Sabrina Carpenter’s tour has parents clutching their pearls but I want more

There’s something utterly captivating about Sabrina Carpenter; from her infectious tunes to her cheeky persona, she’s undeniably a superstar.

You don’t become a pop icon without ruffling a few feathers, and having seen the response to her raunchy Brit Awards performance, I was intrigued to see what Sabrina would bring for her own Short ‘n’ Sweet tour.

The hype for her 2025 tour has rivalled that of Beyoncé and Taylor Swift, with fans arriving dressed in theme-appropriate heart cutouts and kiss-covered outfits.

While it may have taken her a few albums to find her moment, the Espresso hitmaker proves she’s not going anywhere with two sold-out nights in London. 

Celebrating her fourth week at the top of the UK album chart, her final night at the O2 Arena was everything I’d dreamed of — well, almost. 

Despite the excellent vocals, impressive gymnastics, and her dance capabilities, Sabrina’s dedication to her 1950s vision sometimes gets in the way of true greatness.

After an incredibly punctual 7pm start from opener Rachel Chinouriri, who did a fabulous job of warming up the eager crowd, the Polly Pocket of pop took to the stage.

Sabrina has an infectious charm, it’s hard not to get swept up in her theatrics almost immediately as she kicked off the show with her humour on full display.

Every gig starts off with a camp unwrapping of a bath towel to reveal a different bodysuit underneath, however, Sunday, March 9 came with a bedazzled Union Jack on the inside too.

The crowd roared when they clocked her nod to the UK before she burst into popular track Taste, getting everyone up and dancing right from the start.

Later in the show — after arresting Salma Hayek for being ‘too hot’ at the start of Juno — Sabrina also unveiled Union Jack boots, which got another huge cheer.

The Short ‘n’ Sweet tour is a well-oiled machine, with Sabrina hitting every step and every note as she blasted through tracks from her new album and older music.

While Espresso may have made her a superstar, her previous album, Emails I Can’t Send, got plenty of moments to shine too with Because I Liked A Boy getting surprisingly emotional.

A slightly teary Sabrina told the crowd how she wrote that song when she didn’t think she would even sing it to 10 people, let alone 20,000 who were singing it right back.

Her on-stage look might scream male gaze as she cuts about in lingerie, but there’s something empowering about her schtick — she radiates a kindness and openness that can’t be faked.

One song that really drove this home was Lie To Girls. Hearing thousands of (mostly young) women scream-sing ‘You don’t have to lie to girls
If they like you, they’ll just lie to themselves’ was breathtaking.

This is what Sabrina does so well; she might be known for her raunchier numbers — and there’s plenty of them — but her ability to unflinchingly share her own relationship blunders is what has left so many of us captivated by her.

The former Disney star doesn’t just dig into her own back catalogue for the Short ‘n’ Sweet tour. As an extra treat, the gig features Sabrina singing a cover chosen for her by a quick game of spin the bottle. 

Out of four possible surprise songs, London was treated to the classic hit Come on Eileen which was an absolute crowd-pleaser. Nothing gets British people dancing like Dexys Midnight Runners.

There’s no denying that Sabrina is a powerhouse, but it was her over-stylised staging that failed to seduce me over the two hours.

For the first six songs, she did not walk out onto the runway — which leads to a heart-shaped tip — once. Instead, most of the action is at the back of the stage or on either side.

This is my only bug bear with the Short ‘n’ Sweet tour. If you’re going to bother to have a (vaguely phallic) runway, use it more effectively than just walking back and forth a few times.

The heart is famed for her Juno positions (an impressive back bend for London’s final show) as well as the spin-the-bottle section, but it feels like an unnecessary add-on for much of the gig.

For future tours, I hope Sabrina lets go of her heavily stylised productions and braves the open stage more, allowing her talent to speak for itself.

This doesn’t mean dropping the production value; just invite us into the show rather than hiding behind the screen, your fans will thank you for it.

That being said, judging by the incredibly loud singalongs, fans were more than happy with Sabrina’s not-so-short but very sweet concert.

Sabrina’s UK tour concludes this summer with headline shows at BST Hyde Park on July 5 and 6, with tickets on sale now.

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