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Whereas the hometown heroes' previous tour featured a Moulin Rouge-style stage set, for their first arena run, the four-piece of costumed vaudevillians, their two auxiliary members and six dancers went with a Big Top theme. Even if some accompanying parents didn't get what all the spectacle was about, the band's core audience did, pumping their fists, pogoing and enthusiastically singing along from opening one-two punch "The Only Difference Between Martyrdom and Suicide Is Press Coverage" and "London Beckoned Songs About Money Written By Machines" straight through the closing "I Constantly Thank God for Esteban" and "Build God, Then We'll Talk."

Other than two minor reshufflings, a few moody piano breaks and the insertion of Queen's "Killer Queen" and The Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby" into the mix, the set list closely followed 2005 juggernaut A Fever You Can't Sweat Out. The album's breakneck pace, ironically earnest outlook and over-the-top bombast were effectively captured as well. For "But It's Better If You Do," four dancers transformed from schoolgirls to lingerie-clad temptresses before vanishing into a sliding door beneath the towering drum riser, while a pair took to stilts and covered the female-heavy front rows with glitter during "I Write Sins Not Tragedies." But effectiveness isn't necessarily conducive to feeding off a crowd's energy, and the tight, rehearsed pacing left no time for moments of spontaneity. Brendon Urie and Co. are scheduled to head into the studio come January; it'll be interesting to see what they emerge with. A little breathing room may be all they need to create a follow-up album just as creative as their shows, only without the forced emotion.