Beyoncé was set to take the stage at Soldier Field Thursday night for the first night of her Cowboy Carter tour in Chicago, but the concert was delayed for more than two hours due to severe weather. Late in the afternoon,

After a two-hour severe storm delay, the production finally got underway at 10:15 p.m., offering a complex, layered think piece worth every minute of the wait.

Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter and the Rodeo Chitlin’ Circuit Tour” opens in Chicago this week, with shows Thursday, Saturday and Sunday nights.