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The Celebration Tour

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The Celebration Tour was the twelfth concert tour by American recording artist Madonna . Launched as her first retrospective tour, it highlights her more than four decade-long recording career. Visiting Europe and North America, the tour comprises of 78 shows, which began on 14 October 2023 at the O 2 Arena in London, England.

• 1.1 Postponement
• 1.2 Rehearsals
• 2.1 Stage and lighting
• 2.3 Fashion
• 4 Rio De Janeiro - Synopsis
• 7 Recurring References

Development [ ]

Building off the excitement of week's announcement, Madonna turned directly to her fanbase as she builds out her Celebration Tour setlist, asking her fans "What song would you like to dance to at my show?" on her social platforms. California-born artist Jess Cuevas was in charge of tour's promotional poster.

Stuart Price, a former producer of the singer, informed the BBC that "a greatest hit doesn't have to be a song [...] It can be a wardrobe, it can be a video, or a statement." He went on further to state "many hits will be played in full, some will be interpolated into other songs, and still more will be used as "bridges" between acts." Mark Savage asked if there were comparisons to other tours that utilize different track rotations. Price stated "Madonna's reputation is for being highly precise and highly rehearsed across all departments. When you look at a tour of this scale, it has so many moving parts, so many elements, that everything has to be highly fixed... but there's one thing that's always dynamic, and that's Madonna herself. Her personality is so strong, her interaction with the audience is so strong, that it creates opportunities for variation from night to night."

Postponement [ ]

After Madonna developed a "serious bacterial infection" in late June, which led her to a several day stay in Intensive care unit (ICU), she announced the postponement of the initial North American leg via an Instagram post. The rescheduled dates were announced on August 15, 2023.

Speaking about her health struggles in the first show on October 14 in London, she reflected: "I forgot five days of my life, or my death [...] If you want to know my secret, and you want to know how I pull through and how I survive, I thought, 'I've got to be there for my children. I have to survive for them'".

Rehearsals [ ]

Rehearsals first began in New York City in April. In early June, the rehearsals moved to the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale but were temporarily stopped during Madonna's stay at the ICU at the end of the month and during her recovery. The rehearsals then restarted in mid August at the same venue. In early October, the team moved to Manchester to rehearse at the AO Arena. She made a total six weeks of rehearsals after her return from hospital. Stage director, Ric Lipson from Stufish, commented: "Madonna rehearses unlike most artists [...] Other artists, their dancers go and build the show somewhere and they come in a few weeks later".

Production [ ]

Madonna's crew onstage performers include some of her children, including David Banda playing the guitar and Mercy James in the piano.

Madonna enlisted Lewis James as the creative director and Jamie King. She collaborated closely with them, with James saying she "is extremely involved in the process, which is amazing. She has a lot of conviction in her ideas, and she knows what she wants". The Celebration Tour boasts a crew of 24 onstage performers, including some Madonna's children, and additional 175 crew members accompanied her, including 25 people working in the costume department.

London-based entertainment architecture company Stufish, designed the stage headed by Ric Lipson. Madonna also closely collaborated with the company. Lipson stated the stage was designed to create a vast network of "on-stage runways that allowed her to get up close and personal with nearly every section of the arena", and unlike her previous tours, it focused more on staging, lighting and photography.

Rolling Stone UK described the tour as a "masterclass in arena production". According to Thomas H Green from The Arts Desk , "It is spectacle on the very grandest scale" and a "biographical concept album as dance theatre".

Stage and lighting [ ]

The design of the stage evokes her historical wedding cake setup from the 1984 MTV Video Music Awards and Manhattan neighborhoods (where Madonna kickstarted her career in the early 1980s). It is a three-layered circular stage combined with a 230 m (750 ft) length of catwalk, as well as the shape of a clock, nodding to the element of time. With 4,400 square feet on stage, it is the largest square footage of any Madonna tour ever.

The production included various stage elements, including a circular lighting rig, a giant disco ball, a spinning carousel, a giant cube and several hanging retractable screens

The production equipment has 80 tons, and consists of 3700 amps of show power, 600 intelligent lights to illuminate the stage and 14 spotlights for the singer, as well 3600 square feet of LEDs to give a complete imagery to the show.

One of the stage’s most important props is a circular lighting rig, and an illuminated portal frame, designed to act like a time machine looking into the past, present and future where Madonna is lifted 9 m (30 ft) off the ground, and move at 4.5 m (15 ft) per second. It is also used by some of her children, including David Banda.

Other stage elements include a giant disco ball, a giant video cube, several laser turnbuckles emulating a boxing ring and a spinning carousel-like glass-architectures with large crucifixes. Described as a "city of portraits", the show have also several hanging retractable screens (which evokes the Who’s That Girl World Tour), and used the most amount of video ever in her tours. Speaking about the screens that came out constantly with projections on, according to Lipson, it allows singer's image and "key motifs" of her career to be "displayed to the entire crowd throughout the show".

Price became assigned as musical director for the tour following a call with Madonna congratulating her on the announcement of the tour. Although some of her children play instruments, for the first time in her touring career, there was no live band, which according to Price, the reason is "to let the original recordings shine". He also stated "There's a couple of spoken word sections in the show where we just use track. But it's all live vocals".

The Celebration Tour is designed as a retrospective across Madonna's recording career of over 40 years. It featured numerous of her songs that had not been performed live in decades, including "Justify My Love" (since The Girlie Show), “Bad Girl” (since Saturday Night Live), Erotica" (since The Confessions Tour with original song lyrics and production), and "Rain" (since the Girlie Show) “Bedtime Story" since 1995, as well "Nothing Really Matters" since 1999, "Die Another Day and "Mother and Father" both since 2004 and "Live to Tell" since 2006.

Upon the announcement, various publications elaborated their dream set list, including Rolling Stone , Consequence and Variety . On January 18, 2023, Billboard dedicated a list of potential songs across the four decades they would like to hear, as well as creating a poll for fans to comment on what song they would like to see be performed. On January 20, 2023, the poll showed the 1987 single "Causing a Commotion" as the leading contender.

Fashion [ ]

Initially, media reported costume designer Guram Gvasalia from Vetements was enlisted to be the costume director. In early April 2023, Madonna showcased her costume archives on Instagram ahead of the tour. She enlisted creative duo designers Yohannes and Rita Melssen. The costume duo created and designed almost all outfits paying tribute to her four decades of fashion; they began their research by looking at Madonna's polaroids and performances from her beginnings, commenting "we wanted to reference everything that she's done, and make something new out of that [...] We created a whole new world". According to Yohannes and Melssen:

She is involved in every single process of the costume design. She looks at all the fabrics, sketches, and buttons. She cares about who the characters are, and the clothes telling that story.

The tour also included designs of Dilara Fındıkoğlu, Almarow, Ruslan Baginskiy, Rosamario, Miu Miu, Víctor Barragán, Vetements, a catsuit by Donatella Versace and Jean Paul Gaultier whom created a brand new version of her cone bra made famous during the Blond Ambition World Tour in 1990, a black cone mini dress encrusted with black crystals. She also wore a halo-style headpiece by House of Malakai with a kimono by Eyob Yohannes. Having 45 wardrobe trunks, tour's wardrobe included hats and 45 pairs of boxing gloves.

Derrick Bryson Taylor and Ben Sisario from The New York Times described the new costumes as "sexy, religious and futuristic". Harper's Bazaar 's Jessica Davis similarly commented she has showcasing "some incredible designer looks on stage". Christian Allaire from Vogue described them as "epic" outfits.

Synopsis [ ]

The Celebration Tour is a two-hour-plus set with multiple-costume-change and more than 30 songs. The show was separated into five different sections: Uptown , Downtown , Midtown , East and West "grids". According to tour creative director Lewis James, the stage and show also serves as an archive of her life, celebrating her fans, and is a "continuation of her legacy" more than just a biography.

Through the concert, Bob the Drag Queen serves as an emcee, appearing during different moments of the show interacting with the singer, often dressed as Marie Antoinette (resembling Madonna's "Vogue" 1990 MTV Video Music Awards performance). During segments of the show, dancers appear wearing recreations of 17 outfits originally wore by Madonna, representing many of her reinventions.

The concert starts with the Shep’s Deeper Dub mix of Deeper and Deeper briefly play as Bob the Drag Queen (donning Madonna's costume from the 1990 MTV Video Music Awards) entering the arena from the main foyer and interacts with the audience while making his way to the stage. Upon reaching the stage, Bob declares that "It's Showtime!" as a spotlight shines on him and the lights of the arena turn off. The intro of "Lucky Star" plays, followed by the Benny Benassi remix of "Celebration" and then " Material Girl ", as Bob starts to talk about Madonna's beginnings from 1979 with clips from Madonna's music videos and previous content play on the video screens. Afterwards, Bob declares that "This isn't just a show, this isn't just a concert, this isn't just a party. It's a Celebration, bitches!" as he is lowered from the stage and the white video screen rolls up. White lights emit the stage as Madonna appears on the main stage dressed in a black kimono and a celestial headdress as she performs " Nothing Really Matters ". The song's arrangement consists of a mix between the album version and the Club 69 mix. After singing the first chorus of the song, the cameras pan on Madonna's right hand which shows the OM symbol. During the second chorus, the stage rotates counterclockwise referencing a clock traveling back in time. Madonna finishes the song by singing the last part of the bridge "In your arms" four times symbolizing four decades of her career.

Madonna leaves the stage for a quick costume change as a short intermission taking the audience back to 1982 with collages of Madonna from her beginnings from the Lower East Side are shown on the screen accompanied by dancers dressed in punk clothing from the 80's, a vocal sample of "Where's The Party" and Bob the Drag Queen's voice acting as an emcee for the Danceteria playing in the background. Madonna returns to the stage dressed in a punk style corset and a coat with chains to sing her debut single " Everybody " and "Into The Groove" with elements from "Into The Hollywood Groove". Madonna then makes it to the runway and talks about her beginnings coming to New York City with $35 in her pocket and a dream. She is accompanied by a dancer in a latex mask dressed as her from the 80's as she then performs the demo version of "Burning Up" with her electric guitar. During the New York stops, Madonna performs "I Love New York" over the Burning Up instrumental before performing the latter. Several video screens lower down showing the Tamara de Lempicka painting "Andromeda" (that Madonna owns) and various other marquees as Madonna takes her coat off, runs to the runway, sits on a chair and sings "Open Your Heart" accompanied by three dancers. Throughout the song, Madonna references the song's music video and several male and androgynous paintings by Tamara de Lempicka are shown on the video screens. The dancers including Bob The Drag Queen (dressed as a doorman) returned to the stage re-enacting a club as he lets the dancers in except Madonna. Madonna and the dancers then put on black overcoats as they performed " Holiday " along with excerpts from "I Want Your Love" by Chic while a giant disco ball appears on stage. At the end of the song, one dancer falls unconscious and pretends to die on stage as Madonna takes her coat off and covers the dancer with it. She and the dancer gets lowered on the stage and the first few lines from "In This Life" plays in the background followed by "Live To Tell".

