The Celebration Tour (Spoilers)

[Donna 16,445]

29 minutes ago, ErickInTheZone said:

I wouldn't say it's bad but Madame X Tour opener is quite unimpressive to me

Same here.  She doesn't hit you in the same way as her other entrances.

 

1 hour ago, Prayer said:

Does she have any bad opener though? Her tour openings have always been quite epic. Can't remember a single "meh" one. She even managed to convince us to like "Candy Shop" in 2008-2009 xd

(But I can remember one particular "meh" ending: Rebel Heart Tour with the half-arsed version of "Holiday").

I agree on both counts.  Though, I still wasn't a fan of Candy Shop until she performed it on the Rebel Heart Tour.  Also, I agree "Holiday" lacked something the RHT, but there is a part I really love from that performance and that's when she's on the shoulders of a dancer and then she and the music comes down for a moment.  But yeah, it needed a bit more life!

[stefo 6,388]

2 hours ago, Drownedboy said:

Amazing! Thank you!

 

By the way the confessions entrance is huge but not really one my favourites opening songs ever. Express Yoursel BAT is iconic.

I see, I admit Future Lovers is one of the few Confessions tracks I really enjoy (not a huge disco fan here, the others are Get together, Forbidden love, Let it will be and Like it or not ... stop ), especially the live version with the explicit recall to I feel love. Anyway when I wrote my post I was thinking about the theatrics side especially, the idea, the mood and the effectiveness. Said that, of course the music is fundamental, I understand.

 

1 hour ago, Drownedboy said:

Mdna opening is amazing 

Oh well that was huge and spectacular, but I never could completely like it. I always thought the whole section was cahotic. It's about rage and aggressiveness and I never completely got the meaning of how the morality of the Catholic Church was brought up among guns and riffles and kinda ninja fighters and then something like vodu creatures ... I mean, I feel it too messy to really say something. Of course I could not have got the symbolism so I''d really appreciate anyone's help 

 I agree with Vince Paterson anyway: in his recent interview for the MDNA Podcast, he says she could have benefit if she hired good theatre directors for her shows. He ment people with Broadway, theatric shows duirecting skills and not just live concerts, considering the kind of shows she puts on. Paterson says only nice things about them, defyning them all very good, full of interesting ideas and amazingly produced, but lacking in the narrative and in the exploration of the full potential of the great ideas and "flavours" taken on stage. That is exactly my feeling, especially since the Reinvention tour (the military set doesn't really go anywhere after American Life for example, so the Maria Antoinette section after Vogue, the Middle Eastern Confessions set is really all over the place and the same stands for the beautiful but super super super messy Rebel Heart first act, wich we know was the JUXTAPOSITION of two originally duifferent acts). There are some very good examples still, like the Gatsby section in the Rebel heart tour, combining in such an eclectic but coherent way so many different musical styles and moods, or the wonderful Deco one in the MDNA show (from the Vogue cage corset to the moving arressing mirrors to the tightening black corset and the melancholic Like a Virgin waltz, everything seemed to be telling about seduction, body, image and the relationship with something deeper, a more intimate part, wich I found interesting she staged right when she was starting to get all the criticism about her surgeries and her very young lovers). Her best examples in terms of narrative still are BA, DW and, most of all, the Girlie Show (naturally) 

2 hours ago, Leona Helmsley said:

Unpopular opinion: you know what? This remains my favourite Celebration corset, cause it's got some light - missing in the too elegant black one, but really recalls the original ones, both of them, the Open your heart/WTGT one and the Gaultier's Blond Ambition series. The silver is good but it's not that close and effective for me. When I watch the Lisbon show it really feels like a plain tribute to the original imaginary.

