Beyoncé had just come out after her first of many costume changes, dressed like a futuristic ice queen. As the reggaeton-influenced song “I’m That Girl” shifted to the confident and sassy beat of “Cozy”—a powerful anthem celebrating self-love and Black pride—the energy at Lumen Field, filled with 57,000 of her fans, noticeably rose.

Dancers moved around her, with two giant robotic arms on stage that looked like they came from a factory. But there was nothing mechanical about the joyful atmosphere that spilled into the crowd, continuing with the song “Alien Superstar”—a celebration of individuality that gave a nod to ball culture and had Beyoncé exuding otherworldly confidence. These energetic dance tracks made everyone feel like the most attractive person in a giant nightclub.

Beyoncé and her highly anticipated Renaissance World Tour came to Seattle on Thursday for the first time since her 2018 tour with her husband, rapper Jay-Z. This local concert came a year after her instant-classic album “Renaissance” was released, marking a remarkable run of three solo albums that have changed how albums are made and released. However, Thursday night wasn’t so much about looking back, as the show focused on Beyoncé’s current phase—drawing heavily from her “Renaissance” album, which feels perfectly in tune with the present.

By now, the idea of a dance album created during the pandemic is pretty common, and even before the lockdowns ended, there was a strong disco revival that brought ABBA back together. As usual with anything Beyoncé does, it’s the deeper meaning that makes it so powerful.

Right now, Black artists of all kinds are reclaiming art forms that have been taken over or whitewashed over time (like the upcoming Black & Loud festival organized by Seattle bands King Youngblood and Down North). “Renaissance” is a well-thought-out celebration of dance music’s roots in Black and queer communities, touching on different scenes and subcultures from Chicago house music to New Orleans bounce and ballroom drag pageants. Beyoncé isn’t the first pop star to draw from these underground nightlife cultures, but the purpose and care she brings to the album and the tour make them stand out.

It’s important to note that Beyoncé is helping highlight the creativity of often-marginalized communities in mainstream pop music at a time when hate crimes are rising and LGBTQ+ nightclubs have been attacked. (“Renaissance” was released just four months before a gunman targeted a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs, killing five people and injuring 25.)

One of the most powerful moments on Thursday came while Beyoncé was offstage for her final costume change, leaving the spotlight to her dancers. They moved fiercely and smoothly, taking turns twerking and duckwalking on the huge circular catwalk, firing up the stadium and evoking the ballroom pageants featured throughout the 2.5-hour show.

Throughout the tour, Beyoncé encouraged fans to wear their most stylish silver outfits in honor of her birthday earlier this month, and Seattle happily joined in, looking like a sea of human disco balls with sparkly tasseled cowboy hats and even some sequined beards. The only real audience failure came when Seattle (somewhat predictably) failed the “everybody on mute” challenge—a fan-led participation bit during the bouncy song “Energy” inspired by a viral trend. For those not familiar, the audience is supposed to go completely silent when Beyoncé sings the line “everybody on mute,” with the music stopping as long as the crowd can stay quiet.

Seattle managed about half a second before screams filled the silence, leaving at least one of Les Twins, Beyoncé’s famous backup dancers, looking disappointed. No big deal. The letdown didn’t last long. As Beyoncé, crouching like a queen bee ready to strike, walked on a treadmill lining the runway, a super-energized “Break My Soul” came blasting in, bursting like a bottle of champagne saved for a special occasion, with shout-outs to influential Black women, including musician/model/actress Grace Jones.

While the “Renaissance” songs and tour felt perfect for the moment, a satisfying set of hits that included powerful performances of “Formation” and a sultry “Partition” offered the classic highlights you’d expect from an artist with as many hits as Beyoncé. Joined by her 11-year-old daughter, Blue Ivy, who has clearly picked up some of her mom’s dance moves, Beyoncé brought a touch of her famous Coachella performance to Seattle with an uplifting “Black Parade,” its fist-pumping finale earning some of the loudest cheers of the night.

Despite some fans speculating that Beyoncé might not have been feeling her best, her voice was strong and powerful, resonating through a louder, more echoey than usual Lumen Field—especially on some of the more luxurious disco-fueled numbers. An opening set of ballads and slow jams, including a heartfelt “Flaws and All,” felt like the queen inviting all 57,000 fans in for an intimate serenade before the big party kicked off.