Madonna returns to the stage to perform the song while she is strapped onto a giant frame symbolizing a time machine travels to every part of the stage. The video screens lower down displaying pictures of several of Madonna's friends and various queer individuals who died of AIDS including her best friend Martin Burgoyne (who In This Life was written about), her dance teacher Christopher Flynn, former Blonde Ambition Tour dancer Gabriel Trupin, and icons such as Keith Haring and Freddie Mercury of Queen, Bob The Drag Queen also appears on stage dressed as a street clown holding a pink heart shaped balloon. The time machine lowers down to the stage as elements of the intro of the MDNA Tour play including Gregorian chants. The dancers dressed in black hooded robes then dress Madonna in the same hooded robe from the Blonde Ambition Tour as they hold alter sensers while traveling to the main stage that transformed into a carousel full of topless dancers in black balaclava masks. An excerpt from Sam Smith's song "Unholy" and Madonna's own song " Girl Gone Wild " plays as the latter performs "Like A Prayer" combining elements from it's extended version, the Act of Contrition and Girl Gone Wild. As Madonna leaves the stage for a costume change, her son David (dressed as Prince) appears to finish the song with an electric guitar solo of the Act of Contrition and Prince's own "I Would Die 4 You".

The next act consists of an interlude called "The Sacrifice" consists of the Offer Nissim Promo remix of Living For Love from the Rebel Heart Tour and various other 2015 performances play in the background with four dancers doing a choreographed performance similar to the “Breathwork” performance from The Madame X Tour . A video interlude called "Erotic" shows Bob The Drag Queen doing a monologue with the 12" mix of " Fever " plays in the background. After the video, the stage turned into several boxing rings and excerpts from "Justify My Love" plays as Madonna returns on stage with several male dancers to perform the original version of " Erotica " dressed in a black boxing robe and a pair of long lace up boots from The Sticky and Sweet Tour referencing the boxing motif from The Girlie Show . During the song, Madonna also sings the chorus from its original demo for the first time since its performance in The Confession Tour . The song ends with an extended sample of "Papa Don't Preach" playing over the drums of "Erotica" as a dancer dressed in Madonna's gold Jean Paul Gaultier corset from the Blonde Ambition Tour masturbates on stage on the red velvet bed from that same tour. After removing the robe revealing a red slip dress, Madonna and the dancer perform a routine referencing the Papa Don't Preach performance from the Blonde Ambition Tour as they masturbate and lay on the red bed. Afterwards, Madonna leaves the bed and joins several dancers in flesh toned underwear performing a mashup of Justify My Love and the instrumental of Kehlani's "Gangsta" (from Madonna's collaboration with Vogue called "The Enlightenment") while doing a choreography inspired by Busby Berkeley. Afterwards, Madonna sings an excerpt of "Fever" which ends with a cellphone ringtone playing the chorus of "La Isla Bonita". A dancer gives Madonna a flip phone. Madonna opens the phone as Tokischa appears on the background with her saying that she loves the drama. Madonna then performs "Hung Up On Tokischa" which eventually transitions to " Hung Up ". Hung Up was performed with parts of it's original choreography from 2006. It is accompanied by the disco ball and pink lights as a reference to Madonna's previous performances from that era and the Confessions Tour. It ends with Madonna and her dancers being covered by a large black lace veil. The latter's daughter Mercy James appears on stage along with a piano as she plays "Le Regret Op 332" which transitions to " Bad Girl ", making the song's first appearance since Saturday Night Live back in 1993.

The next act is called "Ballroom" as it opens with Madonna's daughter and one of the twins Estere on the carousel playing "Up Down Suite" along with excerpts from the David Morales mix of "Deeper and Deeper", MikeEQ's track "Let It All Out", the samples from "Love Break (Ohhh I Love It)" that was used in "Vogue" and the Queens Mix of Beyonce's "Break My Soul" before transitioning to an extended intro for Vogue. The dancers appear in several extravagant costumes for each category for the ballroom including a recreation of a Thierry Mugler Haute Couture outfit from 1997. During the long intro, samples of "Walk For Me" and excerpts of the Queens Mix of Break My Soul play and Bob The Drag Queen returns to the stage to recite Big Freedia's excerpts from the latter sample, Madonna then returns to the stage to perform Vogue dressed in a new Jean Paul Gaultier conical corset with a matching cut out blazer. After performing the first chorus, Madonna makes it to the runway and takes off her jacket to reveal the corset and performs the rap section before sitting down with a member of the audience to re-enact a Ballroom scene as both Madonna and the guest act as judges. After Vogue, dancers acting like bondage style Policemen show up and arrest Madonna as she performs a short version of " Human Nature " while being strapped onto several leather straps and belts. After she sing the line "I didn't know I couldn't talk about sex", a dancer punches her as another dancer dressed as Madonna's character from the Human Nature video appeared to fight the policemen off. Later, Madonna sings a short version of "Crazy For You" which ends with the line "Absolutely No Regrets!" from the music video of Human Nature. Madonna then lights a match and throws it on the main stage as it is set ablaze for the next intermission.

The next intermission consists of the return of "The Beast Within" since it's appearance on " The Reinvention Tour " in 2004, which also brings back the visuals from the "X-Static Process" by Steven Klein that was used as a video introduction from that same tour accompanied by dancers dressed in burkas and war clothing referencing the performance of "American Life" and The Beast Within's performance from "The Girlie Show". It ends with one dancer left alone on stage and he is lowered down through the lifts. The video screens show a quote by G.I Gurdjieff as Madonna returns to the stage to perform "Die Another Day" (for the first time since 2004 and 2012) dressed in a leather western shirt with a matching long skirt and cowboy hat while the Tree of Life symbol appears on the video screens. During the climax of the song, a pentagram is formed on the stage. A clip of several horses running in the sunset appear as Madonna performs "Don't Tell Me" with it's original choreography accompanied by several dancers dressed in Western costumes, her son David and one of the twins Stella and Bob The Drag Queen. For "Mother and Father", the video screens show several pictures of Madonna's late mother "Madonna Fortin Ciccone", Madonna's father "Silvio Ciccone" and the biological parents of Madonna's adopted children. The song was accompanied by a cello player and Madonna's own son David on guitar. During the rap section, Madonna ends it with a scream. Madonna then makes it to the runway and does a speech for the audience before getting a guitar to sing a short acapella of Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive" and transitioning to " La Isla Bonita ". During one of her speeches, Madonna talked about her near death experience in the ICU. Another speech in one of the shows, Madonna talked about the death of her eldest brother Anthony. During later shows, Madonna performs an acoustic version of “Express Yourself” on the guitar. During the show in St. Paul Minnesota, she pays tribute to Prince by covering his song “Kiss”. During one of the shows in Inglewood, Madonna brought Australian pop singe Kylie Minogue on stage to perform “I Will Survive” and a short a cappella version of Kylie’s signature song “Can’t Get You Out of My Head”.

For La Isla Bonita, Madonna performs it along with the cello player and her son David on guitar being strapped onto the time machine while pictures of several icons such as Frida Kahlo, Che Guevara, Martin Luther King Jr, Malcolm X, Nina Simone, James Baldwin, Martha Graham, Sinead O' Connor, David Bowie and Marlon Brando and several others appeared on the screens. She then wears the Pride flag and sings a short acapella of "Don't Cry For Me Argentina" next to a dancer dressed as a mix between Madonna's character from the "American Life" video and Charlotte Rampling's character Lucia from The Night Porter while the latter turns back to show the sign "No Fear" written in the back of the dancer.

The next act opens with a video interlude representing purgatory shows several news clips and additional content from Madonna's career and the controversies surrounding her plays in the background as a mash between Vogue and the Honey Dijon remix of “I Don't Search I Find" soundtracks the video. Bob The Drag Queen returns to perform the entire interlude dressed in black. It ends with one line from Madonna's speech from the Billboard Music Awards back in 2016 "The most controversial thing I have ever done is to stick around" before it fades out. Madonna then returns on stage to perform a modified arrangement of " Bedtime Story " (complete with arpeggios, chopped up and reverbed samples and vocoders) dressed in a mirrored catsuit and a straight long wig. Madonna enters on the C-stage as the stage lifts transform into a giant cube showing psychedelic sceneries and an avatar of Madonna singing the song. The time machine with the dancer Nicolas Huchard then flies to Madonna's direction as the song transitions to the Junior's Sound Factory Mix and eventually the Sasha Ultra Violet mix of "Ray Of Light". During the Sound Factory transition, Nicolas gives Madonna her visor sunglasses as she is strapped in the time machine and smokes from the dancer's Shisha backpack. Madonna then performs the latter while strapped onto the time machine. The latter's arrangement consists of the Sasha Ultra Violet Mix combined with elements from the original recording. The choreography is inspired from various dance styles used in techno raves in the underground clubs and raves that took place in Berlin. The time machine lowers down as several splices from the "Frozen" music video play in the background. Madonna then performs a modified version of the original recording of "Rain" while she dons the large parachute coat from the " Sticky and Sweet Tour ". With Nicolas coming back in the same parachute coat and a black enclosure suit that resembles a shadow. At the end of the song, The dancer wraps Madonna with his coat symbolizing being taken by the darkness within. During the shows in Toronto and Detroit, Rain was replaced by a new arrangement of "Frozen" which contains both elements of the original recording and the Sickick remix. While “Take A Bow” was performed during the show in St. Paul Minnesota using an arrangement similar to the one from The Rebel Heart Tour . During the Mexican shows and for Rio De Janeiro, Rain was performed instead of Take A Bow.

The final act symbolizes the present which opens with a dancer dressed as Michael Jackson appeared along with another dancer dressed as Madonna's 1984 Video Music Awards look to perform Michael's songs "Billie Jean", "Smooth Criminal", "Dangerous", "You Rock My World" and "The Way You Make Me Feel" and then using excerpts from Madonna's own "Express Yourself", "She's Not Me" and "Celebration" as it transitions to "Like A Virgin". As a silhouette of Madonna and Michael appeared on the large white screen and several pictures of them appeared on the video screens. Excerpts of "Gimme All Your Luvin'" play as several dancers dressed in Madonna's iconic looks took the stage. Madonna appears on stage in another corset and a white veil as she performs "Bitch I'm Madonna" along with Bob The Drag Queen returning as Madonna's 1990 Video Music Awards look. In the bridge, a clip of Nicki Minaj performing her lines appeared on the screens along with watercolor paintings of Madonna's imagery. Madonna, Bob and the dancers make it to the main stage. The final song for the evening is a reprise of the Benny Benassi remix of "Celebration" accompanied by excerpts of "Music" and "Bitch I'm Madonna" as Madonna thanks Bob The Drag Queen for emceeing the evening. Madonna ends the show wrapping herself in her white veil as she is lowered down the stage as the lights go out. After a few seconds, the arena's lights turn back on and an edited version of the instrumental of "The Power Of Goodbye" plays as the audience exits the venue.

Rio De Janeiro - Synopsis [ ]

The show's finale and free concert that took place in Rio De Janeiro had an outdoor setting that consists of the entire stage with the absence of the Time Machine and the retractable video screens. The show uses a modified version of the regular setlist with "Mother and Father" and "Don't Cry For Me Argentina" being omitted and replaced by a samba arrangement with "Music" accompanied by many musicians from the Samba schools of Rio and Brazil's very own Pablo Vittar.

Instead of appearing from the back of the audience like from entering from the back of every arena of each show, Bob The Drag Queen's entrance consists of him walking from the back of the stage into the main stage.