[Leona Helmsley 9,418]

2 minutes ago, stefo said:

Unpopular opinion: you know what? This remains my favourite Celebration corset, cause it's got some light - missing in the too elegant black one, but really recalls the original ones, and both of them, the Open your heart/WTGT one and the Gaultier's Blond Ambition series. The silver is good but it's not that close and effective for me. When I watch the Lisbon show it really feels like a plain tribute to the original imaginary.

its not bad at all ...... really like this corset too........

[Prayer 14,366]

56 minutes ago, Leona Helmsley said:

thanks so much @Nahash.....

@Prayer WHAT?!!!! WHAT?!!!! 

you should listen to this song non stop.........

for the eternity............

#Team candy shop

#candy shop forever

#candy shop for all

#candy shop we are eternally greatful 

Not "Candy Shop" gate in 2024, please.

I never said the song is BAD. But it's definitely NOT lead single (like she wanted) material or tour opener.

And yet she managed to win us all on that second one!

I was VERY surprised to learn it wasn't featured in this tour in some form, TBH.

[Leona Helmsley 9,418]

3 minutes ago, Prayer said:

Not "Candy Shop" gate in 2024, please.

I never said the song is BAD. But it's definitely NOT lead single (like she wanted) material or tour opener.

And yet she managed to win us all on that second one!

I was VERY surprised to learn it wasn't featured in this tour in some form, TBH.

i hope you don' t take it seriously....... it was humour ......

btw i love really love hard candy........ from the 1st song to the last one.........

[sara94 2,200]

Finally another show tonight. Feels like forever since the last in Denver omg

[pawn_shop_blues 575]

this one isn't that bad imo

[MattyMads 5,515]

Do we have a full Denver show yet? I’ve not seen much on YouTube 

[Blue Jean 15,254]

6 hours ago, ErickInTheZone said:

I wouldn't say it's bad but Madame X Tour opener is quite unimpressive to me

I didn’t like it

[BoyToyMark 346]

As much as I'm used to it, I'm still sad there's not at least some Sydney and Melbourne dates.

[scallywally 1,122]

4 hours ago, pawn_shop_blues said:

this one isn't that bad imo

First time ive seen it! I was hiding as I read so many times it was awful. I got rain on my dates which was incredible. OK this isnt Incredible but she sounds quite good! Its a really nice closure to 'the show' It fits well and of course was big in the States.

[Pedro Beltran 4,272]

6 minutes ago, scallywally said:

First time ive seen it! I was hiding as I read so many times it was awful. I got rain on my dates which was incredible. OK this isnt Incredible but she sounds quite good! Its a really nice closure to 'the show' It fits well and of course was big in the States.

I saw it live and loved it, exactly is a better lead to the closer than the other two 

[Donna 16,445]

8 minutes ago, scallywally said:

First time ive seen it! I was hiding as I read so many times it was awful. I got rain on my dates which was incredible. OK this isnt Incredible but she sounds quite good! Its a really nice closure to 'the show' It fits well and of course was big in the States.

While I would agree, she doesn't necessarily sound the greatest singing it on this tour, but it's only the vocal fans here do I read any serious criticism about her voice. But then again, I don't care what others say because I know isn't an easy song to sing. 

And yeah, I'm guess she's only singing this during the U.S. dates and once she leaves the U.S, she will revert back to Rain or Frozen if not replace it with something more fitting to the Mexico and Brazil fans.

[cyberrage 405]

8 hours ago, ErickInTheZone said:

I wouldn't say it's bad but Madame X Tour opener is quite unimpressive to me

It was pretty bad. I have family who usually indulge my Madonna obsession and watch the concerts but that was too much for them. Love to see the streaming stats of how many press stop before the horrendous typing lets up

[Blue Jean 15,254]

47 minutes ago, cyberrage said:

It was pretty bad. I have family who usually indulge my Madonna obsession and watch the concerts but that was too much for them. Love to see the streaming stats of how many press stop before the horrendous typing lets up

For me it is her entrance that is lack lustre. And I wasn’t such a fan of the Hamilton thing.

