The first time I saw Madonna live in concert was at the UA
Sports Arena in Los Angeles back in May of 1990. My sister Karen
had won two tickets to the Blonde Ambition Tour through a local
radio station, so we were flown round-trip from New York for the
event. We had second row seats. Olivia Newton John sat behind us.
But it was one of the worst concerts I've ever attended. Madonna
lip-synched her way through nearly every song. She paid much more
attention to her dancing than her music. And don't even get me started
on the audience. Compared to New York, the L.A. crowd was a bunch
of zombies. Nobody danced, screamed, hooted or hollered. Everyone
sat quietly in their seats. The critics were right. Watching Madonna
perform live was like watching a music video on a life-sized screen.
Eleven years and two months later, I found myself approaching the
entrance to Madison Square Garden with a mixture of fear and dread.
I had spent over $100 on my ticket to Madonna's sold-out Drowned
World Tour, but I wasn't sure if it would be worth it. Why was
I giving Madonna a second chance? I loved her last two albums and
her last four videos. And the hype surrounding the Drowned World
Tour was just too impressive to ignore. Her 29 U.S. shows were
sold out in a matter of minutes, with some tickets commanding prices
upwards of $1000 apiece on eBay. I just had to see what all the
fuss was about. I had to see if anything had changed ... especially
Madonna's approach to her music.
Luckily, change is one thing Madonna is damn good at. One glance
at her many album covers or music videos and it's painfully clear.
Blonde or brunette, demure or deviant, curvy or sculpted, Madonna's
look - like her music - is constantly being reinvented. It's the
key to her success and her longevity ... and it's the main reason
why her fans remain so loyal. Simply put, she's never boring. And
neither is her wardrobe. That may explain her unique approach to
concert merchandising.
 Before
I even reached the stadium, I had to pass by nearly a dozen vendors,
each one hawking a dizzying array of Madonna memorabilia. This is
not your standard concert fare; Madonna's stuff looks like it belongs
in a shopping mall, not a concert hall. There are nearly a dozen
different shirts to choose from-everything from a traditional short
sleeved t-shirt to a sexy, camouflage print camisole. And that's
just for starters. There are Madonna posters, bandannas and belt
buckles. Madonna pins, necklaces, and bracelets. Even Madonna coffee
mugs! And some of the prices are as outrageous as the selection
itself - from $10 for a teeny metal Madonna key chain to $100 for
a red, rhinestone-studded Madonna tank top.
Short of cash? No problem! There are free Madonna "official tour
merchandise" catalogs on every counter, so fans can order their
favorite items through the mail or online. The highest priced item
in the catalog? An official Drowned World Tour denim jacket,
embroidered with rhinestones for $199.95.
My head was spinning. "What do I buy ... and in what color? Should
I buy it now ... or order it online later?" After nearly 20 minutes
of internal debate, I settle on two different baby doll t-shirts,
and I have to stop myself from buying a third. I guess I'm not as
"over" Madonna as I thought I was! I'm also not the only one who
used eBay instead of Ticketmaster to secure seats for Madonna's
July 30 show. Yanik, a 22-year-old NYU student, beat out 43 other
eBayers for a pair of fourth row seats that set her back $1,500.
But for Yanik, the price was worth it. "Coming from a very conservative
Haitian family, it was considered improper for a child-never mind
a girl-to be heard or free spirited," she admits. "Madonna's message
is all about being a free spirited female, having your say ... Listening
to her music was the best thing that I've done, because I realize
that I'll make my own way in this world, in my own time and I don't
have to live according to anyone's schedule or expectations ..."
Words of wisdom that could very well have been spoken by Madonna
herself, who was over 30 minutes late for Monday night's show.
Before the concert began, the odd assortment of metal contraptions
on stage looked just like that-different pieces of equipment laid
out in a random fashion. But once the lights went down, everything
changed. Like pieces of a puzzle, the equipment moved closer together
and interlocked, forming what looked like a space ship (in a very
"Close Encounters of the Third Kind" sort of way). As the "ship"
floated above the stage, Madonna slowly emerged ... a tiny, alien-like
figure surrounded by blinding lights and metal.
