Halloween weekend in New York City is unlike anything else. People of all ages running around the city donning a variety of creative (and not so creative) costumes and seeking out a ghoulishly good time. It’s the one weekend of the year where there is no shortage of festivities to attend and this year, queer musician and icon, Fletcher, brought her Girl of My Dreams Tour to Manhattan’s Hammerstein Ballroom for two back to back sold out performances — calling it Fletcherween.
Sitting caddy corner from the iconic Madison Square Garden in Midtown, Hammerstein Ballroom welcomed 3,500 people for the performance of a lifetime. Fans wrapped completely around the block hours before doors even opened, holding signs and dressed in costumes that aligned with the “Sweet Dream” theme for the evening. Just three years prior, Fletcher performed at Hammerstein Ballroom as the opener so it was truly a sight to see how her growth and popularity has exploded in that time.
At 8pm sharp, New York based singer/songwriter, Verité graced the stage. In a fairy-like white dress and donning a headband with devil horns on them, Verité gave fans the perfect opening performance to set the tone for the evening. After asking the New York crowd how they were feeling and receiving endless hoots and hollers from the crowd, Verité smiled into her microphone and said, “Good. It’s good to be home”. Verité performed a brief 30 minute setlist packed with seven of her most recent songs, including “he’s not you”, “think of me” and her final song of the evening, “are we done yet?”.
After a lengthy 35 minute break between sets, fans began growing anxious for Fletcher’s arrival. Girls along the barricade kicked off a “Fletcher” chant that did its rounds around the venue before a person dressed as Donkey, from Shrek, graced the stage to remove the black curtains from the set. Beneath the curtain was a set that resembled a New York facade, with a storefront reading “Girl of My Dreams”, the title of Fletcher’s debut album.
Finally, the lights went dark and the show began. Fletcher, wearing an insanely intricate cupid costume with massive elaborate wings, and her band busted through the door of the storefront set and immediately ripped into “Guess We Lied…”. Immediately the energy was palpable, I could barely hear Fletcher over the fans screaming the lyrics right back to her. Fletcher threw fans along the barricade a few winks and a smile before delving fully into her zone and providing the thousands of fans in that room with the best Halloween-eve they’ve ever experienced.
Fletcher is no stranger to performing. Her talent showed immensely on that stage and her setlist was absolute perfection. While the majority of her setlist included songs from her debut album like “Serial Heartbreaker”, “Conversations” and “Her Body Is Bible”, Fletcher made sure to play some older favorites as well, including “Shh… Don’t Say It”, “girls girls girls” and a pop-punk version of her hit song “Undrunk.”
Taking a moment to foster a more intimate atmosphere, Fletcher and her guitarist Nicholas Veinoglou, sat atop the set for some acoustic songs including “I Love You, Bitch”. Perhaps a strong contender for favorite moment of the set was the unexpected cover of Britney Spears iconic song “If U Seek Amy”, that got the entire venue on their feet.
Fletcher, having just played two sold out nights at New York’s more intimate Webster hall roughly six months prior, proved to the crowd the absolute powerhouse that she is. The talent oozes out of Fletcher at every moment, impeccable vocals and a stunning ability to put on one of the best shows I’ve seen recently. It has been a pleasure to watch Fletcher continue to grow her career over the last couple of years and she is showing absolutely no signs of stopping soon. I cannot wait to see where we’ll see Cari Fletcher’s name up in lights next!
Verité
