Sia Steals the Show at Coachella

Sia made sure Coachella’s first weekend ended with a BANG!

Even though Calvin Harris served as the headliner of Coachella’s third and final day, Sia’s performance is what everyone is talking about. The Australian singer bounced onto the stage Sunday night for her first full set since 2011, and by all accounts, it was truly awe-inspiring.

Sia performed 13 songs:

“Diamonds” (which she wrote for Rihanna)
“One Million Bullets”
“Cheap Thrills”
“Bird Set Free”
“Titanium” (her David Guetta collab)
“Big Girls Cry”
“Move Your Body”
“Breathe Me”
“Chandelier”
“Reaper”
“Elastic Heart”
“Alive”
“Unstoppable”

An impressive group of celebrity dancers, including Maddie Ziegler (from Dance Moms), Kristen Wiig, Paul Dano, and Tig Notaro, brought each performance to life, appearing either onstage or being projected onscreen. As she has in so many music videos, Zielger served as the singer’s emotional interpreter, bringing her emotions to life. Dano served as a customer service rep, answering phone calls between songs, and at one point, dancers wore giant stuffed animal heads. It was very artistic and incredibly surreal.

“The oddity of seeing something closer to performance art than pop music onstage during Coachella was captivating for thousands, but seemingly confounding for just as many,” wrote Billboard in its review.

“At a Coachella defined by surprise pop-star cameos, Sia’s performance Sunday night cleverly flipped the script,” reported the Los Angeles Times.

Even the likes of Katy Perry were blown away by the performance:

The most elevated, spiritual experience was had watching @Sia do her thing effortlessly, naturally. @coachella

— KATY PERRY (@katyperry) April 18, 2016

https://twitter.com/1975hann/status/722165440445743104

Holy smokes. @maddieziegler deserves some kind of an award for this @Sia performance . Someone find one and bestow it to her immediately.

— Darren Criss (@DarrenCriss) April 18, 2016