Welcome to TXT’s magical kingdom. TOMORROW X TOGETHER shone like the stars they are on their third US date of the ACT: SWEET MIRAGE World Tour on May 10, 2023. The five-piece boy group, consisting of SOOBIN, YEONJUN, BEOMGYU, TAEHYUN and HUENINGKAI, has come a long way since the last time they were in New York. Just 10 months ago, they embarked on their first world tour, ACT: LOVE SICK and were the first K-Pop group to perform at Lollapalooza. They also landed their first No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with their latest mini-album The Name Chapter: Temptation earlier this year. It’s safe to say that they’ve become pros in the game.
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As the luminous “Blue Hour” introduced the boys, their beaming confidence filled every inch of Belmont Park’s UBS Arena. With their princely attire, they walked and boasted down the extended stage to perform the fan-favorite dance break. The vibrant “Can’t We Just Leave The Monster Alive?” showed their boyish charms and qualities while they sang “Do we have to break this stage? Do we have to become adults / To say that we’re doing well?”
Resistance to growing up is TXT’s strongest concept and they’ve absolutely perfected it. “We know we have to grow but are tempted by the possibility of staying as we are and living freely day to day,” TAEHYUN told StyleCaster back in January. Transitioning from the background of Disney castles and the everlasting feeling of royalty, the boys took off their jackets and revealed sports jerseys as they skipped toward the back of the stage. They dribbled basketballs and did exercise stretches while singing “Drama” and “No Rules” accompanied by a vividly colorful forest in the background that accentuated their youthfulness.
But even with all those athletic moves, the energy ramped up exponentially when they performed “Cat and Dog.” A beloved classic of the group, they brought the song back into the setlist after fans perpetually barked at them at their last tour—mimicking the fervent outro of the song where YEONJUN sings “Let’s play forever, I just wanna be your dog!”
Of course, they took part in the action as each member of the group demonstrated cute gestures and impressed their fans, MOA (which stands for Moments of Alwaysness) with one woof and smile at a time. Extending the time and fully equipped with their own lightsticks, the members controlled the radiant crowd with such jubilant and intense motions. Sectioned off with different parts of the arena, each one of their personalities lightly dazzled with their instructions— BEOMGYU screamed, TAEHYUN drew circles, YEONJUN did rumbling choreography, SOOBIN conducted the crowd very fluidly (like the great leader that he is) and HUENINGKAI did an elaborate beatbox tutorial. MOA satisfyingly reflected every action with thousands of lights doing the same thing and it surely tightened the bond and trust between the fans and the group.
It was a magical segue into “9 and Three Quarters (Run Away),” where HUENINGKAI illuminated the stage with his solo dance and winded back time to the breezy track “We Lost The Summer.” They later delved into their fiery reflective selves in “Can’t You See Me?” before exploding into the more emo-inspired and angsty songs of their repertoire: “0X1=LOVESONG (I Know I Love You)” and “LO$ER = L♡VER.” The members couldn’t contain their excitement and intense energy while performing “Dear Sputnik” where it seemed like they directed the audience to jump for more than half of the punchy rock song.
For most of the setlist, TXT’s wide range of expressions of lightheartedness and deep heartache were portrayed in complete succession. “Magic” offered a playful and bouncy atmosphere but the group separated into elegant dance pairs and solo dances right before the dramatic reveal of “Opening Sequence” where they all convened and leaned on each other before they moved with so much precision. Personal sulking and the acceptance of unrequited love are at their best when the soft “Anti-Romantic” played and they sang in solitude in front of the enchanted rose inspired by Beauty And The Beast.
“Eternally” stirred all of those heightened emotions in a passionate and jolting manner. The song started in an ethereal blue and stationary setting where the members flowed through the stage, but once the beat switched, the stage descended into a nightmarish hell and the boys danced rigidly with flames appearing everywhere with no escape. A connection between the two props and thematics happened right before the frenzied and visceral “Good Boy Gone Bad” when BEOMGYU lit up a rose in his mouth and extinguished it by throwing it at the back of the stage like a true rebel.
The infectious Afrobeat song “Tinnitus” slowed everything down to a more chill atmosphere to the frigid “Devil By The Window” where the group was taunted by spiraling Cheshire Cat visuals in the background. Immediately after, “Angel or Devil” picked up the pace with the group’s pleasing and cheerful raps. TikTok master YEONJUN later took the lead when it came to teaching the crowd the “Happy Fools” dance challenge—where it thrived on the social media app with its easy and followable movements since the song’s release date. “Sugar Rush Ride” closed off the main set of the night with the audience wanting more and more.
The encore reiterated TXT’s radiant love for MOA; Sitting upon a golden sunset, the boys crooned “Farewell, Neverland,” a soft ballad about being at the cusp of adulthood. The penultimate “Blue Spring” was a unifying gentle anthem for their fans that joins the ranks with “MOA Diary (Dubbadu Wari Wari)” of songs that are specifically dedicated to the people who’ve supported them all the way. “When we’re high when we’re low you’re always by my side / you’ve filled up all my youth with your warmth,” they sang confidently in the chorus as an abundant promise that the members will always be by their side. The upbeat “Our Summer” extended that promise beyond the arena and well after the concert was over. “No matter where you are, no matter what season / If we’re together, feel like summer” Their long goodbyes stretched out after the song and assured fans that they’ll be back soon in an even bigger venue, all grown up. Until those moments, TXT’s fervor and youthful spirit will persist.
TOMORROW X TOGETHER Act: Sweet Mirage Tour Setlist
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