Carrie Underwood Kicks Off Vegas Show with a Bang: 'We Like to Get a Little Dramatic Around Here'
Denise Truscello
Carrie Underwood has found her temporary home.
On Wednesday night, Underwood, 38, kicked off her Las Vegas residency show, Reflection, at Resorts World, a show that featured a string of hits, costume changes and pyrotechnics… after all, this is Vegas!
The 90-minute show began with the Grammy Award winner donning a shimmering silver dress and belting out "Cowboy Casanova" to the sold-out crowd of 5,000. Knowing her surroundings, Underwood also played into the Vegas vibe, as her surroundings were undoubtedly futuristic with consistent lasers and over-the-top theatrics.
A continual shift in visuals, Underwood's set often changed as the 19-song show played out — the stage felt very Great Gatsby-esque during "Drinking Alone;" her dancers channeled their inner Cirque Du Soleil for "Blown Away," as many of them swung over the stage in oversized rings.
"We like to get a little dramatic around here," she told the opening night crowd. She wasn't lying.
Denise Truscello
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Toward the end of her show, Underwood lit a Jeep on fire as part of "Before He Cheats." She also got drenched for her encore, in which she belted out "Something in the Water" while singing on a platform inside an elevated wall that poured water. Underwood's water-logged dancers, meanwhile, performed slick moves between oversized nails sticking out of the wall. This, of course, was all in addition to her six costume changes.
Not only is the show a huge win for Underwood and Resorts World, but it may also create change, as $1 for every ticket sold for the residency will be contributed to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
"We get to play music, we get to sing, we get to do what we absolutely love more than anything else in this world," Underwood said. "We get to do that often and it's fun, and it's a gift because we know we're blessed."
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Speaking specifically about Make-A-Wish, she added, "They make dreams come true for kids that really need it and really deserve it. So just by being here tonight, having fun with us and singing along, you guys are making the world a better place for some really awesome kids."
Underwood was actually the first artist to play the Resorts World Theatre, something that wasn't planned. Céline Dion was set to do the honors last month, but the Canadian crooner was forced to postpone her residency due to severe muscle spasms.
Underwood currently has six dates in December, four in March, two in April and six in May.
Ralph Larmann
In addition to Underwood and Dion, other Resorts World headliners include Katy Perry and Luke Bryan.
After Wednesday, though, Underwood left no doubt that she's the All-American Girl of the Resorts World roster.
Here's Underwood's setlist:
Cowboy Casanova
Good Girl
Undo It
Wasted
Drinking Alone
Dirty Laundry
Two Black Cadillacs
Church Bells
Blown Away
Jesus, Take the Wheel
How Great Thou Art
All-American Girl
Flat on the Floor
Love Wins
Cry Pretty
Last Name
Before He Cheats
Something in the Water