With the absence of the retractable video screens, most of the backdrops from the show are shown on the main video screens and video screens on each side of the stage, The main stage became dark until Bob The Drag Queen finishes his dialogue. Once Bob is lowered down, The white lights turn on to reveal Madonna. "Open Your Heart" had some of Tamara de Lempicka's paintings shown on the screens by each end of the stage and the main screens of the stage.

For the songs that involve the Time Machine (such as "Live To Tell", "La Isla Bonita" and "Ray of Light"), Madonna used the giant cube meant for "Bedtime Story" and "Ray of Light". For "Live To Tell", Madonna sat on a simple park bench referencing the first line of "In This Life" with the song ending with Bob The Drag Queen improvises his street clown act by standing next to the bench and giving the balloon to Madonna before letting it go. For "La Isla Bonita", David Banda walks to Madonna with his guitar. "Bedtime Story" and "Ray of Light" had Madonna stationed in the giant cube while production team brought a 12 foot ladder behind the cube just for the dancer Nicolas Huchard to climb on during the transition between the Sound Factory remix of "Bedtime Story" and "Ray of Light". Throughout those songs, Madonna wore a safety chain that's part of the Time Machine linked to a pole for safety purposes.

For the Celebration outro, The song was accompanied by the Samba drums.

Set list [ ]

• "It's a Celebration" (Bob the Drag Queen intro, preceded by " Deeper and Deeper (Shep's Deeper Dub)," with elements from " Lucky Star ", " Celebration (Benny Benassi Remix)" and " Material Girl ," which contains elements from " Erotica ," " Express Yourself ," " Vogue " and " Bitch I'm Madonna ")
• " Nothing Really Matters " (With elements from the "Club 69 Remix")
• " Everybody " (With elements from " Where's the Party " and "Rapture" by Blondie)
• " Into the Groove " (With elements from " Into the Hollywood Groove ")
• " Burning Up " (With elements from the 1981 demo)
• " Open Your Heart "
• " Holiday " (With elements from "I Want Your Love" by Chic) / " In This Life " (Interlude)
• " Live to Tell "
• "Virgin Mary" (Interlude, with elements from the MDNA Tour intro and "Birjina Gaztetto Bat Zegoen")
• " Like a Prayer " (With elements from "Unholy" by Sam Smith and Kim Petras, " Girl Gone Wild " and " Act of Contrition ")
• " Living for Love " (Offer Nissim Remix, dance interlude, with elements from "Let's Go Crazy" by Prince )
• " Fever " (Video interlude)
• "Erotica" (With elements from " Justify My Love ," "Erotica (Final Demo 2)" and " Papa Don't Preach ")
• "Justify My Love" (With elements from "Gangsta" by Kehlani and "Erotica") / "Fever" (Snippet)
• " Hung Up On Tokischa / Hung Up " (preceded by a ringtone of " La Isla Bonita ")
• " Bad Girl " (With Mercy James on piano, preceded by a piano solo of "Le Regret, Op. 332")
• "Vogue" (With elements of " Up Down Suite ," "Deeper and Deeper," " BREAK MY SOUL (THE QUEENS REMIX) " by Beyoncé and Madonna, "Everybody Everybody" by Black Box, “Let It All Out 2012" by MikeQ and "Walk 4 Me" by Robbie Tronco)
• " Human Nature " (With elements from "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)" by Pete Rock & CL Smooth) / " Crazy for You " (Stripped)
• " The Beast Within " (Video interlude, with elements from the Re-Invention World Tour backdrop)
• " Die Another Day "
• " Don't Tell Me " (With elements from "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly")
• " Mother and Father "
• " I Will Survive " / " La Isla Bonita " / " Don't Cry for Me Argentina " (Acoustic medley)
• " I Don't Search I Find " (Video interlude, with elements from "Vogue")
• " Bedtime Story " (With elements from "Junior's Sound Factory Remix") / " Ray of Light " (Sasha Ultra Violet Remix)
• "Billie Jean / Like a Virgin " (Video interlude, with elements from "Express Yourself," "Celebration," "She’s Not Me", "Smooth Criminal," "Dangerous," "You Rock My World" and "The Way You Make Me Feel" by Michael Jackson , and " Angel ")
• "Bitch I'm Madonna" (With elements from " Give Me All Your Luvin' " and "CUNT TO DA FEMININ RE FLOW SESSION" by Kevin Jz Prodigy)
• "Celebration" (Benni Benassi Remix, with elements from " Music " and "Bitch I'm Madonna," outro)
• An a cappella snippet of " Little Star " dedicated to Lourdes Leon was performed on the first London show, before the acoustic medley.
• The "Like a Virgin / Billie Jean" interlude, "Bitch I'm Madonna" and "Celebration" were not performed on the second London show due to venue curfew restrictions and Madonna being late to start.
• the second Antwerp show
• the second Amsterdam show
• the fifth and sixth London shows
• the second and third New York City shows
• Washington DC
• the fifth New York City show
• Philadelphia
• the second Chicago show
• the first Seattle show
• the second San Francisco show
• the first three Inglewood shows
• " Sôdade " by Cesária Évora was included in the acoustic medley in Lisbon, before "I Will Survive."
• "Burning Up" was mashed with " I Love New York " in New York City.
• An a cappella snippet of "This Little Light of Mine" was performed on the first Boston show and in Vancouver, before the acoustic medley.
• Starting from the first concert in Boston, "I Will Survive" was replaced by " Express Yourself ," except during the sixth New York City show and the third Inglewood show.
• "Rain" was replaced by " Frozen " in Toronto and Detroit.
• Tokischa joined Madonna on stage to perform "Hung Up" on the sixth New York City show.
• An a cappella snippet of " This Used to Be My Playground " was performed on the second Chicago show, before the acoustic medley.
• An acoustic version of "Kiss" by Prince was performed in Saint Paul, between "Express Yourself" and "La Isla Bonita"
• Starting from the Saint Paul show, "Rain" was replaced by " Take a Bow ."
• An a cappella snippet of "Old Town Road" by Lil Nas X was performed on the second San Francisco show, before "Burning Up."
• Madonna was joined by Kylie Minogue on stage to perform "I Will Survive" and " Can't Get You Out of My Head " on the third Inglewood show.

Recurring References [ ]

Madonna made several references and brought several costumes and props back from her past tours and videos throughout the entire show.

• The Red Velvet bed from the Blonde Ambition Tour during Like A Virgin
• The sheer black hooded robe from the Blonde Ambition Tour during Papa Don't Preach
• The censers from the MDNA Tour during it's introduction
• The Disco Ball from The Girlie Show during Express Yourself
• The Boxing Motif from The Girlie Show during Erotica
• The Papa Don't Preach choreo from the Blonde Ambition Tour during the latter.
• The Masturbation scene from the Blonde Ambition Tour during Like A Virgin
• The Beast Within performance and visuals from both The Girlie Show and The Reinvention Tour
• The Hung Up choreography from the Confessions Tour during the latter
• The OM symbol on Madonna's hand from the Frozen video
• The Church bells from the MDNA Tour intro mixed with Birjina Gaztetto Bat Zegoen from the Enlightenment for Vogue Magazine.
• 1 Erotica Photoshoot
• 2 Carlos Leon

The Celebration Tour

2023–2024 concert tour by madonna / from wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

The Celebration Tour was the twelfth concert tour by American singer Madonna . It began on October 14, 2023, at the O 2 Arena in London , and ended on May 4, 2024, with a free concert on Rio de Janeiro 's Copacabana Beach . Originally set to kick off on July 15, 2023, in Vancouver , the tour was postponed and pushed back to October after Madonna developed a "serious bacterial infection" in late June, which led to a multiple-day stay at the intensive care unit . As her first retrospective tour, it was based entirely on her back catalogue and 40-year old career.

Rumors of a tour first began circulating on mid-to-late 2022, following the release of the compilation Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones . After major speculation, the tour was officially announced on January 17, 2023, in a truth or dare -inspired video. Madonna's first all- arena tour since 2016, tickets quickly sold out, leading to multiple dates being added in many major cities. This caused Celebration to became one of the world's fastest-selling concert tours .

British company Stufish, with whom the singer had worked in the past, was in charge of the stage, which was inspired on early 1980s New York. Designers working on the wardrobe included Guram Gvasalia from Vetements , Donatella Versace , Jean Paul Gaultier , and Dilara Fındıkoğlu . The official set list included songs Madonna hadn't performed live in more than a decade. On the concert, Madonna paid tribute to the LGBT community , to friends lost to HIV-AIDS , and to artists who've inspired her.

Critics reacted positively towards the tour, highlighting its retrospective nature. Criticism was aimed at the singer's tardiness, with attendees going as far as to file two lawsuits against her. Billboard reported Celebration to have grossed over $225.4 million from an audience of 1.1 million. The free concert in Rio de Janeiro drew a crowd of over 1.6 million people, which became Madonna's largest crowd of her career and set records for the largest audience ever for a stand-alone concert and the largest all-time crowd for a female artist.

Madonna Unveils Ultimate Greatest Hits Show ‘The Celebration Tour’

By Larisha Paul

Larisha Paul

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Truth or dare? ? Madonna has rarely ever been one to shy away from the latter. In an announcement video that nods to her documentary of the same title, a slate of special guests prompts her with a challenge: “I dare you to do a world tour and play your greatest motherfucking hits.”

Madonna: the Celebration tour will span 40 years of the singer’s career, bringing her greatest hits to 35 cities across North America and Europe. “I am excited to explore as many songs as possible in hopes to give my fans the show they have been waiting for,” Madonna shared in a statement.

On Thursday, she added an additional 13 dates due to “overwhelming demanded.”

General sale for the Celebration tour begins Friday, Jan. 20, at 10 a.m. local time. More information is available via the official Madonna website .

Bob the Drag Queen – who appears in the announcement video alongside Diplo, Judd Apatow, Jack Black, Lil Wayne, Bob The Drag Queen, Kate Berlant, Larry Owens, Meg Stalter, and Eric Andre – will join as support across the entire tour.

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This story was updated on Jan. 19 at 5:15 pm ET to include Madonna’s additional tour dates in bold .

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Madonna announces Celebration greatest hits world tour

Singer will celebrate four decades in music with a 35-date run beginning in Vancouver on 15 July, with one date at London’s O2 Arena on 14 October

Madonna has announced a tour celebrating her 40 years as a recording and touring artist. Dubbed the Celebration tour, the 35-date run will begin in Vancouver, Canada, on 15 July, and run through to winter, ending on 1 December at Amsterdam’s Ziggo Dome.

First teased in a promotional video for last year’s dance chart No 1s album Finally Enough Love, the Celebration tour was officially announced in a clip parodying Madonna’s 1991 tour film Truth or Dare. In the video, celebrities including Diplo, Jack Black, Lil Wayne and Amy Schumer play a game of truth or dare with Madonna, which culminates with Schumer “daring” Madonna to embark on a greatest hits tour. “You think people would come to that show?” Madonna asks. “The answer is – fuck yeah.”

Per a press release, the Celebration tour will showcase “Madonna’s artistic journey through four decades and pays respect to the city of New York where her career in music began.”

