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Celeb News: Madonna - MDNA Tour
Member Since: 1/26/2012
Posts: 9,236
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The Queen is slaying! 
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Member Since: 4/3/2012
Posts: 1,973
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Hollywood Reporter review is on previous page. ETA: Now it's on this page.
I take issue with the slower comment, girls half her age don't move like she does. Right on to the rain comment, though. It definitely made the experience even better (once she came out).
THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
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Madonna at Yankee Stadium
The Bottom Line: Her Madgesty’s knack for mesmerizing theatrics trumps her show’s bumpy narrative.
Along with a Lady Gaga mashup, the veteran singer brings to mind Quentin Tarantino, Marianne Faithfull, even Patty Hearst during Night 2 of her headlining stint at Yankee Stadium.
Since Madonna kicked off her world tour in June, her flair for drama has drawn the ire of Scotland (for using stage guns), Turkey (for flashing her breast), France (for superimposing a swastika on a picture and playing a too-short set) and the Russian government (for supporting gay rights and championing the imprisoned ***** Riot bandmembers).
And yet, when it comes to the politics of provocation, Her Madgesty rules. Her perseverance in pushing buttons already has made the MDNA tour one of the year’s biggest: Thus far, it has grossed $115.7 million in Europe and $111 million in ticket sales alone in North America.
So Madonna’s dual New York City dates came with a knowing swagger. “I’m a New Yorker, too,” she bellowed on Night 2 -- a rainy evening that lent shimmer and soul to her performance. The theatrics were finally welcome in this city that boasts a fertile history of enticement and iniquity.
Of course, one New Yorker remains a holdout. Lady Gaga has likened her de facto spirit animal’s persistent stunt of live-mashing “Born This Way” into “Express Yourself” in concert to bullying. Madonna’s finely toned ass, however, was covered by persistent onstage talk of tolerance supplemented with a moving interstitial montage remembering bullied gay men who recently committed suicide. You don’t mess with a pioneering OG gay-rights supporter, you see.
For the most part, the show has remained the same: at once bafflingly and intriguingly all over the place and seemingly influenced by everything from Kill Bill to Mad Max to Xanadu. The locked-in set was too heavy on the new material, but in fairness, this type of hubris seems to afflict many almost-legacy artists from Madonna to Metallica.
And in an effort to embrace transformation, a handful of the old material was curiously restructured. Sure, it’s interesting to hear “Like a Virgin” crooned Marianne Faithfull-style as an almost-dirge, but it isn’t fun. The true crowd-pleasers were purist renditions of “Like a Prayer” and “Vogue” that elicited as many squeals as they did goosebumps.
The visuals were thick on metaphors. Madonna came out blazin’ with machine guns and then pistols, blood-soaked Rorschach images on the screens behind her, as she negotiated the middle ground between religion and violence. She threw on a beret Patty Hearst-style and morphed into what looked like an audition for a Tarantino film.
That led to a dark, apocalyptic “Papa Don’t Preach,” followed by rubber S&M escapade during “Hung Up,” then full-on majorette glee with “Express Yourself.” From there, crowds witnessed tribal drumming, dubstep, sexed-up writhing and even tai chi (Is it the new yoga? Discuss!).
Madonna has referred to her show as “part spectacle and sometimes intimate performance art,” but really it’s mostly spectacle. The 54-year-old’s moves may be visibly slower than in previous tours, but there’s no denying her indefatigable charisma.
Aside from swapping out French right-winger Marine Le Pen’s swastika-laden big-screen image with her own, Madonna hasn’t changed much of her show. Any placating came through sometimes rambling feel-good us-against-them monologues on the importance of togetherness and tolerance. (“We’re in this **** together. We’re family!”) There was a patriotic bent to these declarations -- like, how lucky we are to live in America -- which roused her liberal crowd during this election time.
And why not? As a hardworking upstart from the Motor City who became the first woman to headline Yankee Stadium, Madonna truly embodies the American Dream. At the moment, hers remains a dizzying reverie of twisted fantasy and, yes, blonde ambition.
