The Cheek to Cheek Tour is a co-headlining tour by American singers Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga in support of their album Cheek to Cheek (2014). The tour, which began with a two-night run at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas, is scheduled to play a total of twenty two shows across Europe and North America during the first half of 2015, and is expected to expand as the tour progresses. Many of the tour's shows are a part of music festivals, such as the Ravinia Festival, the Copenhagen Jazz Festival, the North Sea Jazz Festival, and the Gent Jazz Festival.
Background
On July 29, 2014, the duo appeared on Today to formally announce their collaboration, titled Cheek to Cheek, with the release date in the United States as September 23, 2014. Following the announcement of the release, a mini concert was held at the Rose Theater of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Titled Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga: Cheek to Cheek Live!, the concert aired on PBS on October 24, 2014, and a DVD of the performance was released on January 20, 2015. In the meantime, Gaga also finished her world tour, artRave: The Artpop Ball in support of her third studio album ARTPOP (2013); the tour ended on November 24, 2014.
After promoting Cheek to Cheek through multiple avenues like television appearances, live performances, advertisements and campaigns, Bennett confirmed that he and Gaga would tour jazz festivals in 2015, supporting the album. According to him, Gaga was tired from playing bigger venues, and wanted to have the tour visit smaller arenas. Bennett also explained that he was accustomed to playing in acoustic music halls and outdoor theaters, so Gaga had been looking at such options.
Setlist
The setlist for the Cheek to Cheek Tour featured 15 songs from the Target and Asian digital deluxe edition of Cheek to Cheek, including two tracks that were originally recorded live: "The Lady's in Love with You" (Tony solo) and "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" (Gaga solo), both of which returned from Cheek to Cheek LIVE!. Additionally, Tony Bennett’s solo performance of "How Do You Keep the Music Playing?" was carried over from the special concert. Four solo songs by Tony from Cheek to Cheek were not performed during the tour: "Don't Wait Too Long”, “Goody Goody”, “Sophisticated Lady” and “On A Clear Day (You Can See Forever)”. Instead, Tony Bennett replaced them with 13 songs from his personal repertoire, including his signature classic, "I Left My Heart in San Francisco".
The Cheek to Cheek Tour evolved over time, featuring 29 songs divided into 8 acts, each corresponding to a costume change for Gaga. She sang 5 solo songs, shared 11 with Tony while he performed 13 solos.
- Act I
- "Anything Goes"
- "Cheek to Cheek"
- "They All Laughed"
- "Stranger in Paradise" (June 8 to July 27, 2015) / "Sing, You Sinners" (Tony solo)
- Act II
- "Nature Boy"
- "Watch What Happens" (Tony solo, December 30 to July 29, 2015)
- "The Good Life" (Tony solo)
- Act III
- "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" (Gaga solo)
- "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" (Gaga solo)
- "Firefly"
- "Smile" / "When You're Smiling" (Tony solo)
- "Steppin' Out with My Baby" (Tony solo, December 30 to July 29, 2015)
- "For Once in My Life" (Tony solo)
- Act IV
- "I Won't Dance"
- "The Lady's in Love with You" (Tony solo)
- "(In My) Solitude" (Tony solo)
- Act V
- "I Can't Give You Anything But Love"
- "Lush Life" (Gaga solo)
- "I've Got the World on a String" / "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning" (Tony solo)
- Act VI
- "La Vie en Rose" (Gaga solo, May 30 to August 1, 2015)
- "How Do You Keep The Music Playing?" (Tony solo)
- Act VII
- "Let's Face The Music And Dance"
- "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye" (Gaga solo)
- "Who Cares?" (Tony solo)
- "Fly Me to the Moon" (Tony solo, June 8 to July 6, 2015)
- "I Left My Heart In San Francisco" (Tony solo)
- Act VIII
- Encore
Synopsis
- For the complete synopsis of concert, see this page.
For this tour, Gaga primarily wore a mix of custom caftans and gowns designed by Haus Fashion Director Brandon Maxwell, who launched his eponymous fashion line the following year. Additional designs were created by Natali Germanotta and Perry Meek, who designed a dress specifically for her performance of "La Vie en Rose," while Roberto Cavalli crafted the finale gown. Most of her footwear was supplied by Stuart Weitzman. Throughout a show, Gaga performed in eight different outfits, changing costumes while Tony Bennett sang his solo performances.
Her hairstyle and color varied throughout the tour and the concert, shifting between black, blonde, and red with predominantly buns and long curly hair, styled by Haus hairstylist Frederic Aspiras. For their first tour collaboration, Gaga and makeup artist Sarah Tanno-Stewart opted for a soft makeup look accented by bold, bejeweled or studded eyebrows and eyelids. These embellishments were created in collaboration with A-Morir, featuring Swarovski crystals, as well as Face Lace.
Critical Response
Marc Graser from Variety called Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett as "perfect dance partners". He was impressed with Gaga and Bennett's potencial vocals, stating the concert "charmingly effective in showing off the talents of both artists on a stage simply decorated with crystal-studded curtains". Writing for Las Vegas Weekly, Mark Adams gave a positive review, saying "every performance was flawless". He didn't spare on praise, claiming their vocals and customs. Mark also noted that "the two stars might be decades apart in age, but they’re both at the top of their game now". He finished saying "it seems like an odd pairing. But anyone who has heard these two true professionals sing together knows that it just works". Ashley Lee of The Hollywood Reporter defined the concert as "an effortlessly powerful Bennett and a respectfully restrained Gaga pair for a decadent set of standards".
Dates
For the tour, Gaga and Tony favored acoustic halls and outdoor venues, a deliberate shift from Gaga’s usual arena shows. The Cheek to Cheek Tour included 26 theaters and 10 jazz festivals across 30 cities and 9 countries. Notably, Gaga had previously performed at several of these venues during her solo tours: The Fame Ball at The Wiltern Theatre (2009), and The Monster Ball 1.0 at Queen Elizabeth Theatre (2009), Radio City Music Hall (2010), Oakdale Theatre (2010), and Borgata Event Center (2010)—though the last two were canceled due to exhaustion and dehydration.
The tour’s pacing was gentle, with multiple long breaks early on:
- Dec 31 to Feb 8: 39 days - Gaga recorded songs with RedOne in January.
- Feb 8 to Apr 10: 61 days - Tony performed solo shows while Gaga did various tribute shows.
- Apr 11 to Apr 23: 12 days
- Apr 26 to May 25: 29 days - Tony had solo shows in May.
- May 31 to Jun 8: 8 days
- Jun 30 to Jul 4: 4 days
- Jul 17 to Jul 24: 7 days
Shortly after the tour, Gaga started filming her role in American Horror Story: Hotel.
| Dates | Location | City | 
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| Total: 36 shows. | ||||
| Notes: The June 9th, 2015 concert at Royal Albert Hall was cancelled due to Tony becoming ill with the flu. |
Promotional posters
The Cosmopolitan and Walter posters were later reprinted as part of a limited edition box set of Love for Sale (2021).
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| Co-headlining |
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| Residencies |
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| Promotional concerts |
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| Supporting act |
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| Related articles | Performances |