Marina in Philadelphia at The Met

Written By | Jenny Shackleton

For the first time since November 2015, Marina (f.k.a. Marina and the Diamonds) made her way back to Philadelphia to perform at The Met last Saturday night in support of her fourth studio album, Love + Fear. Looking at all the people lined up outside the concert, it was obvious that there is no such thing as a casual Marina fan. Almost all of the attendees were dressed up in fashionable, flashy, bright outfits, most involving sequins. There was a sea of faces decorated with drawn on hearts, reminiscent of her Electra Heart album cover. Marina and her fanbase, the Diamonds, are known to be very accepting of people all shapes, sizes, sexualities, races, etc.. Needless to say, the crowd was diverse in background, but also whole in the way that they have come together to passionately celebrate a night of seeing their favorite artist slay on the stage.

See More Photos of Marina Here.

The show was set up in two distinct halves, Love and Fear, to reflect her most recent album theme. During the slower songs in which she played her piano, she seemed to enjoy stopping mid-lyric and listening to the fans finish entire verses for her because the entire venue was singing along. Fan favorites of the night were the classic “Teen Idle” from her second album, and “I’m Not Hungry Anymore”, which is an unreleased song that she debuted on this tour. These slower songs that really showcased her all-around talent were placed in-between more upbeat hits like “Superstar” and “Baby”, which fans couldn’t stop dancing to.

Marina’s dancers were a show within the show. They provided beautiful interpretive dances to each song, all played out in front of a large backdrop with videos featuring nature scenes. She often lent the entire stage to the dancers, letting them tell a story while she played on her white grand piano in the corner. The most memorable dance scene was to the song “Believe in Love”, which served as an interlude between the two halves of the show so Marina could get a costume change. The Greek-Welsh singer revealed during the show that the outfit she wore during the first half was chosen because it is what she wore at her last performance in London at the Apollo and the beautifully restored Metropolitan Opera House in Philly reminded her of the architecture back in the UK.

Marina closed out the night with her most popular song “How to Be A Heartbreaker”, and even after a twenty song set, the fans were left not wanting the night to end. Let’s hope for the sake of all the Diamonds, old and new, that Marina does not wait another four years to come back to Philadelphia.

Photo Credit: Jenny Shackleton