Link: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/rev...dy-gaga-369114
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SPIN
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Act of God: Madonna's MDNA Tour Comes to Yankee Stadium
In a dramatic touch Madonna might have orchestrated herself if she could, tornados touched down in Brooklyn and Queens Saturday afternoon in the hours before she was scheduled to take the stage two boroughs away, at Yankee Stadium. As her 10 p.m. set time drew near, it was going to take a miracle to clear the clouds, and though the Queen of Pop's opener "Girl Gone Wild" began a half-hour later with a recording of the pop star intoning, "Oh my God," the night remained soggy.
Still, the Good Lord was omnipresent for the next two hours, which ramped up and wound down to religious invocations ("Act of Contrition" and "Like a Prayer") as Madonna and her immaculately rehearsed crew of dancers and musicians strutted on soaked catwalks to present the MDNA Tour, what Madonna calls "The journey of a soul from darkness to light."
The show was indeed a trip, a winding exploration of Madonna's most beloved flashpoints: control, religion, family, peace, her image. It was brilliantly choreographed and impeccably executed, yet it was the least coherent of her arena spectacles since she returned to the road with 2001's Drowned World Tour.
Like all of her concerts since 1990's Blond Ambition, the show was carved into thematic chapters: She started tensely with Transgression, waving guns around to "Revolver" and "Gang Bang" as cherry-red blood splashed across the video screens behind her. The mood brightened with the arrival of Prophecy, as Madonna emerged dressed as a drum majorette in a white-and-red uniform with tall white boots. In the night's most inventive staging, for MDNA's bouncy "Give Me All Your Luvin'," a drumline was suspended in mid-air and Nicki Minaj mugged in a nun's habit via video screen.
This was also the now-famous section of the show that includes "Express Yourself," which Madonna blends with a few lines from "Born This Way" as her dancers mimic Lady Gaga's paws-up choreography to demonstrate its insane similarity to her own 1989 hit. (Madge caps the bit with a nod to her Hard Candy deep cut "She's Not Me"; subtlety has never been her strong suit.)
Despite the jab, this is also the part of the show showcasing an elegant reworking of "Open Your Heart" featuring the Basque musicians Kalakan, who weave their own "Sagarra Jo!" into a version of the song that's mostly voices and drumming. Their anthem, Madonna informed the crowd in a lengthy monologue that followed while sipping from a water bottle via a long red straw, is "about smashing prejudices… discrimination, separation, racism… and hatred of any kind." Could she get a "**** yeah?" She could. Could she make the rain stop with a snippet of "Holiday," a rare unscheduled addition to the set list? She could not.
"We're in this wet **** together," she barked at the damp audience from her massive stage. "We are family." In truth, she was surrounded by family: she's dating MDNA dancer Brahim Zaibat and her son Rocco joined her onstage for a handful of songs.
The former got the most stage time during the Masculine/Feminine part of the concert, which featured the highest concentration of hits from the previous century: a faithful, super-sharp version of "Vogue" she performed in a man-tailored outfit topped by a reimagination of Gautlier's iconic cone bra, a slinky "Human Nature." That set closed, however, with a dreary, Dresden Dolls-like piano take on "Like a Virgin" (interpolated with Abel Korzeniowski's "Evgeni's Waltz," from her film W.E.) that left the crowd chilly.
But redemption, of course, was just around the corner. The final chapter is called Celebration, but its tracks could have easily been wedged into "Transgression": a rave-y rendition of MDNA standout "I'm Addicted" followed by Madonna playing her black electric guitar atop a Magic Bus for a groovy version of "I'm a Sinner." Security had been trying to prevent the crowd from dancing in the wet aisles all night long, but when a choir emerged for "Like a Prayer," the entire stadium gave up and gave in. Boys in bondage gear threw their arms around middle aged women in ponchos. The energy was dangerously electric. Oh my God.
