Pentatonix, or PTX as they’re called by their millions of fans, graced the Grandstand Stage at the State Fair on Wednesday night. Not only did they sell the most tickets for all of this year’s acts, I’d be willing to bet that they had the most diverse crowd. Multiple generations of families piled in with roasted corn and Martha’s cookies in hand.
Openers Us the Duo found their fame on social media, covering hits in just six seconds using only their voices. The crowd was still making their way into the Grandstand as they were playing, but their unique voices easily grabbed me once I was in earshot. They left the stage graciously and helped hype the crowd up even more for Pentatonix.
PTX started the show off by performing mostly original songs, which held the audience’s attention but didn’t get bodies moving like some of their covers did. They went from a Michael Jackson medley to a Justin Bieber mashup flawlessly while seemingly every single person in the crowd sang along. Openers Us the Duo hit the stage again to join them for “Jolene” much to the crowd’s delight.
The visuals and lights were intricate and entrancing. The stage seemed very full and inviting, it felt like a completely different place than where I had seen Jim Gaffigan just a few days earlier. Pentatonix had choreographed movements throughout the show but nothing too intricate, since so much of their attention was being focused on covering songs perfectly with just five voices.
Although their setlist was similar to the one they had played last time they came through the Twin Cities, some new additions like “Bohemian Rhapsody” were made as if they’d been performed hundreds of times. During the show, six fans joined the band on stage to help perform “Misbehavin’,” one of their original songs. There was lots of banter with the crowd and at the end of the night, everyone left feeling full- of both fair food and happy vibes from the Pentatonix crew.
