Sexy's been brought

Justin Timberlake in the round. 360 full degrees of Justin Timberlake. Can it get any better? For more than 25,000 screaming girls (and a few reluctant boyfriends), it most certainly cannot.

Timberlake played on Friday to a full house at the Verizon Center, as part of the FutureSexLoveShow, his 2007 tour.

The crowd shrieked in anticipation as Pink, Timberlake's opening act, took the stage in a miniskirt and a haircut previously pulled off better by Billy Idol. Pink and her crew of scantily clad backup dancers were energetic, bouncing around the stage and making sure to spend equal time facing each corner of the audience, but ultimately failed to cause much excitement with five-year-old hits like "Get the Party Started" and "Don't Let Me Get Me," or even her most recent single "Stupid Girls."

It wasn't until Pink's big finale that the overwhelmingly teenaged audience shared in her enthusiasm. Two pink chiffon ribbons descended from the catwalk, and Pink and a backup dancer engaged in some impressive airborne acrobatics reminiscent of Cirque du Soleil. After a gracious exit, the raucous crowd finally got what it was looking for: JT.

Timberlake opened the show with a disembodied robotic chant of "future sex love sound" ending in a crescendo of lights and sound before segueing into the introductory song on his newest album, appropriately titled "FutureSex/LoveSound," and finally revealing his presence to the hoard of fans.

Dressed in his customary grayscale suit and tie with tennis shoes, Timberlake proceeded to energetically pop and lock his way through a vivacious rendition of his hit single "My Love," effectively kicking off the two-hour event.

Timberlake alternated between songs from "FutureSex/LoveSounds," his wildly popular sophomore album, and his debut solo album "Justified," waxing nostalgic with performances of "Rock Your Body," "Senorita" and "Cry Me a River," duly impressed to find the entire audience singing every word right along with him, though some were unable to hit his high notes.

Timberlake spent the majority of the show on the move, easily navigating the strangely shaped stage with a team of dancers. Timberlake was remarkably quick on his feet, performing complex and engaging dance routines that, coupled with his falsetto voice, brought to mind Michael Jackson in his better days.

That voice went straight to the hearts of his fans as Timberlake nailed every song with album quality, even during the most energetic of dances. Almost more impressive was the way his voice carried hauntingly and reverberated through the stadium when he sat down at the piano for a soulful slow song. He took a few liberties with the organization of songs, especially on ones like "My Love," where a featured artist - in that case T.I. - was missing, but for the most part stuck to the tunes known and loved by the audience.

Producer pal Timbaland emerged to duet with Timberlake on "Chop Me Up," and stayed to DJ a twenty-minute session while Timberlake took a break. While the big screens behind him showed music videos and random horror movie scenes, Timbaland played a variety of top 40 artists like The Fray, Nelly Furtado, and Kelly Clarkson as well as old favorites such as Aaliyah and Michael Jackson. While some audience members jammed happily, others were confused by the fact that the mini-set was announced as an intermission and were unsure as to whether it was an appropriate time to restock on boardwalk fries or grab a 45 dollar pair of official Justin Timberlake hot pants.

On the whole, the set list dragged a little long, encompassing the entire "FutureSex/LoveSounds" album as well as other songs. Sappy filler songs like "Losing My Way" did nothing for the show, though nothing could deter the army of pubescent girls from crooning and swooning.

While Timberlake probably could have done next to nothing and still received cries of fervent adoration from his fans, it did help that he was lively throughout the performance. His singing was virtually pitch-perfect and his ultra-choreographed dancing was impressively athletic. The energy of the show was lost only briefly when he asked the audience to oblige him in a few slow songs. He recovered nicely, however, with some well-placed lasers and the repetition of his rallying cry, "D.C.!" which he and his cohorts used to great effect no less than five hundred times.

Timberlake's set was massive and complicated, including two giant semi-transparent screens that periodically cocooned the stage and projected images of Timberlake or his musicians. The center part of the stage rotated, allowing him a 360-degree view when playing his piano and descending to create a suitably dramatic exit.

Of course, we all secretly hoped he would indulge us in a rendition of "Dick in a Box," his hilarious Saturday Night Live skit, but to no avail. Timberlake did create a frenzy with his final song, mega-hit "SexyBack," and even stayed to do an entirely call-and-response version with his enthusiastic fans.

With one insanely popular boy band and two platinum solo albums under his belt, it's hard to imagine what Timberlake will do to top himself after this bonanza of a tour. Whatever it is, though, his legions of fans will be right beside him.