set list: Full list of all songs in her nearly 3-hour show

'Silver Nitrate,' by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

This custom Off-White red suit is such a powerful statement piece and grabs your attention, just like the cover for Moreno-Garcia’s latest release, “Silver Nitrate.” The author of the bestselling book “Mexican Gothic” writes some of our favorite modern genre-benders. “Silver Nitrate,” set in Mexico City in the 1990s, is a dark thriller/horror following a sound editor and a faded soap opera star unraveling a decades-old curse on a lost film.

• "Silver Nitrate" at Amazon for $23
• "Silver Nitrate" at Bookshop for $26

'The Fragile Threads of Power,' by V.E. Schwab

This stunning custom dress by Roksanda has a floating skirt with matching gloves for an ethereal yet structured look, and it could not be a better fit for “The Fragile Threads of Power.” Schwab returns to the world of “A Darker Shade of Magic” with familiar friends and new enemies in a tale of alternate Londons in a magical feud with one another. We are obsessed with the original Shades of Magic trilogy and can’t wait to go back to Schwab’s London when the book releases Sept. 26. 

• "The Fragile Threads of Power" at Amazon for $27
• "The Fragile Threads of Power" at Bookshop for $28

'Beholder,' by Ryan La Sala

This holographic mini-dress by David Koma is such an eye-catching look, as is the cover of La Sala's "Beholder." This upcoming YA horror is about aesthetics and supernatural conspiracy, following a teen art handler who can rewind the reflections in any mirror, allowing him to look into its recent past. This book is a wild ride that incorporating several genres, and we know it's going to be a hit when it comes out Oct. 3.

• "Beholder" at Amazon for $19
• "Beholder" at Bookshop for $18

'Forging a Nightmare,' by Patricia A. Jackson

This Del Core ensemble with a matching cape and boots atop a crystal horse is one of Beyoncé’s most dramatic looks of the Renaissance tour and it pairs perfectly with the epic cover of Jackson’s “Forging a Nightmare.” This is an adult urban fantasy mystery following an FBI detective who must solve a series of murders in New York City, and it puts a new spin on the four horsemen of the apocalypse –– what a ride!

• "Forging a Nightmare" at Amazon for $11
• "Forging a Nightmare" at Bookshop for $15

'The Bees,' by Laline Paull

Donning a custom, standout bee costume by Mugler, Beyoncé pays homage to her fandom, the Beyhive. So naturally, we had to pair this look with Paull’s “The Bees,” a fantasy dystopia about the court politics and inner workings of a bee hive told from the perspective of a lowly sanitation bee. Pitched as “The Handmaid’s Tale” meets “The Hunger Games,” this book has gorgeous prose and compelling drama. If you’re in the hive, this book is worth the buzz. 

• "The Bees" at Amazon for $15
• "The Bees" at Bookshop for $16

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Your current subscription allows you to be actively logged in on up to three (3) devices simultaneously. click on continue below to log out of other sessions and log in on this device., these books embrace the spirit of beyoncé’s renaissance tour—and movie | read woke.

Cicely Lewis recommends books for the BeyHive.

Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour was more than a celebration of her music. Along with her killer dance moves, catch beats, and iconic outfits, she delivered a message that celebrates individuality, nonconformity, and empowerment.

That message will resonate far and wide beginning December 1, when her concert film, Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé ,   hits theaters.

Queen Bey thanks many people for Renaissance : Uncle Jonny, a gay man and her “godmother” who exposed her to inspiring music, along with “the pioneers who originate culture” and “the fallen angels whose contributions have gone unrecognized for far too long.”

In the song “Alien Superstar,” Beyoncé highlights the power of being different:

We dress a certain way, we walk a certain way We talk a certain way, we-we paint a certain way We-we make love a certain way, you know All of these things we do in a different Unique, specific way that is personally ours We just reaching out to the solar system

Keeping you in Renaissance mode, these books also celebrate individuality and difference. They show that if you believe in yourself, no one can break your soul.

