star guardian

So I finally saw the Madame X show last night. As titled, the show shares the journey and experiences of Madame X as well as the current state of the world we live in.
Before I comment further on the show, I must say I absolutely love the pre show live music by the 4 member band, which performed several Madonna tracks - Secret, DTM, WTG, LAV. They sound brilliant.
Seeing the show live - which is visually stunning - I can understand the songs selected for the setlist. Note: Don’t worry. I’m not gonna go through each performance in the setlist.
She started the show literally with a bang - God Control. Then she performed Dark Ballet which ended with her being put into a round box space. It then seamlessly flowed in to Human Nature with her executing gorgeous choreography ala the Human Nature video. Those who thought her previous tours were too political might find offense in the first section alone which she throws in your face strong poignant political commentary. 
No one should take away our human rights and our right to live. We will not be silenced. We will speak and fight for our rights. Her PDP performance shows her stand against those trying to overthrow Roe Vs Wade and her fight for equal rights for women. She ended the section fittingly with American Life - “nothing is what it seems”. Side note: that AL bass is LIFE.
The second section is exactly as she introduced to us - her life and new music inspiration and appreciation in Lisbon. Beginning with Fado music. This section is a massive hit if you love the Mx album and a sore miss if you’re not a fan of the album. That said, I find this section the most broadway-esque if that makes sense.
The last section for me is about being freedom fighters craving for a brighter future despite obstacles and hardened people who want to take away our democracy. And she ended the show fading out with “We Will Rise” as she disappeared into the main exit of the theater behind the audience with her performers.
To sum up, this is a dream show for me in that it is an intimate, highly choreographed yet spontaneous, visually stunning and artistic theatrical performance. Is it perfect? No. But its imperfections make it perfect for me if that makes any sense.
Bitches, I absolutely love the show!

I mean... keep going on about things you have no actual idea about, but like I said, the actual set pieces like the stairs move around a LOT in various ways and not manually.  I don't know if it's the actual reason for the delay, but the set isn't as simplistic as people keep trying to make it out to be.

I have to disagree with this entirely, aside from raising the wrong expectations on Instagram.  The show is stunning live, and you really need a couple viewings from different angles to really digest it all.  When you're up close, Madonna is so mesmerizing and has such a commanding presence that I barely looked anywhere else.  The choreography isn't as aerobics heavy as past tours, but it's absolutely more physically demanding than RHT.  She's in much better shape than she was on the RHT.  Her legs are still to die for.  She still has a natural grace and charisma in her movements that are unmatched, and she's almost always moving.
It's all really hard to describe.  The best way would probably be instead of the concert video backdrops we are used to, the entire set is a projection for the images, that spread beyond the center stage to the rest of the theater space, and she's part of the entire projection and set like you would expect in a theater show.  Although the set looks simple, if you look closely, there are actually a lot of complex moving pieces and set designs that are very well done.  The setlist might not make much sense on paper or even audio, but it flows seamlessly live when everything is working.  The audience reaction makes up a large part of that success or not though, which is where the lateness becomes the defining factor to a good or bad show and also whether she's in a playful or bad mood.
Her outfits are more costume-like to fit the theatrical acts she's trying to convey rather than looking glamorous or sexy for the sake of being a pop star like in past concerts, but that doesn't mean they're lower quality.  The tour book lists most of the same and other high end designers as her past tours.  It's just different.
A lot of the setlist and audio won't make much sense or necessarily seem very impressive without the visuals.  This is a very visual show.  It's all meant to convey her political agenda rather than being pure entertainment.  The show is a work of art.
I can see how this would be incredibly difficult to film, but I hope they manage to do so at some point.  This deserves to be seen and more than once.  There are so many layers that you miss if you're focusing on one thing or another.  I admit my attention wandered briefly during some of the less exciting songs the first night, but mostly because I was really tired.  There is a point to every song though, it's not just a random playlist thrown together like it sounds. 
I'll be the first to admit I had quite low expectations going in, but it was amazing.  At the end of the day, there is no one like Madonna.
Kevin at the beer moment last night told her "the world would be a better place if it was like a Madonna concert".  M said "but this isn't really a Madonna concert.  It's Madame X theater.  Don't confuse the two."

OKOKOK, great news coming people: I just asked to an undoutably reliable source about the rumour spreading around according wich she should not be recording this tour and here is his marvelous answer I'm so happy to share with you all!!!
"I’ve heard it’s going to be recorded. We were actually talking about it today. That’s all I can say. Also tour book is awesome!!! Coming soon!"
 

So amazing and stomping on ageism. I love it! 

so close to the stage! :o
aw i wish we had a bootleg already 

Sorry if already posted. LAP minivideo:
 

For all the people who haven't been to the show... Crave Remix is a bit random, but it's also a welcomed upbeat dance number. By this point you've already been wowed by visuals and projections. That's not what this number is about. If the Girlie Show was judged solely by looking at a crappy recording of  "Everybody" , people would be saying the same negative stuff. 
This disco ball illuminates the entire theatre.

 
The outfits everyone wears are like a fashion show like the fashion show of Vogue MDNA. Chaz is featuring the God Control outfit Madonna wore. YOU CANNOT SEE THIS FROM A CRAPPY RECORDING.
Not to mention... has anyone seen MDNA Tour? The first whole section is basically lip synced minus a 1 minute Papa Don't Preach. Sooooo I really don't know what anyone is talking about when they are upset she's using a vocoder or autotune. Madonna's voice is live 100% of the time in this show. 
 
If you haven't seen the show and your opinion is negative... you should probably refrain from a review. 
 

