I sported my jorts, tight Boy Gone Wild tank, and stylist high tops and made my way up to Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. I met up with Ida and her sister-in-law before making my way down to my seat on the floor. The ticket said the show would start at 8:00. Ha! We all knew better. Avicii did an awesome opening set and then dozens of crew worked to get the stage set up for the real show.
Finally at 10:30 the lights went down and the crowd went wild. Monks skulked around the stage while contortionist gargoyles twisted their bodies into scary positions. The opening screen split and Madonna appeared knelt in a confessional while toting an AK-47. YES!! Instantly I was in love! There were plenty of guns and violence during Girl Gone Wild and Revolver, which I always felt was underrated. One of the highlights of the show was the Gang Bang. Madonna sits in a seedy motel room set while masked men sneak up on her. Good thing she has both hand and machine guns. As she kills each assailant, bloods splatters across the huge video screens. It's one of the coolest things I've ever seen. Transgression was the perfect to start an epic show.
I'll admit that I wasn't crazy about the Majorette theme. But when she kicked it off with drummers, batons and a marching band suspended from the ceiling, I knew that she knew exactly what she was doing. She mashed up Express Yourself with a lesser version aka Born This Way. Ooow! Burn! Then she ended with a cheeky version of She's Not Me. Can it get better? Give Me All Your Luvin' was never my favorite song on MDNA, but she took it and killed it. The dance break down in the middle of the song made my jaw hit the floor. She's 54 and still puts on a better show than either of the two Britney concerts I've seen.
The third theme begins with flashbulbs and the sound of snapping cameras. VOGUE! She used the same choreography from the Super Bowl and I'm so glad she did. It was epic and this costume change was amazing. A reinvention of her cone bra with a skeletal bodice. But she loses it quickly when she launches into a sexy version of Candy Shop mixed with Erotica. Fire! Human Nature was another highlight. I love her defiant, "fuck you" attitude and her sexy striptease was mesmerizing. Her body was harder than mine is. Whatever she's doing, I need to start doing it pronto.
The final theme was Celebration and that's exactly what it was. I'm Addicted was reworked it and added some great choreography. She made it a highlight of the night. I'm A Sinner was another song that I liked but didn't love. But she used the elaborate staging to a create the feeling of riding atop a bus in India. Magical! I didn't think that Madge could top Like A Prayer from the Sticky and Sweet tour. But she did! This time she brought a huge choir and mixed it with deep bass. It was pure bliss! The crowd loved it - we all had hands in the air. Like A Prayer was bittersweet because it was when I realized that the show was almost over. Celebration was a bright, trippy spectacle. It was an explosion finish to the best concert I've ever seen.
The experience was so surreal and magical that I want that feeling again. And I want to share it! She's doing two shows at Madison Square Garden in November. Do I have the money to see it again? No. Am I going to do everything in my power to get amazing seats? As Madonna made us shout when she asked if we'd defend our freedom, "Fuck Yeah!"
See you in a few months, Madge!