Beyonce: A Little Golden Book Biography   by Lavaille Lavette. illus. by Anastasia Williams. Golden Books. Jan 2023. PreS-Gr 3– Little bees will enjoy this pared-down life story of Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter, from her Houston, TX, childhood performing in singing and dancing competitions, to her 1990s fame with the girl group Destiny's Child, to her blockbuster stardom of today.

Does My Body Offend You? by Mayra Cuevas and Marie Marquardt. Knopf. 2022. Gr 7 Up– When Puerto Rico is destroyed by Hurricane Maria, Malena must move to Florida, where she meets Ruby, a certified rebel seeking a cause. After Malena is reprimanded for a dress code violation (going braless after a painful sunburn), Ruby, outraged, wants to take a stand. But for Malena, standing up for herself goes against everything she’s been taught, and their impassioned friendship turns implosive. “These are the bodies we were born into. The bodies given to us by our mamis and abuelas. What is so wrong with these bodies?” Malena asks. Told in alternating chapters, Malena and Ruby’s story empowers readers to be comfortable in their skin.

Friday I’m In Love by Camryn Garrett. Knopf. Jan 2023. Gr 7 Up– This book’s cover screams, “I’m that girl!” Mahalia Harris misses her chance for a Sweet Sixteen party and decides to save up to throw herself a coming out party instead. But it’s no easy feat. Mahalia struggles to save money because she must help her mom pay bills, and she is also dealing with her strained relationship with her dad, racism, and a crush. A beautiful story that shares the bitter and sweet parts of being poor and having a crush,  while celebrating Black joy and queer joy.

Kween by Vichet Chum. HarperCollins. Oct 2023. Gr 8 Up – Soma Kear is a 16-year-old Cambodian American queer girl with a unique voice. When her father is deported back to Cambodia, Soma channels her impassioned frustration into rhymes and posts them, and her first video goes viral. Divided between two worlds, Soma realizes she needs to embrace her talent and explore the possibilities — including getting on stage for the school’s spoken-word competition. But that means putting herself, her story, and her fears for her father out there for all to see.

A Quantum Life: My Unlikely Journey from the Street to the Stars by Hakeem Oluseyi. adapt. by Joshua Horowitz. Ballantine. 2021. Gr 8 Up– Dr. Hakeem Oluseyi is an alien superstar: astrophysicist, cosmologist, inventor, educator, and memoirist. Born into poverty as James Edward Plummer, Oluseyi loved science and books, which made him a target for bullies. He moved constantly as a child, struggled to survive on the streets, and persevered to join the Navy, attend college, and earn a PhD at Stanford. This book covers family, addiction, systemic racism, and space science; a must-have for every collection.

The Black Flamingo   by Dean Atta. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray. 2020. Gr 9 Up – Half Jamaican and Greek-Cypriot, Michael grew up wishing for Barbies but settling for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Being gay and mixed race is hard for Michael, and he struggles to fit in. At college, he finds his wings at the Drag Society. In a world of toxic masculinity, Michael embraces his true self. This coming-of-age verse novel celebrates love, uniqueness, blackness, and queerness.

Champion of Fate by Kendare Blake. Quill Tree. Sept 2023. Gr 9 Up– Fantasy warriors, get in formation! in the opener to the epic “Hero Maker” duology, Blake delivers a strong, intelligent, passionate female lead. After Reed’s parents were killed in a raid of her settlement, she was saved by two women riders and raised by the Aristene, an order of mythic female warriors. To be championed by them means the chance to become a legend. For her initiation, Reed  must shepherd a hero into battle; their alliance gets complicated when it turns into something deeper. Readers will fall into this fantasy world with a slow burn, forbidden romance, and more.

The Blackwoods by Brandy Colbert. HarperCollins. Oct 2023. Gr 9 Up– This ode to Black Hollywood tells the story of four generations of a celebrity family. Blossom Blackwood was one of the most famous actors of her time, but to her granddaughters, Hollis and Ardith, she was just “Bebe.” After Bebe passes, a spotlight on Hollis and Ardith will test their personal limits and erase their privacy. Colbert masterfully crafts their stories in this showstopper.

Cicely Lewis, 2020 School Librarian of the Year, is the  media specialist at Meadowcreek High School in Norcross, GA.