Supporting Madonna on all dates is drag performer Bob the Drag Queen, AKA Caldwell Tidicue. Best known for winning season eight of RuPaul’s Drag Race, Tidicue has also released a handful of singles, starred in a production of Angels in America at the Berkeley Repertory Theater, and hosts a podcast, Sibling Rivalry, with Monét X Change.

The Celebration tour is Madonna’s 12th concert tour. The last time she went on the road was in 2019 and 2020, when she performed in intimate venues in support of her album Madame X. That run saw her play 12 shows at the 2,200-capacity London Palladium, with similarly lengthy stints in New York, Los Angeles and more.

The only UK date of the Celebration tour announced thus far is on 14 October at London’s 20,000-capacity O2 Arena. In a statement, Madonna said: “I am excited to explore as many songs as possible in hopes to give my fans the show they have been waiting for.”

Live Nation, the producer of the Celebration tour, has faced criticism in recent months, with the US government currently in the midst of an antitrust investigation into the touring giant and Ticketmaster parent company over whether it has abused its power in the entertainment industry. Scrutiny intensified in November, when Taylor Swift slammed Ticketmaster over the bungled pre-sale for her own greatest hits shows, dubbed the Eras tour.

In a letter to the company, the US Senate’s antitrust committee chair Amy Klobuchar expressed “serious concern about the state of competition in the ticketing industry and its harmful impact on consumers”.

Tickets for the Celebration tour go on sale on 20 January and are available from Madonna’s website .

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Madonna has announced details about her upcoming world tour, dubbed The Celebration Tour , confirming the project in a starry video that mirrors a scene from the 1990 documentary Truth Or Dare.

The video – see it below, but it’s probably NSFW – features the singer at a dinner party with guests including Jack Black, Lil Wayne, Judd Apatow, Diplo and others, with each playing the Truth or Dare game. When it comes to Amy Schumer’s turn, she dares Madonna to go on a tour performing her many hits. Madonna takes the dare.

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Bob the Drag Queen will appear as a special guest on the tour.

Tickets go on sale Friday, January 20 at 10 a.m. local time at madonna.com/tour.

THE CELEBRATION TOUR NORTH AMERICAN DATES:

Sat Jul 15 – Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena

Tue Jul 18 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena

Sat Jul 22 – Phoenix, AZ – Footprint Center

Tue Jul 25 – Denver, CO – Ball Arena

Thu Jul 27 – Tulsa, OK – BOK Center

Sun Jul 30 – St. Paul, MN – Xcel Energy Center

Wed Aug 02 – Cleveland, OH – Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse

Sat Aug 05 – Detroit, MI – Little Caesars Arena

Mon. Aug 07 – Pittsburgh, PA – PPG Paints Arena

Wed Aug 09 – Chicago, IL – United Center

Sun Aug 13 – Toronto, ON – Scotiabank Arena

Sat Aug 19 – Montreal, QC – Centre Bell

Wed Aug 23 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden

Thu Aug 24 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden

Wed Aug 30 – Boston, MA – TD Garden

Sat Sep 02 – Washington, DC – Capital One Arena

Tue Sep 05 – Atlanta, GA – State Farm Arena

Thu Sep 07 – Tampa, FL – Amalie Arena

Sat Sep 09 – Miami, FL – Miami-Dade Arena

Wed Sep 13 – Houston, TX – Toyota Center

Mon Sep 18 – Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center

Thu Sep 21 – Austin, TX – Moody Center ATX

Wed Oct 04 – San Francisco, CA – Chase Center

Sat Oct 07 – Las Vegas, NV – T-Mobile Arena

THE CELEBRATION TOUR EUROPE DATES:

Sat Oct 14 – London, UK – The O2

Sat Oct 21 – Antwerp, BE – Sportpaleis

Wed. Oct. 25 – Copenhagen, DK – Royal Arena

Sat Oct 28 – Stockholm, SE – Tele2

Wed Nov 01 – Barcelona, ES – Palau Sant Jordi

Mon Nov 06 – Lisbon, PT – Altice Arena

Sun Nov 12 – Paris, FR – Accor Arena

Mon Nov 13 – Paris, FR – Accor Arena

Wed Nov 15 – Cologne, DE – Lanxess Arena

Thu Nov 23 – Milan, IT – Mediolanum Forum

Tue Nov 28 – Berlin, DE – Mercedes-Benz Arena

Fri Dec 1 – Amsterdam, NL – Ziggo Dome

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Madonna's tour for her 40-year catalogue of music will start on July 15.

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Pop superstar Madonna has officially announced dates for “ Madonna : The Celebration Tour” in a video that was a nod to her 1990 film “Truth or Dare.” The video features a slew of celebrities, including Judd Apatow, Jack Black, Lil Wayne, Diplo, Bob the Drag Queen, Kate Berlant, Larry Owens, Meg Stalter, Eric André and Amy Schumer.

In the video, Schumer dares Madonna to go on tour and play her hits. To the joy of Madonna ’s fans, she has accepted the challenge. Here’s what you need to know about Madonna’s upcoming tour.

When does the tour kick off?

Related articles, anitta plays with heavy metal in seks vest and miniskirt embellished with grommets, studs and silver hardware for 'today' performance, hillary clinton embraces statement suiting with vibrant purple blazer and accessories at vital voices global festival 2024, what are some major stops on the tour.

The 35-city global tour, produced by entertainment company Live Nation, will include stops in Vancouver, New York, Detroit, Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles, London, Barcelona, Paris, Copenhagen, Antwerp, Lisbon and Stockholm concluding in Amsterdam on Dec. 1.

Who are the special guests on the tour?

Bob the Drag Queen, actor, comedian and Season Eight winner of “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” will be a special guest on all dates of the tour.

How do I get tickets?

Tickets go on sale starting Friday, Jan. 20 at 10 a.m. local time at Madonna.com/tour. Citi is the official card of the tour. Citi cardmembers will have access to presale tickets beginning today, Jan. 17, at 2 p.m. local time through Jan. 19 at 6 p.m. local time through the Citi Entertainment program.

Legacy members of Madonna’s Official Fan Club will have a pre-sale opportunity beginning on Jan. 17 at noon ET through Jan. 18 at 5 p.m. ET for all North American shows, and from 9 a.m. GMT/10 a.m. CET to 5 p.m. GMT/6 p.m. CET on Jan. 18 for U.K. and European shows.

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Madonna's Celebration tour proves this is the Material Girl's world – we're all just living in it

More than ‘just’ a greatest hits 78-date tour, Celebration is a musical journey through Madonna's life, her art, even her family

Madonna's tour 'Celebration' has kicked off in London. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/WireImage for Live Nation)

It’s almost impossible to believe that any Madonna tour since 1990’s Blond Ambition could be anything but a greatest hits, such is the body of her work, but the aptly-named Celebration – which kicked off in London this month – is actually her first. More than ‘just’ a greatest hits 78-date tour, this is a musical journey through her life, her art, even her family, with most of her children joining the icon on stage as an integral part of the polished production.

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As such, it’s also more than just The Immaculate Collection – people on a boozy night out, please remember that she’s had another 33 years of music since then. Whether you’ve paid attention to it or not doesn’t matter, you should be paying attention now. While it would be the envy of any artist to have a catalogue such as hers to choose from, you have to admire Madonna for not only curating an incredible set list, but also for having the balls to make notable omissions. After all, there aren’t many musicians who can sideline seven UK number one singles (out of 13, fact fans, from her 12 UK number one albums).

Yes, you’ll hear that more than 30 numbers are included – but they’re not all in their entirety or perhaps the versions you might expect. There’s a roar throughout The O2 Arena when the opening strings for Papa Don’t Preach begin, for example, only for it to play out as an introduction, a nod to something so great that alas simply isn’t great enough to sit alongside everything else in a show as incredible as Celebration.

If you’re a fully-fledged Madonna devotee – and if not, why not? – then you’ll pick up on so many nods, references and Easter eggs. That is, if you can catch them over the screams. It seems that the time Madonna spent researching her currently on-hold biopic has not been wasted – her life is quite literally flashing before your eyes here. There’s so much going on you almost wish there was time to fully assimilate the staging of each number or video screen littered with nostalgic throwbacks.

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The musical stings, the audio references, the visual hits, the direct recreation of various moments from previous record-breaking tours – Celebration is a relentless barrage of brilliance with thousands of people screaming for Madonna to hit them harder. But she’s not wallowing in past glory – she’s way too busy soaking up the adulation now while tearing up the stage, spread as it is across multiple catwalks representing areas of New York, a rising cube with imagery projected around it and a square ‘portal’ that lifts her into the ceiling and around the venue.

She’s never better than when a joy-fuelled club moment segues from the hedonistic Holiday with friends, to lamenting the loss of loved ones to HIV/AIDS in an incredibly moving performance of Live to Tell . Never have the lyrics hit so hard as she slowly soars above the arena, the faces of those lost to the disease filling the screen and taking the focus from her. It is, quite simply, breathtaking. Her twelfth tour once more leans into the theatrics she’s synonymous with – why simply sing your hits when you can make it a multi-media 360° experience? Because she’s Madonna, that’s why. Elevate, never imitate. This means Bob the Drag Queen isn’t simply the warm-up act, as people may originally have assumed – instead they’re an integral part of the production throughout, acting as host, narrator, ball emcee, security guard and at one point even a comedy cow. Yes, that might sound strange but trust me, it all makes complete sense when you’re in the material girl’s world.

It’s not perfect of course – you wouldn’t be a Madonna fan if you didn’t have conflicting opinions. A cover version of the perpetually-naff hen night staple I Will Survive feels tacky and, well, reductive for a woman able to discard so many hits from a set list. While the tribute to Michael Jackson is a direct nod to 1985’s The Virgin Tour, it now feels dated and unnecessary. Repeating The Beast Within from at least two previous tours obviously allows for a much-needed break – after all, it does feel as though Madonna spends the majority of the show on stage – but it adds little to the flow of the production.

This all pales in comparison to the show as a whole, mere niggles when you could spend all day watching her perform an arena show and still not get the full picture of Madonna’s life, success and achievements. Of course, it’s not just her life – it’s all of ours, with every song evoking a memory it’s a journey through a life soundtracked by one of the most influential women of our time.

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Arguably the closing section – there is no encore – which features multiple Madonnas, some of which have appeared at various points throughout, dancing to Bitch, I’m Madonna feels that it could equally have opened the show. That honour, however, goes to stone-cold classic Nothing Really Matters – which, when listening to the lyrics, feels as though it’s never been more resonant. It’s an artistic choice which sets out Madonna’s stall perfectly for the evening ahead with a show that lives up to its name perfectly. It’s long been tiresome seeing people knock Madonna – sections of the show flash various examples of ageism, sexism and more throughout her career – yet no-one works harder to constantly prove herself with less reason to do so. This production is a stark reminder of how culturally relevant she’s always been. Those who are loudly proclaiming that Madonna is ‘back’ simply haven’t been paying enough attention – Madonna has always been here and this celebration shows why the world she changed is all the better for it.

Madonna is currently touring across Europe and returns to London in December. Visit madonna.com for details.

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Madonna Celebrates Four Decades of Hits With Career-Spanning Spectacle

After a health-related delay, the pop superstar launched her Celebration Tour in London with a performance devoted to her full catalog of hits.