We were family. And Madonna, careening down the catwalk and falling to her knees, was orchestrating our chaos. She returned for greatest-hits cut "Celebration," but by that point the party felt slightly disingenuous. MDNA is a dark album about trying to get a grip on slippery circumstances, and its tour reflects its turmoil and uncertainty. Saturday threatened to get far more slippery, but Madonna knows how to keep things under control, even in the face of acts of God.
LINK: http://www.spin.com/#articles/madonn...gn=spintwitter
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Member Since: 12/27/2010
Posts: 6,041
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So excited for the Yankee Stadium numbers.
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Member Since: 2/28/2012
Posts: 19,176
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Member Since: 3/15/2012
Posts: 2,801
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I love all the reviews can't wait to see how it goes when she goes to MSG and L.A.
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Member Since: 6/28/2012
Posts: 308
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i can´t believe she has scheduled another madison squar garden show wowwwwww my friends i think this is the first time she will act for 120.000 people in new york??????
yankee stadium: 40.000 x 2 : 80.000 + 2 MSG : 20.000 x 2 : 120.000 is this true??????? wowwwwwwwww
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Member Since: 4/3/2012
Posts: 1,973
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PEOPLE
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Mila Kunis Braves Rain for Madonna in New York City
Gonna dress you up in ... my poncho?
Mila Kunis braved a rainy New York City night to see Madonna live in concert at Yankee Stadium.
The actress – who sat front row – took her seat around 10:20 p.m., just moments before the "Material Girl" took the stage. Beau Ashton Kutcher was nowhere to be seen but Kunis spent her evening chatting with two male friends and happily posing for photos with fans.
"She wore a rain poncho just like the rest of the crowd," an onlooker tells PEOPLE.
Alicia Keys, Leonardo DiCaprio, Anderson Cooper and Lucy Liu were also in attendance.
– Kate Hogan and K.C. Baker
LINK: http://www.people.com/people/article...s-topheadlines
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Member Since: 2/28/2012
Posts: 19,176
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Jenna Murdock Smith@JMurdockSmith
Dear #Madonna. Your show was supposed to start at 8. It is now 10:19. WTF?
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That Girl Jill@Ottawa_Jill
Okay #Madonna, I realize you're the Queen of Pop, but I've been here since 7:30...it's 10:30...you can come on now. Please.
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the material girl is unbelievable. 
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Member Since: 9/28/2011
Posts: 4,858
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Originally posted by Lover
the material girl is unbelievable. |
Why is this bitch always so late? This is bad publicity for her.
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Member Since: 2/28/2012
Posts: 19,176
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idk, but her fans better get used to that. 
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Member Since: 4/3/2012
Posts: 1,973
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At this point its beyond clear she's not coming out until around 10:30 in her North American stops. I'll give it one more week before I become shocked about people being shocked about that. Pissed, I get - but not surprised.
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Member Since: 8/18/2010
Posts: 7,401
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Have any of you gals won Pit tickets from Guy?
I'ma try my damnedest for Toronto's dates.
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Member Since: 4/3/2012
Posts: 1,973
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Not me. I'm definitely going to try multiple sources for MSG.
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Member Since: 3/15/2012
Posts: 2,801
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Yes, the show starts at 8 or 8:30 pm, but the opening act is first and then Madonna duh.
Btw, I will also try everything for a pit ticket, maybe some temporal tatoos or dressing like a bride 
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Member Since: 8/18/2010
Posts: 7,401
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Quote:
Originally posted by PopRock2012
Not me. I'm definitely going to try multiple sources for MSG.
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Good luck!
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Originally posted by Dark Phoenix
Yes, the show starts at 8 or 8:30 pm, but the opening act is first and then Madonna duh.
Btw, I will also try everything for a pit ticket, maybe some temporal tatoos or dressing like a bride |
Is that how people have gotten them? I was just going to tweet Guy like crazy. 
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Member Since: 4/3/2012
Posts: 1,973
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Michelle Trachtenberg was also at one of the Yankee Stadium shows. Somebody just shared this picture (that she took with him) with her.
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Member Since: 3/15/2012
Posts: 2,801
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Quote:
Originally posted by DWG
Good luck!