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Beyoncé Reveals Full Credits for Renaissance Tour

By Nina Corcoran

Just three dates in, Beyoncé has shared the full credits for her ongoing Renaissance World Tour , a massive spectacle that includes a flying disco horse and mechanical arms . The list, published on her website , is an exhaustive look at everyone involved in making this tour happen. In addition to backup dancers, band members, and audio technicians, the credits also outline the teams handling wardrobe, carpentry, choreography, lighting, video, props, and “automation.” She even shouts out her drivers, caterers, and security – the latter of which includes, yes, fan favorite Julius Deboer. Read the full Renaissance Tour credits at Beyoncé’s website .

The Renaissance World Tour kicked off on May 10 in Stockholm, Sweden with a long setlist. Beyoncé is currently in the United Kingdom for the European leg of the tour. Once she flies back to North America this summer, she will perform in Toronto, Philadelphia, Chicago, Atlanta, Las Vegas, Seattle, and Houston, among other cities.

Renaissance came out last July. It was Beyoncé’s seventh No. 1 album and won her a handful of Grammy Awards : Best Dance/Electronic Recording , Best Traditional R&B Performance , Best R&B Song , and Best Dance/Electronic Music Album . With those wins, Beyoncé is officially the most decorated artist ever in Grammys history.

Read why Pitchfork named the Renaissance World Tour one of “ The Most Anticipated Tours of 2023 .”

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By Jazz Monroe

By Madison Bloom

The new trailer for Beyoncé's Renaissance tour film just dropped

C rowds screaming, Beyoncé stretching with her daughter Blue Ivy backstage, stadiums filling up with fans, and dancers rolling their shoulders and fixing their ear pieces to the introduction of her track Cozy. These scenes are just a glimpse of what fans can look forward to in Beyoncé 's upcoming concert film, Renaissance, which will premiere worldwide on December 1.

The film, which has already made millions in presale tickets, will take audiences behind the scenes of her all-stadium world tour, Renaissance, which came to a close earlier this month. It will bring together backstage footage – such as videos of Bey with her children – with clips of the star performing on stage, as well as sequences of her rehearsing and preparing for the five month long tour.

“When I am performing, I am nothing but free,” says Beyoncé in the film's trailer. “The goal for this tour was to create a place where everyone is free. And no one is judged. Start over, start fresh. Create the new. That’s what the Renaissance is about."

Here is everything to know about the new film, Renaissance.

What is Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé?

Renaissance is Beyoncé's upcoming concert film of her record-breaking, sell-out world tour, Renaissance, which started in Stockholm in May and concluded in Kansas on October 1.

Directed by and starring the legendary pop musician, the film will partly follow Bey as she prepares for the tour, but mostly, it will recreate the spectacle of the show itself, providing audiences with a 3D experience of the nearly three hours set. It'll bring together behind-the-scenes footage with videos of the crowd, and sequences of Beyoncé performing.

When is it being released?

The film is being released on December 1, which some fans have noted coincides with World AIDS Day. Beyoncé's latest album is a love letter to the ballroom communities who created the voguing sounds that now play a major role in a huge amount of modern dance music. During the Renaissance tour some of the world's most-famous ballroom dancers, such as Honey Balenciaga, were given the stage to perform during the costume changes. AIDS devastated the Eighties New York LGBTQ+ communities who created modern voguing.

In addition, Beyoncé's "Uncle" Johnny, who she referenced in an open letter introducing her Renaissance album, died of HIV.

"A big thank you to my Uncle Jonny. He was my godmother and the first person to expose me to a lot of the music and culture that serve as inspiration for this album," said Beyoncé in the note. "Thank you to all of the pioneers who originate culture, to all of the fallen angels whose contributions have gone unrecognized for far too long. This is a celebration for you."

The film will have its US premiere in LA on November 25, and its London premiere on November 30.

Where is it being released?

In the US, Renaissance will be released at AMC Theatres, the same cinema chain that recently screened Taylor Swift 's ERAs Tour concert film. Tickets are already on sale via the AMC website, and are going for $22 (around £18) plus tax.