By Derrick Bryson Taylor and Ben Sisario

Derrick Bryson Taylor reported from London, and Ben Sisario from New York.

They wore pearls with crucifixes, lace gloves, tulle skirts and body-sculpting corsets. Some even crimped their hair and drew on fake beauty moles, while others wore simple white T-shirts with only the letter M on the back. Spanning generations, the concertgoers arriving at the O2 Arena in London used Saturday night as an opportunity to dress in their favorite Madonna era, even if that was decades before they were born.

Madonna, 65, is on the road for the first time since 2020 with her global Celebration Tour, a stage spectacle touching on more than 40 of her hits across four decades. The show opened at the O2, a 20,000-capacity arena, three months after its planned first date, following a health scare for the pop icon. In June, Madonna was hospitalized shortly before the tour’s scheduled debut in Canada. At the time, her manager said she had a “ serious bacterial infection ” that resulted in the singer staying in an intensive care unit for several days.

Madonna swore that the tour — her first devoted to her full catalog of hits, rather than to a specific album release — would go on. In recent weeks, she has filled her Instagram account with tantalizing , and very on-brand, images from rehearsals, showing her dressed in a lacy black bustier, practicing onstage steps and resting her fishnet-clad knees .

Fans waited out a 30-minute delay before Madonna arrived onstage in London, opening with a medley of hits before acknowledging the challenges that had led to the moment. “How did I make it this far? Because of you,” she said, adding, “But I will take a bit of credit, too.”

It was clear from the beginning that this concert would be as much a journey through Madonna’s career as it would a bona fide dance party. Set on an elaborate stage that jutted out into the audience, several hanging retractable screens showed images of the singer. At other times, they displayed powerful portraits, as when she launched into “Live to Tell” and the screens displayed images of Freddie Mercury, Arthur Ashe and more people who died from AIDS.

For more than two hours, with the help of her dancers and some of her six children, Madonna blazed through her catalog of songs, singing several hits like “Holiday,” “Like a Prayer,” “Hung Up,” “Ray of Light” and “Bad Girl.” Her costumes were sexy, religious and futuristic.

Though the show had been in the works for months, it was not without technical difficulties. Early on, Madonna paused the show so the sound could be reset. She entertained the audience during the delay by speaking at length about her rise to stardom while technicians worked behind the scenes. Later in the show, between songs, Madonna expressed concern for those affected by violence in Israel and the Gaza Strip. “It breaks my heart to see children suffering, teenagers suffering, elderly people suffering, all of it is heartbreaking,” she said. “Even though our hearts are broken, our spirits cannot be broken.”

Madonna also reflected on her health struggles this year. “I forgot five days of my life, or my death,” she said. “I don’t really know where I was, but the angels were protecting me.

“If you want to know my secret, and you want to know how I pull through and how I survive, I thought, ‘I’ve got to be there for my children. I have to survive for them,’” she said. She then led the crowd in a singalong of Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive.”

The 24 performers onstage notably did not include a live band: Stuart Price, the tour’s musical director, told the BBC that “the original recordings are our stars.” The stage, which encompasses 4,400 square feet, was designed to echo Manhattan neighborhoods, as well as the wedding cake from Madonna’s 1984 MTV Video Music Awards performance of “Like a Virgin.” During the show, she is swept across the venue in a square-framed box 30 feet off the ground.

Carla Nobre, 38, of Nottingham said that seeing Madonna in concert had been on her bucket list, but that she had been disappointed with the performance.“There was too much talking,” she said.

Jenni Purple, 54, from the southern coast of England said the concert, which was her first time seeing Madonna live, had been “absolutely incredible.” “I loved all the medleys, I loved the costumes, I loved all the dances,” she said with a broad smile. “Everything was just mind-blowing.”

In the past, Madonna’s tours have been news-making events tied as much to her latest music as to her cycle of stylistic reinventions. But Celebration is essentially the pop superstar’s Eras Tour , as Taylor Swift has styled her latest outing: a staged romp through decades of hit songs and signature looks, giving fans a chance to relive her career as a stages-of-life experience. (Seventeen of Madonna’s previous costumes were recreated for the tour, and some of the merchandise for sale includes replicas from past treks.)

With her Virgin Tour in 1985, Madonna introduced herself as a punk-glam dance star whose every crucifix pendant or flap of denim was zealously adopted by fans. Who’s That Girl (1987) and Blond Ambition (1990) grew increasingly elaborate as Madonna pushed the fashion envelope with looks like Jean Paul Gaultier’s memorable cone bra and set the bar for bold, imaginative pop megatours. The Girlie Show (1993), in which Madonna appeared as a dominatrix, was the accompaniment to a period of daringly explicit material like her “Sex” book and “Justify My Love” video, which was banned from MTV.

After an eight-year absence from the road, Drowned World (2001) reintroduced Madonna as a new mother, an electro-pop heroine and an acolyte of kabbalah, a form of Jewish mysticism. In more recent years, her Confessions Tour (2006) cast her in late-70s disco style, and Rebel Heart (2015-16) found her playing guitar, in addition to executing the complex choreography for which she is known. Her most recent tour, Madame X, which was cut short by the Covid-19 pandemic, saw Madonna looking to reinvent her stage performance once again in a more intimate, almost cabaret form, mostly eschewing arenas for spaces like the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

For Madonna, the 78-date Celebration Tour is a chance to assert her star power in a year when live music has been dominated by Swift and Beyoncé — women who, like Madonna before them, have used talent and deep media savvy to remake pop stardom in their own image. In July, Beyoncé acknowledged the debt, when Madonna, making one of her first public appearances after her hospitalization, attended Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour in New Jersey. “Big shout-out to the queen,” Beyoncé called out during a performance of the “Queens Remix” of her song “Break My Soul,” which blends in Madonna’s 1990 smash “Vogue” — another hit that mined, and honored, gay dance culture of that period.

Madonna returned the acknowledgment on Saturday, playing a bit of the same remix during an interstitial moment.

When Madonna’s latest tour was announced in January, it immediately became one of the year’s big-ticket events — and yielded a micro-flood of hot takes about the singer’s age. But the tour appears to be far from sold out; Ticketmaster still shows many seats available at some major venues like Barclays Center in Brooklyn, where Madonna will start the North American leg of the tour with three shows in December.

Back in 2009, Madonna’s Sticky & Sweet Tour set box-office records when it sold more than $400 million in tickets. Since then, the economics of live music have exploded; Beyoncé has already well exceeded that amount with her Renaissance shows, and Swift may well sell close to $2 billion in tickets by the time her Eras Tour is completed.

Legacy has clearly been on Madonna’s mind lately. Last month, the 1989 Pepsi commercial that introduced her song “Like a Prayer” — before it was pulled amid outrage over its music video, which featured an interracial kiss and the singer dancing in front of burning crosses — was finally aired again during the MTV Video Music Awards.

Madonna, who had been paid $5 million for the promotion — and kept the money — said on social media : “So began my illustrious career as an artist refusing to compromise my artistic integrity.” She added, “Thank you @pepsi for finally realizing the genius of our collaboration. Artists are here to disturb the peace.”

It was clearly on fans’ minds as well. Aisha and Maia Letamendia Moore, 17-year-old twins from southern England, near Brighton, wore looks that drew on the Vogue and Like a Virgin eras. “I think she’s such an influence,” Maia said. “She did so many things that were so controversial. She wasn’t scared to do it, she wasn’t scared what people would say.”

Others mentioned rumors that Celebration could be Madonna’s last tour. Helen Dawson, 47, who said she first saw Madonna during the Who’s That Girl Tour in 1987, would abide no such thought. “Never, she won’t give up,” Ms. Dawson said. “This is just a new celebration, a new era.”

Derrick Bryson Taylor is a general assignment reporter. He previously worked at The New York Post’s PageSix.com and Essence magazine. More about Derrick Bryson Taylor

Ben Sisario covers the music industry. He has been writing for The Times since 1998. More about Ben Sisario

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Madonna’s ‘Celebration’ Show Is Very Late but Worth the Wait at U.S. Tour Launch: Concert Review

By Ramin Setoodeh

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Hello, Brooklyn. Is Madonna in the house? It’s after 10 p.m. on Wednesday night, and the Material Girl is nowhere to be found on the first hometown stop of her career-retrospective “Celebration” tour.

Popular on Variety

The vibe inside the Barclays Center had started off with puffs of pot smoke and Fire Island-circuit, party-ready club music curated by DJ Honey Dijon. Costumed fans decked out in glitter, Madonna T-shirts, hoodies and even a “Like a Virgin” wedding dress grew increasingly impatient. It’s a power move for a stadium artist to keep his or her concert-goers waiting … and waiting … and waiting, and it’s certainly one that Madonna is (in)famous for. But this isn’t the ’90s, and New York is no longer the city that never sleeps. People were starting to get drowsy. Those gummies had started to kick in.   

Finally, at 10:45 p.m., the evening’s host, Bob the Drag Queen, sauntered onstage in a pink Marie Antoinette-like ruffled gown. As he invited fans to travel back to 1978 New York City, with “Madonna at 19 years old,” he declared, “This is not just a show. This is not just. This is not just a partttty. It’s a celebration, bitches!” 

Photos: Ricardo Gomez

The song, and the dance, felt apt: Madonna may have dodged fate only very recently. She addressed the bacterial infection in a rambling speech to fans, between songs, early on, standing next to an actor dressed as Madonna, meant to represent her as a young woman.

“Oh my god,” the real Madonna said. “It’s so great to be back in New York. You have no idea. The enthusiasm, the joy, it’s just coming out of my pores. It’s amazing. Touch me right now. Please someone, touch me.” Madonna, at 65, looked at her younger doppelganger. “Touch me. Yes. Thank you. So uh — the relief. People can speak my language, the language of c–t! Uh, I don’t know where to begin. First of all, no one is more surprised that I have made it this far than me. Yeah, four decades, motherfuckers! And I got to tell you, I didn’t think I was going to make it this summer, but here I am. Thank you for having me. Thank you for standing by me, for your support, your love.

“You don’t understand — the love from a New Yorker is like making a big fat smelly rat come up to you and put your arms around you: ‘I made it.’ I’m not comparing you guys to rats,” she continued. “I know that sounded weird. First of all — I mean, fifth of all, I want you to meet myself. Have you met myself? She was little bit shy back in the day. Let’s see if she’s ticklish.” The real Madonna poked the other Madonna, hugged her, and then seemed peeved to be sharing the spotlight, so she ordered her to sit down. 

Madonna, after all, doesn’t co-headline with anyone — not even herself. But for all that she’s changed music, she may, today, be chasing the descendants her fame helped create. “The Celebration Tour” is coming at the end of the year defined by three other superstar artists on the road — Taylor Swift’s “Eras” tour, which became the first concert in history to gross $1 billion globally; Beyonce’s “Renaissance”; and SZA’s “SOS” tour. In all honesty, “The Celebration Tour” doesn’t fall in the same league as those transcendent fan experiences — and it’s also no match for Madonna’s greatest concert of this century, 2005’s “Confessions” tour, based on her tenth studio album “Confessions on a Dance Floor.”

