It's been 12 years since Beyonce last graced a stage in New Zealand, but the moment she strutted on stage through the midst of her all girl band, and parted her sea of 10 dancers, it became abundantly clear why she is crowned the queen of pop.
Moments before, she appeared on the mammoth video screen backdrop, dressed as royalty, ready for her coronation, but in a burst of fire, lasers, smoke, and fireworks, she appeared before us, clearly pumped for the next leg of her Mrs Carter World Tour.
The crowd had earlier been treated to a rousing support performance from Stan Walker, which proved to be the perfect powhiri for the occasion, and showed his own vocal prowess isn't far off Mrs Carter's.
But when Beyonce dove straight into Run The World, the 32 year old made everyone in the sold out arena feel like just about anything was possible in the next 90 minutes. Every hip thrust, and every hair flick were a statement of precision and power, and the visual presentation was endlessly impressive, whether there were fireworks raining down on the stage, or ballet dancers swirling.