In the UK, Renaissance will be screened across the country, including at Vue and Odeon cinemas. Tickets are on sale now, costing from around £16.99 depending on the cinema.

Sources told Deadline that the first day of the US tickets presale for the film was estimated to have made between $6 million and $7 million. Films that drummed up equivalent first day pre-sale figures included Avatar: The Way of Water ($5.5M) and Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 3 ($6M) – aka some of the year's biggest films.

What is the dress code?

Although Beyoncé is very much about people wearing exactly want they want – both to feel good and express themselves – there is an informal dress code for the film, for those who want to rise to the occasion: for the US premiere, it's Cozy Opulence.

We're imagining Faux Fur coats with sparkling cowboy hats and silk pyjamas with knee-high leather boots. But Cozy Opulence can also be taken more lightly: the guideline is, thankfully, wide enough to include cable knit jumpers, UGG boots, cashmere sets, and wool blankets, all of which are undeniably opulent while being properly cosy.

Here in the UK, she's requested “formal opulence" at the premiere -glittery tuxedos at the ready, then.

What has Queen Bey said about Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé?

True to form, Beyoncé has said very little about Renaissance. In October she shared a poster introducing her upcoming film on Instagram. Earlier in the month she had also shared a clip of the film's trailer with the comment, "Be careful what you ask for, 'cause I just might comply."

Thousands of fans concluded that Beyoncé's comment was making reference to her major lack of Renaissance visuals. None of the songs from her July 2022 album have been given music videos – although she did release several "visualisers" for single Break My Soul and its Madonna remix – and fans have been demanding for something extra to feast their eyes on.

In July, during one of her concerts, she dropped a major hint: "You are the visual, baby," she told the crowd. It turns out she was speaking literally: the fans at the concert have been recorded, and turned into the film, which are in turn the visuals of Renaissance. OK, Bey.

Is there a trailer?

Yes: there are two. The first two-minute trailer shows both sides of the tour, and both sides of Beyoncé: there are private moments where the singer is warming up with her dancers and cuddling her children, and then she is on the move, reflecting what is about to happen, and stunning crowds with her all guns blazing performances. We've popped it just above.

The second, which is at the top of the page, was released earlier today, and is much more heavily focused on the show itself. It shows lights flashing, Beyoncé performing, crowds cheering, her dancers voguing and some of the tour's giant set pieces. "In this world that is very male-dominated, I've had to be really tough to balance motherhood... and being on the stage, it just reminds me of who I really am," says Beyoncé over the clips of her blockbuster show. Later she says the now-infamous line: "You are the visual, baby."

Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé will premiere on December 1

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Beyoncé: Renaissance World Tour review – a dizzying three-hour spectacular

Friends Arena, Stockholm Queen Bey’s first solo headline tour in seven years is a lavish leap forward for live entertainment, dripping with sci-fi disco decadence, sex and Black pride

E ven without Taylor Swift’s Ticketmaster-melting Eras Tour nipping at her heels, it wouldn’t do for a star as compulsively ambitious as Beyoncé to merely protect her status as the greatest pop show on Earth. Not when her first solo headline tour since 2016 could instead push 21st-century live entertainment another lavish leap forward.

Titled after the Texan’s disco glitter bomb post-pandemic party album of the same name , Renaissance is a monster blockbuster concert experience on a different plane. Fifty-seven stadium dates globally, starting in Stockholm, are projected to gross as much as £1.9bn ($2.4bn) by the time the tour ends in New Orleans late September. Dripping with sci-fi disco decadence, sex, body positivity and feminine Black pride, the near three-hour spectacular plays out in front, behind and, at times, inside a football-pitch-wide high-definition video screen designed to assault the senses at dizzying scale.

The BeyHive, as Beyoncé’s fans collectively style themselves, are buzzing pre-show as they flood into the venue from around the world for their first chance proper to see their queen live since 2018’s On the Run II co-headliner with Mr B, Jay-Z. Dressed head to toe in official tour merch, including a cap and hoodie both emblazoned with the word “THIQUE”, Mykwain Gainey has been to 20 Beyoncé shows over the past two decades and has spent nearly £2,000 to fly here from New York. “To see her transcend, and become what she has become, especially as a Black woman, is exciting,” he enthuses.