But Madonna is still Madonna, and that’s probably enough even if the “Celebration” show doesn’t always stick the landing. Throughout the night, there are too many costume changes to count, yet Madonna is best when she puts the music front and center, focusing on her vocals instead of trying to outdance her competition. The booming acoustics inside the Barclays Center may have also thrown her off her game, as Madonna asked fans if they could hear her, and she complained at one point, “It’s an echo bowl in here.”

It’s enough to make you pine for a time when New Yorkers could really stay out all night dancing to Madonna on a weeknight. At least, among those willing to wait to be transported, the indestructible Madonna could give us a ride in her time machine.

• Celebration Intro/Nothing Really Matters
• Into The Groove
• I Love New York/Burning Up
• Open Your Heart
• Live To Tell
• Like A Prayer
• Act of Living For Love/The 90’s (Interlude)
• Erotica/Papa Don’t Preach
• Justify My Love/Fever
• Hung Up On Tokischa
• Vogue (Estere’s Ball)
• Human Nature/Crazy For You
• The Beast Within (Interlude)
• Die Another Day
• Don’t Tell Me
• Mother And Father
• Survive/La Isla Bonita/Argentina
• I Don’t Search I Find (Interlude)
• Bedtime Story
• Ray of Light
• Billie Jean vs. Like A Virgin
• GMAYL/Bitch I’m Madonna

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THE CELEBRATION TOUR UPDATED ITINERARY

Tuesday, August 15th, 2023. Excitement has been mounting with Madonna’s post that the North America rescheduled dates would be announced shortly. Today, Live Nation is pleased to confirm that most of the North America dates of Madonna’s Celebration Tour have been rescheduled and will take place immediately following the originally announced UK and Europe dates. Updated itinerary below. Tickets for the previously scheduled shows will be honored on the new dates. This includes all dates except Los Angeles and one date in New York due to a venue change, detailed below.  Getting all shows rescheduled was the number one priority. Unfortunately, due to scheduling conflicts a few shows noted below will be canceled. Madonna regrets the inconvenience to fans and hopes to make it up to those markets in the future. The Celebration Tour will officially kick off with four sold out shows in London this October, followed by shows across Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands throughout the remainder of 2023.  The North American leg will begin on December 13th in Brooklyn at Barclays Center. In New York, fans holding tickets to the previously scheduled Madison Square Garden concert on August 27th, 2023, will have an exclusive opportunity to purchase tickets to the newly added Barclays Center performance on Saturday, December 16th, 2023. Tickets for the original show at MSG will be automatically refunded to the original purchaser by Monday, August 28th. Ticketmaster will then provide all affected fans with a dedicated link and a unique code based on the quality of their previous seat locations to purchase tickets to the new date at Barclays Centre.  Advance sales start Tuesday, August 29th and run through Thursday, August 31st. If tickets remain, they will go on sale to the public starting Friday, September 1st at 10am ET. In Los Angeles, fans holding tickets to the shows previously scheduled at Crypto.com Arena (9/27/23, 9/28/23, 9/30/23 & 10/01/23) and Kia Forum (1/7/24 & 1/8/24) will also have an opportunity to purchase tickets to the new Kia Forum dates prior to the public. Tickets for the original shows in Los Angeles will be automatically refunded to the original purchaser by August 28th. Ticketmaster will provide all affected fans with a dedicated link and a unique code based on the quality of their previous seat locations to purchase tickets for their specific rescheduled event. Advance tickets for all previous Los Angeles ticket holders will begin Tuesday, August 29th and run through Thursday, August 31st. Fans unable to purchase tickets to the corresponding shows will have a second presale opportunity starting Friday, September 1st through Friday, September 8th to purchase tickets to any of the five Kia Forum performances. Remaining tickets will open for public sale Tuesday, September 12th (10am PT) at Ticketmaster.com As mentioned, due scheduling conflicts, the following shows are unfortunately canceled: July 27 in Tulsa, December 22 in Nashville, January 15 in San Francisco, January 18 in Las Vegas, and January 20 in Phoenix.  Refunds for these dates will be issued at the original point of purchase.  UK AND EUROPE SHOW DATE / CITY & COUNTRY / VENUE 10/14/2023 / London, UK / The O2 10/15/2023 / London, UK / The O2 10/17/2023 / London, UK / The O2 10/18/2023 / London, UK / The O2 10/21/2023 / Antwerp, BE / Sportpaleis 10/22/2023 / Antwerp, BE / Sportpaleis 10/25/2023 / Copenhagen, DK / Royal Arena 10/26/2023 / Copenhagen, DK / Royal Arena 10/28/2023 / Stockholm, SE / Tele2 Arena 11/1/2023 / Barcelona, ES / Palau Sant Jordi 11/2/2023 / Barcelona, ES / Palau Sant Jordi 11/6/2023 / Lisbon, PT / Altice Arena 11/7/2023 / Lisbon, PT / Altice Arena 11/12/2023 / Paris, FR / Accor Arena 11/13/2023 / Paris, FR / Accor Arena 11/15/2023 / Cologne, DE / Lanxess Arena 11/16/2023 / Cologne, DE / Lanxess Arena 11/19/2023 / Paris, FR / Accor Arena 11/20/2023 / Paris, FR / Accor Arena 11/23/2023 / Milan, IT / Mediolanum Forum 11/25/2023 / Milan, IT / Mediolanum Forum 11/28/2023 / Berlin, DE / Mercedes-Benz Arena 11/29/2023 / Berlin, DE / Mercedes-Benz Arena 12/1/2023 / Amsterdam, NL / Ziggo Dome 12/2/2023 / Amsterdam, NL / Ziggo Dome 12/5/2023 / London, UK / The O2 12/6/2023 / London, UK / The O2 NORTH AMERICA NEW SHOW DATE / CITY / VENUE / ORIGINAL SHOW DATE 12/13/2023 / Brooklyn / Barclays Center / Original Date (no change) 12/14/2023 / Brooklyn / Barclays Center / Original Date (no change) 12/16/2023 / Brooklyn / Barclays Center / MSG - 8/27/2023* 12/18/2023 / Washington / Capital One Arena / Original Date (no change) 12/19/2023 / Washington / Capital One Arena / 9/2/2023 1/8/2024 / Boston / TD Garden / 8/30/2023 1/9/2024 / Boston / TD Garden / 8/31/2023 1/11/2024 / Toronto / Scotiabank Arena / 8/13/2023 1/12/2024 / Toronto / Scotiabank Arena / 8/14/2023 1/15/2024 / Detroit / Little Caesars Arena / 8/5/2023 1/18/2024 / Montreal / Bell Centre / 8/19/2023 1/20/2024 / Montreal / Bell Centre / 8/20/2023 1/22/2024 / New York / Madison Square Garden Arena / 8/23/2023 1/23/2024 / New York / Madison Square Garden Arena / 8/24/2023 1/25/2024 / Philadelphia / Wells Fargo Center / 12/20/2023 1/29/2024 / New York / Madison Square Garden Arena / 8/26/2023 2/1/2024 / Chicago / United Center / 8/9/2023 2/2/2024 / Chicago / United Center / 8/10/2023 2/5/2024 / Pittsburgh / PPG Paints Arena / 8/7/2023 2/8/2024 / Cleveland / Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse / 8/2/2023 2/13/2024 / Saint Paul / Xcel Energy Center / 7/30/2023 2/17/2024 / Seattle / Climate Pledge Arena / 7/18/2023 2/18/2024 / Seattle / Climate Pledge Arena / 7/19/2023 2/21/2024 / Vancouver / Rogers Arena / 7/15/2023 2/24/2024 / Sacramento / Golden 1 Center / 1/13/2024 2/27/2024 / San Francisco / Chase Center / 10/4/2023 2/28/2024 / San Francisco / Chase Center / 10/5/2023 3/1/2024 / Las Vegas / T-Mobile Arena / 10/7/2023 3/2/2024 / Las Vegas / T-Mobile Arena / 10/8/2024 3/4/2024 / Los Angeles / Kia Forum / Crypto.com - 9/27/23* 3/5/2024 / Los Angeles / Kia Forum / Crypto.com - 9/28/23* 3/7/2024 / Los Angeles / Kia Forum / Crypto.com - 9/30/23* 3/9/2024 / Los Angeles / Kia Forum / Crypto.com - 10/01/23* 3/11/2024 / Los Angeles / Kia Forum / Kia Forum - 1/7/24 & 1/8/24* 3/13/2024 / Palm Desert / Acrisure Arena / 1/11/2024 3/16/2024 / Phoenix / Footprint Center / 7/22/2023 3/19/2024 / Denver / Ball Arena / 7/25/2023 3/24/2024 / Dallas / American Airlines Center / 9/18/2023 3/25/2024 / Dallas / American Airlines Center / 9/19/2023 3/28/2024 / Houston / Toyota Center / 9/13/2023 3/29/2024 / Houston / Toyota Center / 9/14/2023 4/1/2024 / Atlanta / State Farm Arena / 9/5/2023 4/4/2024 / Tampa / Amalie Arena / 9/7/2023 4/6/2024 / Miami / Kaseya Center / 9/9/2023 4/7/2024 / Miami / Kaseya Center / 9/10/2023 4/14/2024 / Austin / Moody Center / 9/21/2023 4/15/2024 / Austin / Moody Center / 9/22/2023 4/20/2024 / Mexico City / Palacio De Los Deportes / 1/25/2024 4/21/2024 / Mexico City / Palacio De Los Deportes / 1/27/2024 4/23/2024 / Mexico City / Palacio De Los Deportes / 1/28/2024 4/24/2024 / Mexico City / Palacio De Los Deportes / 1/30/2024 Cancelled / Tulsa / BOK Center / 7/27/2023 Cancelled / Nashville / Bridgestone Arena / 12/22/2023 Cancelled / San Francisco / Chase Center / 1/15/2024 Cancelled / Las Vegas / MGM Grand Garden Arena / 1/18/2024 Cancelled / Phoenix / Footprint Center / 1/20/2024

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The Celebration Tour!

• View history

Custom poster for Miami Beach show

The Celebration Tour! is the original Wiggles' final tour together from May 26th to October 28th in 2012. In mid-November, the name and setlist of the tour changed, into the Christmas Celebration Tour! .

