Nikaia became Beyonce's temple on Monday evening, as thousands of adoring fans went head to head in a screaming contest with the star. Twenty-two songs, masses of dancing, lots of hair, and intense passion were the ingredients that made this one of those unforgettable evenings that Nikaia seems to be specializing in these days.

For someone who once famously fell down a staircase on stage, Beyonce made the brave decision to make her entrance at the top of very steep stairs, and come down them singing "Crazy". Given that she was wearing heels that need a ladder to get onto them in the first place, this was a very impressive feat, and I think we all relaxed a little bit as she arrived on the stage still on her feet.

And so to the assault on our senses. First the ears - the microphones were cranked up in the mix, which seemed a bit unnecessary for such a powerful singer. I know gigs are supposed to be loud (God knows I went to see The Who once and they've all gone deaf), but this was seriously loud.

Then the eyes - this is a very beautiful woman, wearing limited fabric. The hair, the legs... well I guess we had to be impressed. In a pink mini-dress, she's accompanied by an all-girl band dressed in white mini-suits. They dance in formation: it's sexy, brash, above all they look like they are having a great time.

Standout performances were "Single Ladies", "If I Were a Boy", "Why Don't You Love Me", and "Irreplaceable", which was mostly sung by the audience with Beyonce grinning in admiration. For two hours the former Destiny's Child threw herself into full-throated ecstasy and swaggering dancing that had everyone on their feet and dancing with her.

This is Beyonce's first concert in a new tour, and she tried out some new material from her next album. "I'd like to make a tribute to Royalty", she says, as she launches into a fine medley of Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen, Baby Baby by Prince, and Sex on Fire by the Kings of Leon. It was only a little bit dispiriting to hear a young girl near me saying "That's got to be a Beatles song" with firm conviction.

She addressed the faithful with a speech about how she loves coming to the Riviera on vacation, but this is the first time she has performed here, how glad she was to be able to play her new material, oh, and "I'll always give you one hundred percent". We have been warned.

Beyonce's best moment tonight was surely her version of Etta James' "At Last", complete with videos of Barrack Obama's inauguration. I guess she got the message, Nice likes Barrack. And all those images of civil rights protests seemed to be giving us the underlying message from Beyonce - she's out there as a role model for women, for African Americans, saying you too can live your dreams.

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