Brazilian Yhes Bezerra wears a spangly cowboy hat like the one sported by Beyoncé in the tour poster, except theirs is homemade; sticking on the thousands of tiny mirror panels took nine hours. They were determined to come to the opening night to avoid social media spoilers about what to expect. “I want everything to be a surprise,” Bezerra smiles.

Beyoncé appears first in a video cut scene, laid out luxuriously across the giant screen semi-naked in dimensions big enough to be visible from space. And yet, once she emerges in the flesh – all sequins, shoulder pads and that megawatt smile, drinking in the crowd’s screams – she begins disarmingly with a slew of her rawest soul songs. By the second, Flaws and All, she already appears to be fighting back tears, whether of release or gratitude or both. It’s an opening that seems designed to strip away artifice, if only to provide some sharp contrast for the heavily technologically augmented spectacle about to follow.

Harking back to early house and techno and the ecstatic utopia of the dancefloor, a segment dedicated to the Renaissance album ensues with Beyoncé done up something akin to the Maschinenmensch in Metropolis. She grinds with a dozen backing dancers to the jittery reggaeton of her boss bitch mission statement I’m That Girl, then dances with some actual robots (a pair of mechanical arms) during Cosy. Were all that not semi-hallucinogenic enough, Alien Superstar interpolates narcissistic anthem I’m Too Sexy by 90s dance-pop twosome Right Said Fred.

With many of the setlist’s whopping 36 songs abridged, the tempo is relentless. Blink and you’ll miss dancers popping out of the stage like champagne corks, or Beyoncé’s powerhouse band getting wheeled into occasional view on a tall stepped riser (shades of Beychella), such as during Chic-style feelgood funk workout Cuff It. “Y’all having a good time, Stockholm?” our host inquires, wiping an imperceptible bead of sweat from her brow. “Me too.”

Black Parade finds Beyoncé cruising the stage atop what looks like a kind of lunar rover. Somewhat comically, it exits up the gusset of a pair of massive splayed legs. Later she sings Plastic Off the Sofa stretched out in a clamshell. Come Crazy in Love, the show finally gets the enormous disco ball it seems to have long craved, dangled from the rafters for only a bit longer than the time it takes for the crew to get it up there and back down.

Bass-quaking, envelope-pushing Black power anthem Formation is a powerful political statement in any setting. Performed in a kind of virtual cathedral, horny southern rap and gospel cocktail Church Girl (sample lyric: “drop it like a thottie, drop it like a thottie”) might just be intended to provoke. But by Beyoncé’s own standards, it’s hard not to read Renaissance as a show much lighter on overt socio-political messaging than it is sheer, unfettered, mildly chaotic indulgence. And who could blame her?

In a final, unsubtle, retro-futuristic fanfare, Bey summons Bianca Jagger’s iconic Studio 54 moment by gliding through the air on a glitter-encrusted white horse while Summer Renaissance – which samples Donna Summer’s I Feel Love – blares. The disco history references may or may not be landing with the mostly young BeyHive, but that’s not really the point. By rewiring dance music past in a sensory overload of truly stunning ambition and stamina, Beyoncé is writing some history of her own.

The Renaissance World Tour continues until 27 September, see https://tour.beyonce.com/ for dates

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It would take a coffee table book or perhaps a college level course to properly…

Looks from Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour

• By Grace Boateng
• Oct 4, 2023

It would take a coffee table book or perhaps a college level course to properly explore the magic that was the fashion for Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour. For now, here is a small taste of some of the looks that she dazzled the world with.

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On Her Renaissance Tour, the World Is Beyoncé’s Ball

The pop superstar’s first solo outing in seven years draws on the dance-music cultures that inspired her 2022 album, and her work that led up to that ecstatic release.

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By Lindsay Zoladz

Reporting from Toronto

It was a crowd that had come to dance, dressed for a rodeo in the distant future: sparkling cowboy hats, silvery fringe, outré sunglasses and any other sartorial detail that represented “Renaissance,” Beyoncé’s dazzling seventh album and the occasion for her first solo tour in seven years. But as the imperial pop superstar took the stage at the Rogers Center in Toronto on Saturday night for the first North American show of her Renaissance World Tour, she reminded the club-ready audience just who was in charge. Because if they were prepared to move, she was going to make them wait a little longer.