• 2 Songs (26th May, 2nd, 5th, 17th June 2012)
• 3 Songs (22nd-23rd July 2012)
• 4 Songs (August - September 2012)
• 5 Songs (18th-19th August, 8th September, 10th October 2012)
• 6 Songs (28th October 2012)
• 7.1 Asia Tour Dates
• 7.2 UK & Ireland Tour Dates
• 7.3 Summer USA Tour Dates
• 7.4 New Zealand Tour Dates
• 7.5 Fall Canada and USA Tour Dates
• Wiggly Circus Jubilee
• Toot Toot, Chugga Chugga, Big Red Car
• Here Comes a Bear
• Rock-A-Bye Your Bear
• Ooh It's Captain Feathersword
• Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star
• Okki Tokki Unga
• Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport
• Here Come Our Friends
• Getting Strong!
• We're Dancing With Wags The Dog
• Henry's Dance
• Romp Bomp A Stomp
• Dr Knickerbocker
• Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, Turn Around
• Here We Go Round The Mulberry Bush
• Up, Down, Turn Around
• Ooey, Ooey, Ooey Allergies!
• Waltzing Matilda
• The Monkey Dance
• Wiggle 2012 Medley
• Let's Have A Party (Instrumental)

Songs (26th May, 2nd, 5th, 17th June 2012) [ ]

• Who Got Da Bones? (17th June 2012)
• Joannie Works With One Hammer (17th June 2012)
• English Country Garden (May 26th 2012)
• Romp Bomp A Stomp (5th, 17th June 2012)
• Happy Birthday (26th May, 17th June 2012)
• Hot Poppin' Popcorn (5th June 2012)
• Ooey, Ooey, Ooey Allergies! (26th May, 2nd, 17th June 2012)
• Suspicious Minds (17th June 2012)

Songs (22nd-23rd July 2012) [ ]

• Joannie Works With One Hammer
• Dance the Ooby Doo (With Dorothy the Dinosaur)
• Dr Knickerbocker (22nd July 2012)
• Sing With Me (23rd July 2012)
• The Monkey Dance (22nd July 2012)
• Can You (Point Your Fingers And Do The Twist?)
• The Monkey Dance (23rd July 2012)
• Crazy Little Thing Called Love

Songs (August - September 2012) [ ]

• Here Comes a Bear (12th August 2012)
• Five Little Ducks (16th, 24th September 2012)
• Joannie Works With One Hammer (16th, 24th September 2012)
• Dorothy (Would You Like To Dance?) (16th, 24th September 2012)
• The Shimmie Shake! (12th August, 16th September 2012)
• The Shimmie Shake! (24th September 2012)
• Mamma Mia (24th September 2012)
• SOS (24th September 2012)
• Dancing Queen! (24th September 2012)
• Waterloo (24th September 2012)
• Can You (Point Your Fingers And Do The Twist?) (12th August, 16th September 2012)
• Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go (12th August 2012)

Songs (18th-19th August, 8th September, 10th October 2012) [ ]

• Here Comes a Bear (18th August 2012)
• Ooh It's Captain Feathersword (18th August, 8th September, 10th October 2012)
• Captain Feathersword Fell Asleep on His Pirate Ship (Quack Quack) (19th August 2012)
• Five Little Ducks (19th August, 8th September, 10th October 2012)
• Joannie Works With One Hammer (10th October 2012)
• Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport (18th-19th August 2012)
• Joannie Works With One Hammer (18th August, 8th September 2012)
• Do the Propeller! (10th October 2012)
• Dorothy (Would You Like To Dance?) (8th September, 10th October 2012)
• Dance the Ooby Doo (With Dorothy the Dinosaur) (18th-19th August 2012)
• Follow The Leader (10th October 2012)
• The Shimmie Shake!

Songs (28th October 2012) [ ]

• Five Little Ducks
• Do the Propeller!
• Peanut Butter
• Dorothy (Would You Like To Dance?)
• Play Your Guitar With Murray

Asia Tour Dates [ ]

• May 26-27, 2012 Grand Theatre, Marina Bay Sands Singapore, Saturday: 11am, 2pm and 6pm, Sunday: 11am  and 2pm

UK & Ireland Tour Dates [ ]

• May 31, 2012 Cork Opera House 1 & 4:30 pm
• June 1-2, 2012 Dublin Gais Energy Theatre Friday: 5pm Saturday: 11 am and 2pm. ( Friday night recorded )
• June 3, 2012 Belfast Waterfront Hall 11 am and 2pm
• June 5, 2012 Glasgow Concert Hall 1pm and 4:30
• June 8, 2012 Bristol Colston Hall 1pm and 4:30
• June 9-10, 2012 London Hammersmith Apollo 1 & 4:30 (Day 1), 11am & 2pm (day 2)
• June 13, 2012 York Grand Opera House 1 & 4:30
• June 14, 2012 Manchester Palace Theatre 1 & 4:30
• June 15, 2012 Birmingham Alexandra Theatre, 1:00 & 4:30pm
• June 16, 2012 Oxford New Theatre Oxford 1pm
• June 17, 2012 Brighton Brighton Centre, 11am & 2pm

Summer USA Tour Dates [ ]

• July 12, 2012 San Diego, CA Sports Arena at the Casino Center 6:30pm
• July 14, 2012 Thousand Oaks, CA Fred Kavil Theater
• July 15, 2012 Los Angeles, CA The Wiltern Theater
• July 17, 2012 Sacramento, CA Community Center Theater
• July 18, 2012 Turlock, CA Stanislaus County Fair
• July 20, 2012 Portland, OR Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
• July 21, 2012 Central Point, OR The Jackson County Fairgrounds
• July 22, 2012 San Jose, CA Civic Auditorium
• July 23, 2012 Anaheim, CA City National Grove of Anaheim
• July 24, 2012 Phoenix, AZ Comerica Theatre
• July 25, 2012 Albuquerque, NM UNM Public Events, Popejoy Hall
• July 27, 2012 Tulsa, OK BOK Center
• July 28, 2012 Grand Prairie/Fort Worth/Dallas, TX Verizon Wireless Theater
• July 29, 2012 Houston, TX Bayou Music Center
• July 31, 2012 Atlanta, GA The Fox Theatre
• August 2, 2012 Jacksonville, FL The Florida Theatre
• August 3, 2012 Miami, FL Filmore Miami Beach at the Jackie Gleason Theater
• August 4, 2012 Orlando, FL Hard Rock Live
• August 5, 2012 Tampa, FL Tampa Rays Baseball Appearance
• August 7, 2012 Nashville, TN Ryman Auditorium
• August 8, 2012 Indianapolis, IN Murat Theater at Old National Centre
• August 9, 2012 Rosemont/Chicago, IL Rosemont Theatre
• August 10, 2012 Auburn Hills/Detroit, MI The Palace of Auburn Hills 2 shows (2:30pm and 6:30pm) (Tickets went on sale on May 11, 2012 at 10am) [1]
• August 11, 2012 Hershey, PA Hershey Theatre
• August 12, 2012 East Rutherford, NJ IZOD Center
• August 14, 2012 Wallingford, CT Toyota at Oakdale Theatre
• August 15, 2012 Hyannis, MA Cape Cod Melody Tent
• August 16, 2012 Cohasset, MA South Shore Music Circus
• August 18, 2012 Philadelphia, PA The Tower Theater at Upper Darby
• August 19, 2012 Westbury, NY NYCB Theatre at Westbury

New Zealand Tour Dates [ ]

• September 8-9, 2012 Wellington St James Theatre
• September 10, 2012 Palmerston North The Regent on Broadway
• September 12, 2012 New Plymouth TSB Theatre
• September 15-16, 2012 Auckland Vector Arena
• September 17-18, 2012 Hamilton Founders Theatre
• September 20, 24, 2012 Christchurch CBS Canterbury Arena
• September 21-22, 2012 Dunedin Regent Theatre
• September 23, 2012 Invercargill Civic Theatre

Fall Canada and USA Tour Dates [ ]

• October 5-6, 2012 Toronto, ON Canada Ricoh Coliseum
• October 7, 2012 Hamilton, ON Canada FirstOntario Concert Hall
• October 9, 2012 Washington, D.C. Warner Theatre
• October 10, 2012 New York City, NY Town Hall Theater
• October 11, 2012 Boston, MA Orpheum Theatre
• October 13, 2012 Halifax, NS Canada Halifax Metro Centre 11:30 & 3pm
• October 14, 2012 Saint John, NB Canada Harbour Station
• October 16, 2012 Ottawa, ON Canada Scotiabank Place 6:30 pm
• October 17, 2012 London, ON Canada John Labatt Centre
• October 19, 2012 Oshawa, ON Canada General Motors Centre
• October 20, 2012 Sault Ste Marie, ON Canada The Essar Centre
• October 21, 2012 Thunder Bay, ON Canada Thunder Bay Community Auditorium
• October 22, 2012 Winnipeg, MB Canada MTS Centre
• October 24, 2012 Saskatoon, SK Canada TCU Place
• October 25, 2012 Edmonton, AB Canada Rexall Place
• October 26, 2012 Calgary, AB Canada Calgary Stampede Corral
• October 28, 2012 Vancouver, BC Canada Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre
• At the Glasgow Concert Hall show, the band performed Hot Poppin' Popcorn because a fan who had cancer requested the song to be played as it was his favourite song. This was also the song where Greg was away at the time, so this was Greg's first and only time he did Hot Poppin' Popcorn .
• This is the last USA Tour to have the Big Red Car , and the only tour to use the current model of it.
• Lachlan Gillespie filled in for Paul Paddick from beginning in New Zealand shows.
• This would be the last time Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport , Okki Tokki Unga & Sing With Me would be played.
• In Michigan, this would be the last time that The Wiggles toured at The Palace of Auburn Hills . Beginning in 2013 with Taking Off!: Live in Concert , they would transition back to tour at Fox Theatre .
• The Flora Door in this tour would later be used in Apples & Bananas Tour .
• Sharryn Dermody makes a return in this tour.
• Caveland was briefly performed on this tour. [2]
• The Tulsa OK shows were brought up in 2020 when somebody on Twitter pointed out that The Wiggles performed at the same venue as a recent, then US president, Donald Trump rally where not as many people showed up.
• The Sacramento, CA Community Center Theater show was performed until the same day as The Wiggles' Big Birthday! video and album were released in America.
• The Birmingham Alexandra Theatre show was performed until the same day as the Spanish Dub of The Wiggles Go Bananas! DVD was released in Argentina.

See also [ ]

• The tour programme
• ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20120521103147/http://www.thewiggles.com.au/us/events/89
• ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rfvw6lEh7Uo&ab_channel=vinylscratch2
• 1 Wiggle and Learn (2024 YouTube Series)
• 2 The Wiggles
• 3 Wiggle Groove Tour

Madonna announces The Celebration global world tour to mark 40th anniversary

The Celebration tour will mark four decades of Madonna's greatest hits, starting with her self-titled debut album, and will include a date at London's O2 Arena. The star revealed the news with a video announcement - featuring cameos from several other well-known stars.

By Gemma Peplow, arts and entertainment reporter

Tuesday 17 January 2023 16:56, UK

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Madonna has announced a major world tour marking her 40th anniversary, including a show at London's O2 Arena.

The announcement comes after weeks of speculation the Queen of Pop had been planning something big to celebrate her career since the release of her self-titled debut album, which launched her on the path to stardom with hits including Holiday, Lucky Star and Borderline.

Writing on Instagram - after previously clearing her page to make way for the news - Madonna simply said: "Come join the party!" In a statement sent to Sky News, she said: "I am excited to explore as many songs as possible in hopes to give my fans the show they have been waiting for."

The Celebration tour will feature the 64-year-old artist's four decades of greatest hits, starting in Vancouver, Canada, on 15 July. The star will play gigs across Canada and the US between July and October, before launching the European leg at the O2 on 14 October.

She will follow this with shows in cities including Barcelona, Paris and Berlin, finishing in Amsterdam on 1 December - taking in 35 cities in total.

Tickets will likely sell out quickly, so it is possible there could be an announcement of further shows to come.

As the tour was revealed on big screens featuring clips from her back-catalogue in London, Madonna also released a video featuring stars including Diplo, Judd Apatow, Jack Black, Lil Wayne and Bob The Drag Queen, culminating with Amy Schumer daring the star to take on the tour of her career so far.

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Madonna is one of the biggest-selling artists of all time and the best-selling female artist in the world, holding numerous records in the US and UK - with 13 number one singles in the UK she has more than any other female artist, as well as 12 number one albums.

