One of the year’s most talked-about concert tours is about to come to an end, with Ariana Grande set to take the final bow on her run of Eternal Sunshine live shows.
After three months and 40 shows, the Grammy winner’s Eternal Sunshine world tour concludes on Tuesday night at The O2 Arena, concluding a 10-night residency at the iconic London venue.
HuffPost UK has seen the show, and if you’re lucky enough to have tickets for Ariana’s last night, rest assured that you’re in for an absolutely killer performance, cementing the Petal singer’s place as one of pop’s most dependable performers.
If you are heading to the O2 on Tuesday, though, you may well have some questions, in which case here’s everything you need to know before seeing the Eternal Sunshine tour for its last ever show…
The main thing to know before heading to Ariana Grande’s Eternal Sunshine tour is that, understandably, there’s a very strict bag policy
The main thing to be aware of before heading to the O2 on Tuesday night is that – for obvious reasons – there are very strict rules around what you’re allowed to bring into Ariana Grande’s tour with you.
With that in mind, the easiest thing to do is to only bring absolutely essentials with you, to avoid needing a bag, as guests are only allowed to bring “one clear bag or a re-sealable clear freezer/zip-lock bag” to the gig.
If you do need to bring a bag, it must be completely clear (although “small logos” are acceptable), and not exceed 30cm x 15cm x 30cm in size.
Exceptions are being made for any “medical, accessibility, parent/child-care related bags or other essential bags”, which are allowed but only after they’ve been inspected by security.
Don’t bring cameras or recording devices in with you, either (although, obviously, camera phones are allowed).
Ralph Bavaro/NBC via Getty Image
What time is Ariana Grande on stage and does she have a support act?
Unlike some of her peers in the pop world, Ariana has been an absolute stickler for time-keeping on her Eternal Sunshine tour, kicking the show off at 8pm sharp and usually being off-stage by just before 10pm.
She doesn’t have a support act – but we’d advise being in your seats for 7.45pm, as there is a special pre-show that we won’t spoil for you, but fans definitely won’t want to miss it.
What’s the setlist for Ariana Grande’s Eternal Sunshine tour like?
As you might have gleaned from the title, the Eternal Sunshine tour is mostly made up of songs from Ariana Grande’s 2024 album of the same name, including the singles Yes, And?, We Can’t Be Friends (Wait For Your Love), The Boy Is Mine and Twilight Zone.
She’s also made sure to include plenty more songs released since her last world tour in 2019, most notably the UK number ones Positions and Rain On Me, as well as hits from earlier on in her career.
Since unveiling her most recent album, Petal, in July, the chart-topping star has also been peppering the setlist with different tracks from that release, with Hate That I Made You Love Me being the sole permanent fixture.
Bad news for Wicked fans, though, as the setlist consists only of hits from Ariana’s solo back catalogue (although that’s not to say there aren’t nods to the movie scattered throughout the show).
We attended on Monday night, and here’s the full list of songs she played, although take note that not all of them will be guaranteed to be performed on Tuesday:
- Yes, And?
- Positions
- Dandelion
- The Boy Is Mine
- Eternal Sunshine
- Just Like Magic
- Thank U, Next
- 7 Rings
- Imperfect For You
- Warm
- Safety Net
- One Last Time
- Rain On Me
- Break Free
- Twilight Zone
- Past Life
- Dangerous Woman
- Freak
- Warning Signs (Interlude)
- Like I Do
- Honeymoon Avenue
- Hampstead
- Into You
- Hate That I Made You Love me
- We Can’t Be Friends (Wait For Your Love) (encore)
- Supernatural (encore)
Hang on, what’s this I’ve heard about Ariana Grande injuring herself?
Yes, hours before her show on Tuesday night, Ariana let fans know that she’d had a little accident and needed to adapt the show accordingly.
“My sweet petals,” she began. “I Wanted to let you know I will need to be in cosy footwear for this evening’s show (and possibly tomorrow’s) as I am bandaged up underneath, recovering from a minor injury.”
“It is not a sprain or anything muscular, just a deep cut!” she quickly added. “So, when you see me tonight, without my signature heels or even possibly having a little trouble putting weight on that foot, that is why!
“But please do not fret. On with the show and I am on the mend!”
Indeed, besides a change in footwear (to retain her signature look, she appeared to adapt some Ugg boots with some knee-length leg-warmers), there were no other signs that Ariana had hurt herself, and the night went off without a hitch.
What else should I expect from Ariana Grande’s Eternal Sunshine tour?
There’s a reason the Eternal Sunshine tour has so much buzz around it – it’s easily the best live show Ariana has ever been a part of. Fans can look forward to some spectacular setpieces, innovative staging, great choreography and, as mentioned above, a setlist packed with hits.