Setting the table for a two-and-a-half-hour performance that was visually spectacular, vocally ambitious and sometimes tonally confused, Beyoncé, 41 — clad in a glimmering chain-mail mini dress — began the show with a nearly 30-minute stretch of ballads and deep cuts that harked back to her past: an acrobatically sung solo rendition of the 2001 Destiny’s Child track “Dangerously in Love,” a bit of “Flaws and All” from the deluxe edition of her 2007 album “B’Day,” and the sparse, soulful “1+1” from 2011, which she belted atop a mirrored piano.

It was a both a display of her vocal agility and a curiously traditional way to start a show centered around an album as conceptually bold and forward-thinking as “Renaissance” — a sprawling, knowingly referential romp through the history of dance music , with an emphasis on the contributions of Black and queer innovators. Here, instead, was a stopover in Beyoncé’s Middle Ages.

As a live entertainer, though, she has earned a fresh start. The Renaissance World Tour shows are some of Beyoncé’s first appearances since her dazzling, commanding performance headlining the 2018 Coachella festival (later released as the concert film and live album “Homecoming”), which served as a kind of mic-drop capstone to her career thus far. It would be futile to repeat that, and difficult to top it. The loose, fluid “Renaissance,” still said to be the first part of a trilogy , represents a new chapter in Beyoncé’s recorded oeuvre. And once the show finally found its center and, however belatedly, welcomed the crowd to the Renaissance, it heralded her maturity as a performer, too.

The show’s look — as projected in diamond-sharp definition onto a panoramic screen — conjured Fritz Lang’s “ Metropolis ” by way of the 1990 drag ball documentary “Paris Is Burning.” After a lengthy video introduction, Beyoncé emerged from a chrome cocoon and vamped through a thrilling stretch of the first suite of “Renaissance” songs; during “Cozy,” most strikingly, a pair of hydraulic robotic arms centered her body in industrial picture frames, like a post-human Mona Lisa.

In May, when Beyoncé began the European leg of the Renaissance World Tour, rumors swirled that she may have been recovering from a foot injury, since her choreography was a bit more static and less stomp-heavy than usual. The Toronto show did nothing to dispel that chatter, but it also showed that it doesn’t matter much. Perhaps because of some constraints, Beyoncé has embraced new means of bodily expression. She brought the flavor of ball movements into the show and served face all night, curling her lip like a hungry predator, widening her eyes in mock surprise, scrunching her features in exaggerated disgust.

Few seats in the stadium provided a legible view of Beyoncé’s face, of course, though the screen took care of that. She played expertly to the cameras that followed her every choreographed move, aware of how she’d appear to the majority of the audience and — perhaps just as crucially — in FOMO-inducing social media videos. The stage itself was breathtaking, featuring an arced cutout section of the screen that made for playful visuals, but its full grandeur was not visible from many of the side seats, making the band and sometimes the dancers difficult to see.

The screen, though, was the point. Beyoncé’s two solo releases before “Renaissance” — her 2013 self-titled album and “Lemonade,” from 2016 — were billed as “visual albums,” featuring a fully realized music video for each track. Again toying with her fans’ anticipation, she has still not released any videos from “Renaissance,” giving the previously unseen graphics that filled her expansive backdrop an added impact, and making them feel more weighty than a convenient way to pass time between costume changes.

Many of the tour’s outfits struck a balance between Beyoncé’s signature styles — megawatt sparkles, high-cut bodysuits — and the futuristic bent of “Renaissance.” She played haute couture bee in custom Mugler by Casey Cadwallader and glimmered in a Gucci corset draped with crystals. But the night’s most memorable look — so instantly iconic that a few fans had already tried to replicate it, from photos of the European shows — was a flesh-tone catsuit by the Spanish label Loewe, embellished with a few suggestively placed, red-fingernailed hands.