Is that how people have gotten them? I was just going to tweet Guy like crazy. |
well you can also tweet him like crazy or the Material Girl's contest, but a lot of the fans who appear in Guy's pictures have tatoos or costumes so that helps a lot. 
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Member Since: 2/28/2012
Posts: 19,176
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Madonna wows crowd at Scotiabank Place
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The fans who shelled out upwards of $300 for the hottest ticket in town know that Madonna puts on less of a concert than an all-out event, and none went home disappointed from a sold-out Scotiabank Place show that stretched well into the midnight hour.
Of course, with all the international headlines left in the wake of her MDNA tour — with the swastikas superimposed over political faces, the flaming crucifixes, the boob flashes, feigned violence and calls for revolution — it seemed like everyone was waiting to see which pot Madonna would stir next.
Truly, it just doesn’t qualify as a cause celebre anymore until Madonna’s scrawled in lipstick across her backside.
But other than a “No Fear” tattoo on her exposed back, there was little in the way of political furor, and except for a few cheeky exchanges with fans, Madonna mostly let her music do the talking.
Not that a Madonna concert is ever just about the music.
The accompanying imagery, dripping with metaphor, was just as much a part of the spectacle as the music, and, as expected from someone with Madonna’s knack for provocation, the images pulled no punches.
The show’s overture began with a dozen cloaked figures swinging a giant smoking urn over the crowd as Madonna descended from the rafters in a gilded confessional, launching her MDNA tour as she does the album with Girl Gone Wild.
Images of Renaissance-styled angels descended into a hellfire backdrop as the beat slipped into Revolver, but the opening credits to The Exorcist soon dissolved into something more closely resembling a Tarantino film.
Under the throbbing beat of Gang Bang, Madge and her femmes fatale wielded pistols and assault rifles and randomly picked off imaginary assailants in the crowd as all sorts of blood spatter and viscera splashed across the screen.
Numerous video interludes showcased her entourage of toned dancers, and allowed for the customary costume changes as the set unfolded in five distinct acts: Transgression, Prophecy, Turning Up the Hits, Masculine/Feminine and Celebration.
After such a foreboding opening, resonating with Gothic subtext, Madonna emerged from the first costume change as a caricature of her old, bubbly bleached blonde persona, dressed as a marching bandleader complete with twirling baton for Express Yourself.
And if there’s anything to the rumours of a feud between Madonna and her prime progeny Lady Gaga, the Queen still wears the crown, as she interpolated the carbon copy Born This Way, singing (somewhat cattily) “She’s not me” before busting back into Express Yourself.
And the fans — the show was, as expected, a complete sellout with more than 15,000 packing Scotiabank Place, many likely rueing Tuesday morning as the show didn’t get underway until almost 10:30 — gleefully played the part, with many dressed up and putting on their favourite era Material Girl face.
All of those faces were present on stage, too.
Madonna emerged in tight black leather slinging a matching six string for Turn Up the Radio, she was her bad Catholic girl prototype on all fours in Papa Don’t Preach, Masterpiece ushered in a cadre of Golden Age Hollywood romantics in flickering monochrome, the sex-charged groove of Human Nature featured her Erotica imagery, and she was barely recognizable as a grown-up crooning the once-bubbly Like a Virgin.
Yet, for all of her longevity, the 54-year-old Queen of Reinvention rarely showed her age, her trademark lithe moves front and centre on every song.
The only time she even hinted at her years was when she informed the audience her son, who usually dances in the show, had to miss Monday’s gig “because he had to go to school.”
Only fitting, because “back to school” is exactly where Madonna sent a new generation of impersonators.
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http://www.ottawasun.com/2012/09/11/...otiabank-place
The spectacle that is Madonna
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Madonna brings her MDNA tour to a sold-out crowd at Scotialbank Place in Ottawa, Ont., September 10, 2012.
OTTAWA — In a past era, Madonna might have been a minor star in the dying days of Vaudeville with occasional supporting roles in some elaborate Busby Berkeley movie.