Of course, the main thing you’re going to an Ariana Grande show for is the vocal performance – and she’s in absolutely tremendous voices, and has arguably never sounded better. After seeing Eternal Sunshine, there’s no question that Ariana is one of the best vocalists of her – or, in fact, any – generation.
As for moments to be aware of, we don’t want to spoil too much, but during the encore rendition of We Can’t Be Friends, audience members have taken it upon themselves to keep completely schtum during the “me and my truth we sit in silence”, so don’t be the one cheering or, worse still, chatting during the last night of the whole tour.
Naturally, there will also be plenty of fans in full costume, so if you were feeling a bit shy about paying homage to the star with your wardrobe, you can breathe a sigh of relief knowing you won’t be the only one.
Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP
Will there be any surprise guests on the last night of Ariana Grande’s Eternal Sunshine tour?
We’d advise keeping your expectations realistic.
So far, Ariana has only had two surprise guests on her tour, the first being when Ty Dolla $ign joined her for a rendition of their collab Safety Net, already a fixture on the set.
Meanwhile, earlier in her London run, Ariana’s Wicked co-star Cynthia Erivo was a surprise guest towards the end of the run, where they performed their duet For Good and a show-stopping reprise of Get Happy/Happy Days Are Here Again.
Whether or not she’d want to potentially overshadow the last night of the tour with another surprise guest remains to be seen, but it’s probably unlikely.
Keep your eyes peeled for famous faces in the audience, too. We were there on a night when both Wicked star Jeff Goldblum and Ariana’s mum Joan Grande were met with rapturous cheers from the crowd, with other celebs putting in appearances over the course of the Eternal Sunshine run.
How do I get to The O2 for Ariana Grande’s final Eternal Sunshine tour?
Once you’re in London, the easiest way to get to The O2 Arena is on the tube, taking the Jubilee Line to North Greenwich station.
There’s also on-site parking if you wanted to drive and numerous bus options – plus, for the more adventurous, there’s the cable car and even boat options. For more information on that, we’d recommend visiting the venue’s website.
What are Ariana Grande’s plans once her Eternal Sunshine tour is over?
It’s already well-documented that Ariana is planning on taking a step back from the spotlight when her current tour comes to an end.
She first indicated this would be the case during an interview with Amy Poehler on the podcast Good Hang, explaining: “I’m very excited to do this small tour, but I think it might not happen again for a long, long, long, long time. So I’m going to give it my all.
“I think that’s why I’m doing it, because I’m like, ‘One last hurrah. For now’,” she added, noting elsewhere in the interview that the “last 10 or 15 years” of her career “will look very different to the ones that are coming up”.
Amid the furore surrounding her Petal music video at the end of July, Ariana’s team then issued a statement reiterating that she would be “taking a step back from visibility after she completes the Eternal Sunshine Tour”.
This included pulling out of a planned London revival of the musical Sunday In The Park With George, which would have reunited her with her Wicked co-star Jonathan Bailey.
Her team told People magazine: “[Ariana] looks forward to finishing the tour and ending it on a high note, both healthily and happily, and then taking a much-deserved break from public-facing work and appearances, which has led to endless, ongoing public scrutiny.
“This tour has been a beautiful experience for her. She loves her fans and has loved every minute of this tour so much.”
Following this, Ariana clarified on stage: “Sometimes when a story comes out that’s not directly from me, things can get a little blown out of proportion. So I just wanted to speak to my fans directly tonight because I love you so much. The announcement that was made yesterday was not a reactive or impulsive thing.
“It is something that I had decided to plan that I had quietly made a long time ago and it’s a decision that was made from a thoughtful and empowered place. And I want you to know that many things can be true at the same time.”
She continued: “I want to share this because I heard that my fans were worried that negativity was ruining things for me, but I just have to say that could not be more the fuck opposite. Honestly, this is not what that is.
“And I just want to be very, very clear: Multiple things can be true at the same time. Yes, boundaries, they need to be set. Human beings can need a break sometimes. And also, this [tour] can be and will continue to be the greatest experience of my professional and creative life.
“No matter what noises exist out there, nothing will ever be able to distort my reality or be more real to me or elaborate to me than this love that we share. The rest of that shit is not mine to carry, so I don’t carry it.
“I need to get out here and differentiate that from my truth for you all because I love you and this tour has been the most healing, beautiful, corrective, magnificent, special experience of my life.”
Later this year, Ariana will appear alongside Ben Stiller and Robert DeNiro in a reboot of the Meet The Parents series, titled Little Fockers.
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