In 2022, she became the first woman to chart in the US Billboard top 10 in every decade since the 1980s.

Her last tour was the smaller Madame X tour in 2019 and 2020, which saw the star performing at more intimate theatre venues. However, the shows were delayed due to the singer suffering knee and hip problems, and some were cancelled due to the pandemic. This time round, she will be on stage at major arenas, including Madison Square Garden in New York.

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'She needs no introduction'

Over the years, Madonna has been known for continuously reinventing her music and her image, with hits including Like A Virgin, Into The Groove, Papa Don't Preach and Like A Prayer in the 1980s; Vogue, Justify My Love, Erotica and Frozen in the 1990s; and Music, Hung Up, Sorry, and collaborations with Britney Spears (Me Against The Music) and Justin Timberlake (4 Minutes) in the 2000s.

Her first greatest hits album, The Immaculate Collection, released in 1990, is one of the best-selling albums of all time, with reported sales of around 30 million. Overall, she is reported to have sold up to 300 million records worldwide.

A multi-Grammy, Brit and Ivor Novello winning performer, she was also inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2008, her first year of eligibility, for which she was described in her introduction as "the record-setting, line-crossing, sexuality-flaunting, ever-evolving Material Girl".

It continued: "Madonna is an icon. With her larger than life persona and penchant for provocation, she needs no introduction."

As well as her music, the star is almost as famous for pushing boundaries with fashion and her choices of controversial and even explicit outfits over the decades.

In the early days of her career, she pioneered the "underwear as outerwear" trend by wearing a corset bodysuit with conical bra cups, designed by Jean Paul Gaultier, and in 1992 published Sex, a book of erotic photographs.

In 2016, she attended the Met Gala in a bondage-inspired Givenchy outfit featuring leather, lace, thigh-high boots, a thong and nipple pasties; in 2021, she hit out at Instagram for taking down provocative photographs in which her nipple was exposed.

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In 2022, the singer revisited a number of tracks which made her an international star, including a new take on her 1998 classic Frozen, which she recorded with Canadian musician Sickick, and a remix of her dance hit Hung Up with Dominican rapper Tokischa.

It followed a reformed partnership with her previous long-time record label Warner Music Group, which produced her debut single in 1982.

Tickets for Madonna: The Celebration tour will go on sale on Friday.

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• Consequence

Madonna Announces “The Celebration Tour” [UPDATED]

The pop icon commemorates 40 years in music

Update: Madonna has revealed the updated itinerary for “The Celebration Tour,” her sold-out, career-spanning live set that was  postponed  in late June after the Queen of Pop was hospitalized for a serious bacterial infection.

— Original Story —

Madonna will commemorate 40 years in music by embarking on “The Celebration Tour” in 2023.

The global tour will kick off in North America on July 15th in Vancouver, with additional concerts scheduled in cities like Detroit, Chicago, New York, Miami, Houston, Dallas, Austin, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and more. A UK/European leg kicks off in October, including dates in London, Barcelona, Paris, Stockholm, and Amsterdam.

Tickets for Madonna’s “The Celebration Tour” have largely sold out. As of Friday, January 20th, 36 shows — totally more than 600,000 tickets — are sold out. However, fans can still get access to these dates via Stubhub — where your order is 100% guaranteed through Stubhub’s FanProtect program.

Editor’s Note: Head here for more details on how to buy tickets to Madonna’s “The Celebration Tour.”

Madonna 2023-2024 Tour Dates:

10/14 – London, UK @ The O2 10/15 – London, UK @ The O2 10/17 – London, UK @ The O2 10/18 – London, UK @ The O2 10/21 – Antwerp, BE @ Sportpaleis 10/22 – Antwerp, BE @ Sportpaleis 10/25 – Copenhagen, DK @ Royal Arena 10/28 – Stockholm, SE @ Tele2 11/01 – Barcelona, ES @ Palau Sant Jordi 11/02 – Barcelona, ES @ Palau Sant Jordi 11/06 – Lisbon, PT @ Altice Arena 11/12 – Paris, FR @ Accor Arena 11/13 – Paris, FR @ Accor Arena 11/15 – Cologne, DE @ Lanxess Arena 11/16 – Cologne, DE @ Lanxess Arena 11/19 – Paris, FR @ Accor Arena 11/23 – Milan, IT @ Mediolanum Forum 11/25 – Milan, IT @ Mediolanum Forum 11/28 – Berlin, DE @ Mercedes-Benz Arena 12/01 – Amsterdam, NL @ Ziggo Dome 12/02 – Amsterdam, NL @ Ziggo Dome 12/05 – London, UK @ The O2 12/06 – London, UK @ The O2 12/13 – Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center 12/14 – Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center 12/16 – Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center 12/18 – Washington, DC @ Capitol One Arena 12/19 – Washington, DC @ Capitol One Arena 01/08 – Boston, MD @ TD Garden 01/09 – Boston, MD @ TD Garden 01/11 – Toronto, ON @ Scotiabank Arena 01/12 – Toronto, ON @ Scotiabank Arena 01/15 – Detroit, MI @ Little Caesars Arena 01/18 – Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre 01/20 – Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre 01/22 – New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden 01/23 – New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden 01/25 – Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center 01/29 – New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden 02/01 – Chicago, IL @ United Center 02/02 – Chicago, IL @ United Center 02/05 – Pittsburgh, PA @ PPG Paints Arena 02/08 – Cleveland, OH @ Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse 02/13 – St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center 02/17 – Seattle, WA @ Climate Pledge Arena 02/18 – Seattle, WA @ Climate Pledge Arena 02/21 – Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena 02/24 – Sacramento, CA @ Golden 1 Center 02/27 – San Francisco, CA @ Chase Center 02/28 – San Francisco, CA @ Chase Center 03/01 – Las Vegas, NV @ MGM Grand Garden Arena 03/02 – Las Vegas, NV @ MGM Grand Garden Arena 03/04 – Los Angeles, CA @ Kia Forum 03/05 – Los Angeles, CA @ Kia Forum 03/07 – Los Angeles, CA @ Kia Forum 03/09 – Los Angeles, CA @ Kia Forum 03/11 – Los Angeles, CA @ Kia Forum 03/16 – Phoenix, AZ @ Footprint Center 03/19 – Denver, CO @ Ball Arena 03/24 – Dallas, TX @ America Airlines Center 03/25 – Dallas, TX @ America Airlines Center 03/28 – Houston, TX @ Toyota Center 03/29 – Houston, TX @ Toyota Center 04/01 – Atlanta, GA @ State Farm Arena 04/04 – Tampa, FL @ Amalie Arena 04/06 – Miami, FL @ Kaseya Center 04/07 – Miami, FL @ Kaseya Center 04/14 – Austin, TX @ Moody Center 04/15 – Austin, TX @ Moody Center 04/20 – Mexico City, MX @ Palacio De Los Deportes 04/21 – Mexico City, MX @ Palacio De Los Deportes 04/23 – Mexico City, MX @ Palacio De Los Deportes 04/24 – Mexico City, MX @ Palacio De Los Deportes

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Madonna Announces "The Celebration Tour" [UPDATED]

• Manage Account

Madonna in Rio: Behind the Scenes of the Negotiation for One of the Biggest Shows in History

The pop icon will finish her Celebration Tour with a free concert at Copacabana Beach on May 4. This is how it came to be.

By Billboard Brasil

Billboard Brasil

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Imagine the scene: One of the greatest pop artists in history is in the middle of the Palais Garnier, the imposing house of the Paris Opera. Then, with her blue eyes fixed on the camera, she says an entirely off-script phrase: “ Brazil , I’m coming.”

How to Watch Madonna’s ‘Celebration in Rio’ Concert Online for Free

But back then, in November 2023, there was nothing certain, not even close, for Madonna to take her Celebration Tour to Brazil . On the contrary, it was rumored that this would be an almost impossible mission due to technical reasons.

Trending on Billboard

 It was up to the bank to pull strings to make it happen. But they were running out of time.

“The day after the shoot, we watched her show in Paris and realized that the structure would be complicated to adapt to a large crowd like the one we wanted. Because of this, Guy Oseary [the singer’s manager] poured cold water on us,” Smith says.

The following week, legendary businessman Luiz Oscar Niemeyer from Bonus Track, a “key player” in the process, appeared on the scene. Niemeyer is a pioneer in the international concert market in Brazil, responsible for Paul McCartney’s record attendance at Maracanã in 1993 (and for all of McCartney’s subsequent visits to Brazil) and the performance by The Rolling Stones on Copacabana Beach, among many other historic events.

So there were two players: the biggest bank in Latin America that already had a close relationship with Madonna, and an experienced producer used to dealing with the biggest names in showbiz. But destiny sometimes plays tricks.

“I had already tried to bring Madonna in 2006, without success, and I had already been talking to Live Nation, responsible for the Celebration Tour, but Madonna had that health problem last year, and the tour was postponed,” explains Niemeyer, or “LON” for those closest to him.

In mid-February (just over two months before the show date), negotiations intensified with Niemeyer back on track. “We became very close [to Niemeyer] and exchanged lots of info, like a task force to make this show possible, because Itaú had a contract with Madonna and Bonus Track, with Live Nation,” says Smith. “It was Saturday, Sunday, sometimes 3 am, and Luiz Oscar and I were in meetings with teams from outside Brazil.”

And the teams for everything related to Madonna, of course, are quite rigorous. “We have to deliver a show complying with the level of production that it presents around the world, naturally adapted for a much larger space. Only when we had the resizing of this structure, sponsorships, television broadcasting and technical issues approved was the deal finally closed,” explains Niemeyer, stressing that leaks about the show that took over the Internet in the weeks before the official announcement did not interfere in the negotiations.

According to him, from the beginning, the idea was that the show at Princesinha do Mar would close the Celebration Tour as “a great gift for Brazilian fans.” “It was a great choice – a Saturday, we have a holiday in the middle of the week, and more people can visit the city,” says Niemeyer.

–This article was written by Liv Brandão for Billboard Brasil

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Former NBA forward Drew Gordon, brother of Nuggets star Aaron Gordon, dies in car accident

Gordon played briefly for the 76ers in 2014.

Drew Gordon, the older brother of Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon , has died in a car accident in Portland, Oregon, his agent, Calvin Andrews, confirmed to ESPN late Thursday. Gordon was 33 years old.

A standout basketball player in his own right, Gordon began his collegiate career at UCLA after receiving offers from blue blood programs like Duke, North Carolina and Arizona. Despite two relatively successful years as a Bruin, Gordon elected to transfer to New Mexico for his junior season. He averaged at least 13 points and 10 rebounds per game in each of his two seasons as a Lobo, and with that performance, he put himself on the NBA's radar.

He ultimately was not drafted in 2012, but played for the Dallas Mavericks in Summer League. From there, he bounced between foreign leagues and the G League before ultimately signing with the Philadelphia 76ers , his only NBA team . He played in nine games for the 76ers during the 2014-15 season before ultimately getting waived in December. 

He played nearly a decade of professional basketball after that, most of it coming abroad. The highlight of that foreign career was being named an All-Star in France in 2015. Gordon retired from basketball in 2023.

CBS Sports will continue to update this story as information becomes available. 

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