I go to many different types of shows from jazz to dance to acoustic pretty often and have for years, Madame X Tour is next level for any artist and I’m glad I had a chance to experience it live. I saw Duran Duran on Broadway many years ago, people like Donald Trump, an Olsen Twin, and Moby were also stuck preshow in a lobby setting prior to the show however Madonna blew it out of the water in comparison.
From what I saw “everybody knows the damn truth” about when the show really starts and arrived accordingly as there is no opening act. Also would you prefer a decent opening act then a long wait? I am impartial to either. At another Duranie show years later Juliet (Stuart Price produced her album Avalon) was the opener but the wait between the acts was agonizing. At BAM they play classic jazz standards which was also nice in comparison to filler music though I did enjoy how Stuart Price preprogrammed the tunes prior to Confessions and Reinvention. I remember going “fuck yes” when his remix of Mono’s Slimcea Girl was on before the show started.
The way it all is presented on stage really leaves a lot of potential for a stellar filmed experience. Days later I’m still thinking of Crazy, Human Nature, American Life, Medellin, Come Alive... at least half of the set list if not more was just amazing. I also want a reel of Monte as he has a signature presence now. No one seems to mention Monte but he is a personal favorite and it makes me happy to see him on stage with her, it feels right and she seems confident with him there too.
Even Trolling Stone gave the show a rave review. My only major beef was the ending tbh because Crave is such a bop and the dance remix was super random, she has such an arsenal of dance floor classics.

tea

S&S vocals were her worst on tour. 
She's actually much better live than people give her credit for in general, especially when she's not doing heavy choreography.  RHT were her best vocals in a long time.

like i said many times before i have nothing bad to say about this tour. i only heard audios, i didnt saw a full bootleg, only snippets, and im not even going bc im broke asf and she's not coming to my country. i get that nobody has to like everything she does and stuff, but come on.... if she didnt tour at all everybody would be complaining and saying mean things! if you dont like it, its okay! but you dont have to talk about her age of keep compairing her to other artists, because madonna is only madonna and she's has nothing left to prove! my only wish at this point is an official release of the tour and that's all.... i have faith, okay?!  

like i said many times before i have nothing bad to say about this tour. i only heard audios, i didnt saw a full bootleg, only snippets, and im not even going bc im broke asf and she's not coming to my country. i get that nobody has to like everything she does and stuff, but come on.... if she didnt tour at all everybody would be complaining and saying mean things! if you dont like it, its okay! but you dont have to talk about her age of keep compairing her to other artists, because madonna is only madonna and she's has nothing left to prove! my only wish at this point is an official release of the tour and that's all.... i have faith, okay?!  

right. we have no idea what the tour is like aside from reviews. But people were ready to take out all their frustrations about her on this tour before she even conceptualized it.... same with the album.

She doesn't seem to be over filming her shows. She has filmed her last tours in different places and she has taken the time to edit them (too much for a lot of us but it's another discussion). It's pretty obvious she'll do something.
you can be annoyed to miss the show because you are too far from the cities she's visiting but hating a show for that reason is a proof of a lack of maturity at this point

I think a few are forcing themselves to hate on it because they are unable to go due to her not going to many countries - you will have to be there to enjoy this show i think and i really dont even think we will get a dvd of this tour :( 

oh god. I'm amazed by the amount of person full of intelligence that can judge a show, a dance routine, an outfit, basing their opinion on an ultra LQ video.
 

Dude, the only one that's 100% tired and through is you. Go buy some pizza and lighten up.

There were moments in the show on Tuesday where I was thinking... although she is speaking alot and does sit down next to someone and sells a selfie, and takes a swig off someones beer,  M is still somewhat disconnected from the audience. It's still a "show".  But then something amazing happened
She's singing Killers at the end of the second verse "I'll be a woman if she's raped and her heart is breaking"
Her eyes locked with someone in the 2nd or 3rd row as if she was singing to only them. She does not blink. 
"I know what I am" She leans in closer as if to challenge this person. 
"and I know what i'm not" She tilts her head ... I wonder what this person who she is looking at is feeling. They can't be smiling. Madonna's face is stone cold like she may tear this person's face off at any moment. 
"Do you know who you are?"  The longest 10 seconds Ive ever felt. Its clear Madonna wrote these words and she has a message that she wants us to hear. and then just as fast she breaks her stare and follows her feet that are programed to move at this specific moment. 
This was just one of many cool moments. 

Not sure what that negative comment was about above. I went to the Sep 26th show, and was absolutely blown away! Her vocals are the best they’ve ever been, the theatricality and artistic approach to the songs(rather than playing them straight like a typical “concert”) were really interesting. I’m not sure whether or not to call this show a “concert” or “theatre”, but it is an absolutely mesmerizing show.
If there were anything about the show I think that fell flat for me, it was Crazy during Act 2, and the overall flow of Act 3.
Crazy did not add to much to the show for me, other than giving her a jumping off point to talk about love. In that case, she could’ve done Crave in its album form, or remixed an older love song of hers to fit the vibe.
As for Act 3, everything following Come Alive didn’t make much sense in terms of narrative. Future/Crave/LAP/I Rise do not transition into each other that well. It made no sense in context of the flow and narrative to go from talking about the future with visuals of the apocalypse, to a disco track, to a trap-inspired rendition of LAP, to a melancholy/uplifting closer. It was a stretch, the way she blended these together. Had it been LAP/Crave/Future/I Rise, I think it would’ve worked better for the overall flow, but on their own, each of these songs were all amazing moments of the show. 
Don’t believe the haters. This show is meant to be experienced with an open heart, and an open mind. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but to say she’s boring, not dancing, and not singing great or live are all choices, if not false.
I don’t think I’ll ever get the image of Madonna in that colonial-era outfit screaming “A new democracy” from atop the staircases, while throwing that fugly hat almost two stories down to the floor out of my mind.