In 1988, a hyperbolic combed Joan Cusack told Melanie Griffith in the movie Working Girl, "Sometimes I dance and sing around the house in my underwear and that doesn't make me Madonna. I never will be." That phrase encapsulated the spirit of an era and the reality of all the artists who have tried to live up to blonde ambition for the last four decades without success. She is no longer just a star but the high priestess of her own pop religion. This was the feeling of the fans who attended the first of the two 'Madonnesque' masses at the Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona as part of their Celebration Tour. About 18,000 souls sold out the tickets for each of the days - with prices reaching 400 euros - and on Wednesday they bowed in communion to the female artist who has sold the most records so far, the queen, the messiah. Bless you.
"This is not a show, it's not a party, it's a celebration," announced Bob the Drag Queen, the master in charge of opening the ceremony dressed in the style of Marie Antoinette, as Madonna at the MTV awards in 1990. Immediately afterwards (more than an hour late), Ciccione materialized covered in black and a Santa halo while singingNothing Really Matters. It was the first success of those expected, because on this tour the artist has decided to do what her fans have been demanding for a long time: a review of her greatest hits live. At this point in his career, he can do whatever he wants and he has opted for fun. The recitals only suitable for diligent students are left to other gentlemen sulking about mobile phones and modernity in general.
For about two hours, the singer reviewed a trajectory that began with her arrival in New York with $35 in her pocket and a lot of determination. He welcomed his audience with a formal "I love Barcelona!" and a speech of self-improvement before picking up the guitar and performing a wild version of Burning Up, as he did in his day at the famous New York club CBGB. Everybody and Into The Groove had already been played before and the celebration continued until reaching a theatrical scene that served to remember her facet as an actress. That sketch, in which he represents a girl who is not allowed to enter a nightclub, was the preamble to the tremendous party that was unleashed with Holiday but that ends with the symbolic death of a dancer. It is the story of an era weighed down by AIDS, which he sings in Live To Tell as a tribute to those who died from the disease whose portraits - some of celebrities such as Keith Haring or Robert Mapplethorpe - filled the screens.
The show on this tour is divided into three acts and one of the few negative reviews it deserves, besides the delay in the schedule, is the excessive length of the interludes. Perhaps it is necessary because you have to take into account that some changes of look, despite the 25 people who make up the wardrobe team, take time. Still, they execute quickly, because neither Jean Paul Gaultier's cone bra dress nor Versace's crystal jumpsuit seem easy to put on. They're not exactly a tracksuit.
It is also possible that these small respites will come in handy for the artist, who is still suffering from the bacterial infection that almost killed her last June. Although he did not rest on stage, his movements were less acrobatic than on his previous tours and one of his legs was protected with a knee brace. Madonna has worked hard to recover in order to give the postponed concerts as soon as possible and, in fact, in the equipment of the tour there are three portable gyms, but miracles do not exist even for a bionic deity like her.
The baton of the dance was picked up by her 11-year-old daughter Estere, who during Vogue marked an elastic choreography in the style of Blue Ivy, a descendant of Beyoncé, at her mother's concerts. In fact, together they could set up a duo of dancing 'nepo babies' and fill stadiums – on social networks they ask for it – all over the world. She's not the only one of her progeny to appear on stage: Mercy James played piano on Bad Girl, Stella was on Don't Tell Me, and David Banda played guitar on Mother and Father. The presence of his children during the show could have led to tear-jerking numbers, but on the contrary: at no time did he leave aside the provocation present throughout his career.
The blonde squandered an energetic eroticism with the tune of Papa Don't Preach (masturbatory acts included with a dancer turned into her replicant), Justify My Love, the version of the classic Fever and the half-hearted Hung Up On with Tokischa. She also delivered a fiery message, a principle she says she has read in all religious books of different faiths: "love your neighbor as yourself." From there he jumped to Gloria Gaynor's I Will Survive. This last song was chained to a mashup of La Isla Bonita and the mythical Don't Cry for me Argentina that he performed with the LGTBI+ flag as a cape. Party and vindication of rights have been synonymous with Madonna throughout her career.
After the "I Don't Search I Find" interlude, with a succession of historical footage of Ciccione—including the clip where her archenemy Cher calls her "bad"—the final act began with "Bedtime Story." In this block he included a Chinese shadow show in which his eighties silhouette and that of Michael Jackson performed Billie Jean and Like A Virgin intertwined. A tribute to the King of Pop that took a little light away from "Touched for the very first time", one of the most anticipated choruses of the night. Material Girl (which could have replaced Jackson's song) was also missed, but the artist did not forget other essentials such as Ray Of Light and above all she made it clear that Bitch, She's Madonna. Amen.
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