The Madonna of the modern era is a similar construct: A cleverly considered, well-crafted celebrity image that almost disguises the fact that she’s a fading pop singer with an ordinary singing voice she uses to pump out mediocre pop songs.
Not that there’s anything wrong with that.
In the 30 years Madonna has been plying her trade, dozens of pop singers have ridden up and down the charts before being cast onto the scrap heap of has-beens. It’s a heartless business. But Madonna knows all about that. When she was in Scotiabank Place in her sweats for a sound check at 6 p.m. Monday afternoon, the doors were locked tight, even for ushers.
The celebrity entity known as Madonna has been too smart to fade away – and perhaps a little lucky and as the many fun loving Madonna lookalikes at Monday’s show would attest, not without influence.
Madonna’s live performance is a Broadway show on wheels, except that Broadway shows start at a reasonable hour. The start time on the ticket was 8 p.m. after all. When her show finally did start at about 10:20 p.m., it was fabulous, ushered in as it was by crimson robed monks to the cheering of the sell out crowd of about 15,000.
This cavalier attitude towards people who have decked themselves out and might have employed babysitters or have to get up for work in the morning – and who’ve paid through the nose to help keep Madonna in the style she has become accustomed – is weird and almost a throwback to the ’60s when drunken rock bands routinely staggered on stage with regard for neither clock nor customers. Not that Madonna is in that wastrel category. Her onstage gyrations among a posse of superb dancers, and her well-sculpted physique, point to a 53-year old woman who is supremely fit.
She has stamina to keep up and change costumes at a rapid rate.
The name Madonna sells the tickets but at its core, this travelling road show is a sum of its slickly skilled parts – a show with a singer who might have the biggest role but who needs the others as much as they need her.
Stick her alone in front of a microphone with a guitar and she’d more likely be playing bars than arenas. In this company she shines like a star.
It seems like an odd comparison but the blood and shock for which Madonna has received flak is classic vamp Alice Cooper, a theatrical construct of Detroit’s Vincent Furnier who cakes makeup and fake blood on his body by night and plays golf every morning as a regular millionaire rock star named Vincent.
Madonna’s violent imagery around the likes of Revolver and Gang Bang are not thoughtless nor necessarily gratuitous but they are certainly made to shock. Alice wrote the book on rock shock though not with the same technological pizzazz.
Musicians usually tour when they have something to sell other than tickets. Madonna has MDNA, her latest waxing from which she draws much of the material for her show.
The big opener that leads into Girl Gone Wild was a statement of what the next two hours had in store for the patient thousands, that by all accounts have been reasonably tolerant and forgiving of Madonna’s tardiness everywhere she has been.
And other earlier songs, notably Express Yourself and Give Me All Your Luvin’ were soothers for any irritation smouldering in the hall.
In a sense it doesn’t really matter what songs Madonna chooses to sing because the spectacle, with all its bells and whistles, is all. But many reviewers, during the European leg of the tour, have justifiably lauded her marching band visualization of Express Yourself.
Most people will grumble to themselves or each other, pack up their costumes and if there’s another tour may think twice before spending their cash on Madonna tickets.
Forgiven, almost certainly, but — in more ways than one — not forgotten.
http://www.canada.com/Entertainment/...243/story.html
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Member Since: 8/10/2010
Posts: 4,708
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Quote:
Originally posted by Lover
the material girl is unbelievable. |
They need to stop whining that much. A good thing will be if they postpone the show for 10pm every night and that will solve everyone's crying. But once again. people will wait from the morning so it's the same ****.
We waited from 8am till 10pm in Milan and nobody was really bothered by the wait. People need to shut sometimes for real. It's a freaking concert, not a date with Madonna.
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Member Since: 2/28/2012
Posts: 19,176
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i know exactly what you mean.
for me the waiting was an incredible experience. i never felt so alive in my life.
my whole body was shaking by the minute and i can't control my feelings knowing to be in front of a legend and if it means waiting for years.
do i sound dramatic?
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