[Blue Jean 15,254]

8 hours ago, stefo said:

Unpopular opinion: you know what? This remains my favourite Celebration corset, cause it's got some light - missing in the too elegant black one, but really recalls the original ones, both of them, the Open your heart/WTGT one and the Gaultier's Blond Ambition series. The silver is good but it's not that close and effective for me. When I watch the Lisbon show it really feels like a plain tribute to the original imaginary.

Totally agree, it’s an unpopular opinion 

My fave is the silver!

[Blue Jean 15,254]

1 hour ago, McDonna said:

While I would agree, she doesn't necessarily sound the greatest singing it on this tour, but it's only the vocal fans here do I read any serious criticism about her voice. But then again, I don't care what others say because I know isn't an easy song to sing. 

And yeah, I'm guess she's only singing this during the U.S. dates and once she leaves the U.S, she will revert back to Rain or Frozen if not replace it with something more fitting to the Mexico and Brazil fans.

I suspect she will keep Take a Bow for Mexico/Brazil. She seems to have settled on it.

[Donna 16,445]

1 hour ago, cyberrage said:

It was pretty bad. I have family who usually indulge my Madonna obsession and watch the concerts but that was too much for them. Love to see the streaming stats of how many press stop before the horrendous typing lets up

I'm envious you still have family that indulge your obsession with Madonna.  I'm at the point of my life that I don't care what anyone thinks of my interest in Madonna. Besides, those people who give you a hard time about your interest in Madonna have their own obsessions that others aren't interested in.

[Burning Up 4 Madonna 1,000]

If this has been shared here sorry. I think from all the videos I have seen that the Phoenix crowd is one of the loudest of the tour.

 

[Roland Barthes 5,850]

All i can say about Madame X tour is after seeing the film i'm glad she cancelled on me. The intro is awful. It starts getting interesting with Human Nature. There's too much going on. I did not expect an overblown and overstuffed smaller venues version of her regular tours. I thought it would be about music and singing with real musicians. The film is unwatchable and she looks like she's sucking lemons the whole time, now we know the sour face was due to the pain. The only saving grace for me is the live mix of Future and better vocals on Killers, Batuka, Come Alive and I Rise than on the album (which i'm a fan of). The costumes are quite unimpressive too. The best numbers are Extreme Occident and Frozen thx to Jalet's genius. At last domething new. 

I like the MDNA entrance, sadly it's on that damn song. That one i had to skip too for health reasons and give my ticket at the last minute to a friend. 

i saw all the other tours starting with WTG and the one that stays with me is Girlie Show because of the rush of energy that exploded when she finally got onstage. The closest i got similar to it was Confessions. 

I have a question regarding the sound, have some of you been to various venues on this tour ? Was it hard to understand what she's saying at each ? I only did Bercy twice and it already was different from being in the pit than being in the nosebleeders. I wonder if not having to deal with a live band makes it a nightmare to mix her voice in it. Because on record, the reason why voices are doubled is because too many tracks drowns the vocals. I hope one day Stuart will explain to us how it was a nightmare in the end. 

And i wonder how that will play in the open air in Brazil...

 

[Blue Jean 15,254]

53 minutes ago, Roland Barthes said:

All i can say about Madame X tour is after seeing the film i'm glad she cancelled on me. The intro is awful. It starts getting interesting with Human Nature. There's too much going on. I did not expect an overblown and overstuffed smaller venues version of her regular tours. I thought it would be about music and singing with real musicians. The film is unwatchable and she looks like she's sucking lemons the whole time, now we know the sour face was due to the pain. The only saving grace for me is the live mix of Future and better vocals on Killers, Batuka, Come Alive and I Rise than on the album (which i'm a fan of). The costumes are quite unimpressive too. The best numbers are Extreme Occident and Frozen thx to Jalet's genius. At last domething new. 

