Mariah Carey

Fans of Mariah Carey were in for a treat when the mega-selling singing star performed at the Wang Theatre on January 30th. The singer brought her soaring voice and sequined gowns with her, as well as a good helping of "the crazy" she's famous for.

The singer took the stage in dramatic fashion: descending to the stage on a swing in a giant poofy gold dress. The crowd roared their approval of her over-the-top entrance.

Although Carey is on-tour to promote her new album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, she wisely chose not to sing more than a few songs from that disc, focusing instead on a healthy helping of chart-topping hits from throughout her career.

"Shake It Off," from her 2006 comeback album, The Emancipation of Mimi, and "Touch My Body," a smooth R&B hit from 2008, got the show off to a good start and the audience danced along.

She dedicated a new song, "Angels Crying," to the people of Haiti. As she belted it, a gorgeous aerialist couple put on a Cirque du Soleil style show above her, flipping and twisting through the air on an ersatz trapeze. While they were fun to watch, it was a total distraction from the song.

In many ways, Carey is something of an anomaly in concert. Despite being one of the most successful singers of the past two decades, she has toured infrequently, and usually in smaller venues like the Wang rather than the arenas and stadiums that Madonna, Tina, Janet and Beyonce fill with ease. The Wang wasn't even completely sold-out, which should be unheard of for an act of Carey's stature.

Her half-ditzy half-diva stage persona is perhaps to blame, but you never get a sense she's all that confident performing live. Her voice is strong and beautiful, but her oddball stage banter and antics are often more grimace-inducing than endearing.

The singer made reference to her recent tipsy acceptance speech at a Palm Springs awards ceremony by joking about champagne, but then proceeded to quaff almost a full bottle of the stuff (or what she said was champagne) to promote her new Angel-brand bubbly. Her enthusiasm for the bottle seemed more Keith Richards than mega-selling ball-gowned songbird.

"Always Be My Baby," from 15 years ago turned into an audience sing-along, while a cover of Diana Ross' "Love Hangover" was an energetic cover that had Carey in full Disco Barbie mode.

Oddly, her band and back-up singers all performed behind her on giant seven to ten foot risers, leaving Carey and her dancers as the center of attention on stage. The white bunting draped below the risers looked chintzy - like something you'd see on a table for a wedding cake.

To end the show, Carey delivered a wealth of hits old and new to make sure the audience left happy. "My All" was a big emotional ballad that could be the theme song to a telenovella, while "Emotions," "Up Out My Face" and "Obsessed" were slick R&B pop numbers.

For the two final songs of the night, Mariah belted out "We Belong Together" and a simple, pretty version of the power ballad, "Hero," which made you wish there were a few more stripped down songs in the show to highlight her amazing vocal talent.