The second North American leg, the first of the revamped tour, began last night at the Bell Centre to some 17,500 Canadian Monsters, and will continue throughout the summer in nearly all sold out Arenas - including three dates at MSG
North American Tour Dates Jun 28 – Montreal, CA (Bell Centre)
Jul 01 – Boston, US (TD Garden)
Jul 02 – Boston, US (TD Garden)
Jul 04 – Atlantic City, US (Boardwalk Hall)
Jul 06 – New York, US (Madison Square Garden Arena)
Jul 07 – New York, US (Madison Square Garden Arena)
Jul 09 – New York, US (Madison Square Garden Arena)
Jul 11 – Toronto, CA (Air Canada Centre)
Jul 12 – Toronto, CA (Air Canada Centre)
Jul 14 – Cleveland, US (Quicken Loans Arena)
Jul 15 – Indianapolis, US (Conseco Fieldhouse)
Jul 17 – St. Louis, US (Scottrade Center)
Jul 20 – Oklahoma City, US (Ford Centre)
Jul 22 – Dallas, US (American Airlines Centre)
Jul 23 – Dallas, US (American Airlines Centre)
Jul 25 – Houston, US (Toyota Centre)
Jul 25 – Houston, US (Toyota Centre)
Jul 28 – Denver, US (Pepsi Centre)
Jul 31 – Phoenix, US (US Airlines Centre)
Aug 03 – Kansas City, US (Sprint Centre)
Aug 11 – Los Angeles, US (Staples Centre)
Aug 12 – Los Angeles, US (Staples Centre)
Aug 13 – Las Vegas, US (MGM Grand Garden Arena)
Aug 16 – San Jose, US (HP Pavilion At San Jose)
Aug 17 – San Jose, US (HP Pavilion At San Jose)
Aug 19 – Portland, US (Rose Garden Arena)
Aug 21 – Tacoma, US (Tacoma Dome)
Aug 23 – Vancouver, CA (General Motors Place)
Aug 24 – Vancouver, CA (General Motors Place)
Aug 26 – Edmonton, CA (Rexall Place)
Aug 27 – Edmonton, CA (Rexall Place)
Aug 30 – St. Paul, US (Xcel Energy Center)
Sep 02 – Milwaukee, US (Bradley Center)
Sep 04 – Detroit, US (Palace Of Auburn Hills)
Sep 05 – Pittsburgh, US (Consol Energy Center)
Sep 07 – Washington, US (Verizon Center)
Sep 08 – Charlottesville, US (John Paul Jones Arena)
Sep 14 – Philadelphia, US (Wachovia Center)
Sep 15 – Philadelphia, US (Wachovia Center)
Sep 16 – Hartford, US (XL Center)
Sep 18 – Charlotte, US (Time Warner Cable Arena)
Sep 19 – Raleigh, US (RBC Center)
Review Lady Gaga dances in the dark Thrills 17,500 of her devoted fans at the Bell Centre By T'cha Dunlevy, The Gazette June 29, 2010
In a word: redemption.
In November, Lady Gaga chose Montreal as the launch pad for her Monster Ball Tour, which she unveiled to some 12,000 lucky attendees. But despite being filled with promise and good ideas, the ramshackle performance failed to live up to the hype. The concert just wasn't ready for prime time.
Seven months later, she's back, relaunching the "2010 Summer North-American Monster Ball Tour," again in Montreal, before a whopping 17,500 fans last night at the Bell Centre. Don't let the similar name deceive you - it's a whole different show, polished to shine and ready for prime time.
Like something from Broadway, or the pop-opera she bragged was in the works last fall, the four-act, razzle-dazzle affair came off like a cross between the Wizard of Oz, Grease and Madonna's Truth or Dare.
Speaking of Madge, Gaga is finally at the point where she can convincingly be said to be giving the queen of pop a run for her money, not to mention her crown.
With ample costume changes, hydraulics and airtight dance choreographies, this was big-league entertainment value. And let's not forget the songs -punchy, hook-filled dance-pop, in an array of flavours.
Jul 06 – New York, US (Madison Square Garden Arena)
Jul 07 – New York, US (Madison Square Garden Arena)
Jul 09 – New York, US (Madison Square Garden Arena)
for these!!!! Even though I won't be at the actual Monster Ball, I will still be in New York while she's there! And I'll get to see the Today Show performances live since I'm going.
Review MONTREAL -- "I'm going to give you the best show of your life tonight. You're not going to be able to walk in the morning."
That's what Lady Gaga said Monday night (June 28), right around what could've conservatively been called "the midway point" of her marathon set, and she wasn't kidding. Because by the time she finally wrapped the two-plus hour show at the Bell Centre -- a show that was also the kickoff of the North American leg of her revamped (and seemingly unending) Monster Ball Tour -- there wasn't a calf muscle left unquivered. If it wasn't the best show her "little monsters" had ever seen, it certainly was the longest.
An over-the-top (even by her rather lofty standards) mélange of, well, practically everything, the new Monster Ball features Gaga at her most outrageous, unhinged and (at times) sublimely ridiculous, a whirling, whooshing beast of a thing that's long in practically every conceivable way: long on style, long on attitude, even long on inspiration. Loosely based on a narrative arc (yes, there's an entire story line this time around) that recalls "The Wizard Of Oz," "West Side Story," "Metropolis" and even "Angels In America," packed with more wattage than an overheated power plant and more costume changes than a thousand Vegas reviews, it's the kind of show that leaves you with wide eyes, ringing ears, aching limbs and absolutely zero chance of making it to work in the morning.
In other words, you should probably go see it, though not entirely for the spectacle. There are also plenty of real, genuinely tender moments in Gaga's show, or at least there were on Monday night in Montreal. She spoke from the heart, she cried a bit, she cracked jokes, shoot, she even played a brand-new song ... and really, those were the bits of the show that resounded loudest.
...
The show reached its conclusion with an epic battle against an evil angler fish (for real) on "Paparazzi," and then the set-closing "Bad Romance," which Gaga performed in her planetoid sphere (oh, and at this point, after vanquishing the angler fish, she and her comrades officially discover the Monster Ball, just in case you were wondering). All that was left was a richly deserved curtain call, an extended bow and a snarl from Mother Monster. Even after Gaga and company had left the stage, the audience inside Bell Centre stood and cheered, whistled and clapped. And then they did all three of those things again. Only louder.
And Gaga deserved all of it. Aside from a few missteps (which can only be expected in a production of this magnitude), the new Monster Ball Tour is a raw, rousing, rollicking success, something that's partially due to the sheer spectacle of the show, but mostly due to the unyielding will, spirit and talent of Gaga herself. It may be her crowning achievement, it may not, but it's certainly, absolutely worth it. Word to the wise, however: make sure you stretch before you go. Gaga's out to make you hurt this time around. And she will.