I like the MDNA entrance, sadly it's on that damn song. That one i had to skip too for health reasons and give my ticket at the last minute to a friend. 

i saw all the other tours starting with WTG and the one that stays with me is Girlie Show because of the rush of energy that exploded when she finally got onstage. The closest i got similar to it was Confessions. 

I have a question regarding the sound, have some of you been to various venues on this tour ? Was it hard to understand what she's saying at each ? I only did Bercy twice and it already was different from being in the pit than being in the nosebleeders. I wonder if not having to deal with a live band makes it a nightmare to mix her voice in it. Because on record, the reason why voices are doubled is because too many tracks drowns the vocals. I hope one day Stuart will explain to us how it was a nightmare in the end. 

And i wonder how that will play in the open air in Brazil...

 

I saw her in 3 venues and overall I could hear her speaking voice clearly for the most part, moreso when she was addressing the audience. I did not see her from the seats though, only the floor.

I think mixing would usually be easier without a live band. And the people doing it are pros so I doubt its any kind of nightmare. I think the only issue is her voice, which seems weaker than past tours. It would be better at least having backing singers imo as it would keep that live sound throughout rather than her voice being doubled so much to compensate. 

[dylanlioncourt 5,780]

So just got home from the Dallas date today. Ended up getting some end of the catwalk front row tickets for $296 a piece and took my friend and mom with our old tickets. DJ Mary Mac was the DJ tonight before the show. Lukewarm reaction and kind of dozed off on the set like I did back on MDNA. The mixes were very meh.

Madonna came around after 10 tonight. Very interactive. Mentioned she was starting the show on a bad mood. Her voice was a bit hoarse tonight and noticed she missed a couple of cues during some songs. She almost whacked herself with the mic stand during Burning Up. No Causing a Commotion tonight. The first opening act was glorious live and especially Live To Tell definitely touches the heartstrings. Like a Prayer I ended up loving in person along with the performance and visuals.

Erotica was so epic and dark sounding in the arena. Personal favorite of mine and Hung Up brought the house down. She looked at me and my sister during the dance break and smiled at us. Vogue's guest tonight was a drag queen (didn't catch her name) but she walked prior to the show around the floor so it was a given she'd be the best and she did well! Crazy For You got a huge reaction tonight.

We got Express Yourself tonight, prior to the song she did her infamous "What's the difference between a popstar and a terrorist?" joke and one guy shouted out the punchline. She seemed shocked and surprised and had a lovely banter with him. I think she was genuinely surprised. Asked us to turn our phone lights on and the crowd sang along. She mentioned the night had gotten better and loved seeing our smiling faces.

Bedtime Story (the cube obscured the view) but I loved the mix and how it goes off. Ray of Light was just euphoria from beginning to end. The lights, the remix, the energy!! Loved it. No Rain tonight (though we were in the middle of a thunderstorm tonight) but Take a Bow got a good reaction tonight. The Billie Jean/Like a Virgin interlude got a good reaction and works better live than on video. Still not a fan of the finale but it worked tonight. She seemed in high spirits performing it and having a ball. She missed her veil cue and laughed it off and said goodnight. 

Overall, it's my fourth time seeing her and my younger sister's first show. Was an amazing ride exploring her rich discography set to the legendary live and career she's lived. For those on the fence or awaiting their upcoming tour dates, you're in for the ride of your lives. Debating tomorrow's show for a two nighter but my god, I'm still on a high! Will try to post photos and videos! 

[Honey Little 3,996]

I loved the Madame X Tour but the video set screens were often blurry. But it’s still in my top 5 tours.

[Leona Helmsley 9,418]

20 minutes ago, Honey Little said:

I loved the Madame X Tour but the video set screens were often blurry. But it’s still in my top 5 tours.

the all madame x era was so powerful and original....... so sad a lot of people don't like it........

[Honey Little 3,996]

17 minutes ago, Leona Helmsley said:

the all madame x era was so powerful and original....... so sad a lot of people don't like it........

Everyone I showed it to, loved it!