Michelle Mania

We go inside the opening night of Michelle Obama’s book tour for her best-selling memoir, Becoming.

- Seija Rankin

“Hey, Chicago!” a voice blares over the arena sound system, followed by the cheers of more than 23,000 people. It takes a second to register that this exclamation is coming from the former First Lady of the United States, not a sports announcer— or Beyoncé, for that matter. The crowd is amped, helped along by a steady soundtrack of Ellie Goulding and the Jackson 5 and the fact that queen bees Oprah Winfrey and Michelle Obama are about to make their grand entrance.

The pair’s first steps on stage hearken back to the excitement of 2008 campaigning, but this time the fashion is more fun (Obama wears a sequined top by Sally LaPointe and hot pink Stuart Weitzman heels) and the production value has skyrocketed (think dramatic lighting and larger-than-life projection screens). The starry tête-à-tête took place Nov. 13 at Chicago’s United Center, which normally hosts rock stars.