 It
was hard to see her at first. But as the first few lyrics of "Drowned
World/Substitute for Love" were sung, I breathed a sigh of relief.
Madonna was holding a microphone firmly in her right hand. And,
aside from a few dance routines, she hardly put it down throughout
the nearly two-hour show. That's right, folks. None of the songs
in the Drowned World of Madonna were lip synched. Except for a video
version of "Paradise (Not for Me)," Madonna sang every single tune-and
sang them surprisingly well. Could motherhood have something to
do with it? Like her new look, Madonna's voice seems to have undergone
a metamorphosis. Each song was filled with a mix of power and passion
I didn't even think she was capable of.
Most of the songs Madonna performed were from her last two albums,
"Ray of Light" and "Music" - a fact that has her current critics
frowning. But for the fans who have followed Madonna since her "Like
a Virgin" days, the new repertoire is a refreshing change that mirrors
our own maturity. Like the singer herself, we've outgrown the lace
gloves, the big hair and the purple lipstick. The electronica-charged
songs of "Ray of Light" combined with the country-western flair
of "Music" provided the perfect mix of bigger and better Madonna
fare. While Madonna sang "Ray of Light," jumping acrobats and somersaulting
dancers filled the stage as the artist herself gyrated, robot-like,
to the antics that surrounded her. For "Candy Perfume Girl," the
42-year-old mother of two jammed on an electric guitar, as a spiky
mohawk-donning contortionist writhed in the foreground.
 Acrobats
and contortionists are just two examples of the circus-like qualities
that characterize much of Madonna's Drowned World show. Dancers
hover above the stage in trapeze-like fashion. Outlandish costumes
abound. And there always seems to be at least four different things
going on at the same time. That's because, in addition to the live
action, four strategically placed video screens are used onstage
in lieu of more traditional background scenery. During "Beautiful
Stranger," a smiling Austin Powers (a.k.a. Mike Myers) appears on
the screen amidst a sea of swirling, retro-inspired circles and
graphics. During Madonna's sexy version of "Secret," a series of
faith-inspired images like crosses, baptisms and Buddhist monks
float behind her. "Don't Tell Me" is performed against pictures
of a crystal-clear Texas sky. But not all the video images are pleasant
ones. During one particularly strange musical interlude, an animated
Japanese cartoon features what appears to be a girl getting raped,
only she turns out to be a porn star. Cartoon characters having
sex? Chalk another one up to Madonna for shock value.
 Surprisingly,
Madonna's costumes are less shocking and less revealing than those
of the past. For her Drowned World Tour, Madonna takes on
three totally different personas: Punk Rocker, Geisha Girl, and
Cowgirl. But the show's special effects are more impressive than
the costumes. During "Sky Fits Heaven," Madonna and her entourage
do a dance sequence reminiscent of the film, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden
Dragon." Watching it, I couldn't help but giggle. In fact, I think
one of the best parts about the Drowned World show was Madonna's
sense of humor, which may just be a sign that she doesn't take herself
quite as seriously as she used to. For "Human Nature, she sings
about sex while suggestively riding a mechanical bull. While crooning
"Beautiful Stranger," she fondles and flirts with a "stray" cameraman.
During a performance of "Nobody's Perfect," she fends off a Samurai-like
warrior bent on chopping off her head.
Madonna's Drowned World Tour had its share of surprises including
a Spanish version of "What It Feels Like For A Girl," an acoustic
version of "La Isla Bonita," and a earth-shattering applause following
her one and only '80s song of the evening, "Holiday." For her encore,
Madonna sang and danced her way through "Music," as a time capsule
of her most memorable music video clips played on the giant screens
behind her. It was perhaps the most revealing moment of the evening,
a blending of past and present that proves this artist has come
to terms with both.
Check out the songlist from
the show! |
|
