Chelsea Cutler is a name who is really starting to make waves around the world. With her brand of pop very much in the mould of Taylor Swift, she has developed a loyal fanbase in Australia with a brand of music that has broad appeal. As she made her way on stage for her debut Australian show, the Metro Theatre crowd was abuzz with excitement and filled to the brim. 

When Cutler ran out with her guitar, the energy was palpable from the first moment as she commenced with “Something More” which showed off both her airy vocals and the instrumentals of her band. 

From the beginning of the show, Cutler was engaging with the crowd, with banter between most songs. Early in the night, Cutler was urged by the crowd to do a “shoe-y” (in the same way that Niall Horan was the night before) which she politely and repeatedly declined. However, by the encore, she relented and took a “shoe-y” much to the delight of the crowd. 

Cutler had a charm without her, with her humour largely connecting with the audience. She was fairly earnest in her attempts to connect with the audience, which made her all the more endearing. After a joke that she felt didn’t quite land, she suggested she’d “try it again in Melbourne” to see if it got a better laugh.

Cutler’s voice is relatively strong and engaged the audience well although it seemed as though she was constantly hoping for more from the audience. In some part, this may have been due to the fact that her setlist was over two hours long, which, although generous to her most loyal fans, did mean that it was a little hard to keep the energy up. 

One of the highlights of the night was when Cutler brought someone from the audience onto the stage and the audience member absolutely nailed it. Cutler was generous in her praise of the audience member and the crowd went wild and it was a great way to continue to build engagement throughout the show. 

Cutler closed her set with an acoustic version of “Your Bones” and a powerful rendition of “This is How You Fall In Love”. It was a great end to the night, providing the audience with an anthemic feel to leave on a high. The crowd was still packed to the bleachers at the end of the show and were enjoying the ambiance of the Metro Theatre that Cutler did so well to harness. 

While the set was a little long and monotonous at times, Cutler did a great job of engaging with her audience on her first time to Australia. There were moments of magic at points during the concert and Cutler’s natural charm shone right through. This was a promising performance and hopefully one that she can only build on the next time she returns. 

Rating: ★★★★

Chelsea Cutler – Metro Theatre, Sydney – 2^nd May, 2024

All photo credits: Chloe Hall @wknd.creative