Throughout the set, Beyoncé wove interpolations of her predecessors’ songs throughout her own, as if to place her music in a larger continuum. The grandiose “I Care” segued into a bit of “River Deep, Mountain High,” in honor of Tina Turner, who died in May . The cheery throwback “Love on Top” contained elements of the Jackson 5’s “Want You Back.” Most effective was the “Queens Remix” she performed of “Break My Soul,” which mashes up the “Renaissance” leadoff single with Madonna’s “Vogue,” paying homage to the mainstream pop star who brought queer ball culture to the masses before her. (The merch on sale at a Renaissance Tour pop-up shop in the days before the show included a hand-held fan emblazoned with the song title “Heated” for $40. It sold out.)

The show contained moments that sometimes felt conceptually cluttered and at odds with the “Renaissance” album’s sharp vision, like dorm-room-poster quotes from Albert Einstein and Jim Morrison that filled the screen during video montages. The middle stretch, arriving with a lively “Formation,” featured Beyoncé and her dancers clad in camo print, riding and occasionally writhing atop a prop military vehicle. There was a wordless, gestural power in the moment she and her entourage held their fists in the air, referencing a salute that had rankled some easily rankle-able viewers of the 2016 Super Bowl Halftime Show. But if Beyoncé was calling for any more specific forms of protest or political awareness — especially in a moment when drag culture and queer expression are being threatened at home and throughout the world — those went unarticulated.

Beyoncé’s endurance as a world-class performer remained the show’s raison d’être; she is the rare major pop star who prizes live vocal prowess. By the end of the long night — and especially during the striking closing number, the disco reverie “Summer Renaissance,” when she floated above the crowd like a deity on a glittering horse — she extended the microphone to lend out some of the high notes to her eager and adoring fans. “Until next time,” she said, keeping the stage banter relatively minimal and pat. “Drive home safe!”

Even when Beyoncé embraces styles and cultures known for their improvisational looseness, she still seems to be striving toward perfection — a pageant smile always threatens to break through the stank face. Commanding a stadium-sized audience, she was an introvert wearing an extrovert’s armor. That tension is part of both her boundless charm and her occasional limitations as a performer. And it makes moments of genuine spontaneity all the more prized.

Naturally, #RenaissanceWorldTour was trending on Twitter long after the show, but one of the clips that went viral was unplanned. During a rousing performance of her early hit “Diva,” Beyoncé accidentally dropped her sunglasses. She fumbled them for a second, mouthed an expletive as they fell to the ground, and gave a sincere, shrugging grin before snapping back into the choreography’s formation. For a fleeting moment, she seemed human after all.

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Fans show up early for Beyonce 'Renaissance' tour in Louisville

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Beyonce fans are waiting a little longer to see her in concert in Louisville. Her concert has been pushed back an hour due to storm chances. 

What You Need To Know

Beyonce brought her "renaissance" tour to l&n stadium in louisville on july 17, 2023 the concert was pushed back to an 8 p.m. start time due to weather concerns despite the delay, fans gathered at l&n stadium hours before the concert to purchase merchandise and get in line early.

Doors are opening later and the concert itself has been pushed back from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. ET.

Many fans have been at L&N Stadium since early Monday afternoon. Beyonce pop-up shops and people excited for the show are surrounding the stadium. Crowds wanted to get there early to buy merchandise and make sure they were in the front of the line to get in.

“I’m really looking forward to the camaraderie and just the joy of being with other people who love dancing and having fun,” said Rebekah Craven, a Beyonce fan who showed up early. “I got a tour book for my coffee table to show all my friends I was here, a shirt and a pair of shorts.”

Fans were also sure to come prepared.

“We bought our ‘heated’ fans and that’s pretty much it, just to keep us cool. It’s a hot day today so we’re going to be prepared,” said London Whitlock, as he brandished a large black folded fan with “Heated” emblazoned on the front.

“We got here early to have early access,” said fan Claire DeFrancisci. “I actually flew from Denver, Colorado, to be here tonight with my friends, so I’m really excited about that.

Fans are encouraged to keep an eye on the GoCards Twitter, Facebook and Instagram pages for weather updates that could impact the show.

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Beyoncé's rennaissance tour is coming to louisville, latest news.