I posted an overall review on my first impression of the Madame X tour about two weeks ago, and now that my 9-date concert journey in Los Angeles with Madonna is over and I have some free time, I thought I’d offer up my full thoughts on the show, song-by-song. Let’s get to it!
James Baldwin Quote Intro
This was a very different, stark and strange way to open the show. The first time I saw it, it took me a few minutes to realize what was going on and why the typewriter quote kept repeating itself. The more times you watch this, the more it makes sense. This was truly unique in that Madonna has never opened a show like this. It leads perfectly into the opening song.
God Control
This is a stunning performance. Scenes of the music video are projected onto the background screen as Madonna and the the dancers perform in modernized Revolutionary war-era costumes. A big disco ball comes down at one point and the whole performance feels so fun, but then you realize it’s about gun control and other dancers dressed as police officers come in to break things up. It all feels so grand with the strings of the song and the choir on stage. This was a great way to start to the show to get everyone moving.
Dark Ballet
This number was very visually engaging. There’s a lot to look at here with Madonna dancing around on the stage with the dancers in gas masks and flowers on their heads. Scenes of the video are projected onto the set which give the effect of being inside an old church. This was one of the most theatrical moments of the show, and really gives you that feeling of watching a theater piece. At the end of the performance, Madonna is ‘captured’ by the police and put into her ‘cell’ (which is a circular cut-out in one of the set pieces).
Human Nature
This song always got a good reception from the crowd. Madonna performs in her circular ‘cell’ on a very minimal set-up. The screen projections are limited to shadowy hand-movements that surround her, and occasional words that appear like “Fuck Off” and “I’m Not Sorry”. Two background singers and a trumpet player join her on the minimal stage until the end, when a gang of female dancers and singers all join in for the final lines of the song. It’s a moment of female empowerment that then segues into an a cappella snippet of Express Yourself.
This is followed by Madonna’s first extended monologue of the night. It always consisted of the same jokes. All of the nights always had new people that hadn’t seen the show yet, so she got laughs in all the appropriate places. During the entire segment, she is hidden by a vanity partition while she gets her makeup done and her wig placed on for the next act. The Madame X manifesto video is projected onto the partition as she segues into the next song.
Vogue
The audience leapt to their feet every night for this one. It’s one of the few classic hits in the show. Madonna takes on her ‘film noir spy’ persona as she dons a platinum blonde wig, a trench coat, and a black eye patch. Multiple Madonna-impersonating dancers join in dressed in trench coats, blonde wigs and sunglasses as they perform against a dazzling backdrop of vintage black & white Hollywood and typewriter graphics with touches of red. It was a very cool performance.
I Don’t Search I Find
The film noir theme carries over into this song as Madonna is joined by Dick Tracy-like detectives/paparazzi who chase her around snapping her picture on polaroid cameras against cool black and white graphics of the city. They eventually capture Madonna and take her to the interrogation room. As the song ends, Madonna snaps a polaroid of herself and, as you’ve all heard, sells it to the highest bidder of the night. This is Madonna’s second extended monologue of the night where she talks about the Madame X persona and chats with whoever is buying the picture from her. On the final Los Angeles night, the polaroid cameras weren’t working so she sang an a cappella snippet of “Fever”, which was a nice bonus.
Papa Don’t Preach
Things get political again as Madonna performs a shortened version of this song, changing the stance of the lyrics to not keeping her baby. This is followed by another monologue where Madonna addresses a woman’s right to choose, and how 9 states are currently trying to overturn Roe V. Wade.
American Life
The political tone rolls into American Life where scenes of the uncensored video are projected onto the set. Dancers in camouflage gear perform with Madonna as she plays the guitar. I was surprised that the audience was usually pretty excited to hear this song as well. Madonna sings the final “Fuck It’ lines of the song as she goes into the circular cut-out in the set (this time lit up in red light to mimic a bullet hole wound) and closes a door behind her as the giant stage screen goes down.
Interlude
A haunting Portuguese song plays as a coffin is slowly carried across the stage by sailors. Images of vintage maps and scenery are projected onto the large screen that covers the stage. There is one of two choreography routines performed on any given night. The first is a lone male dancer dressed in camouflage who performs a really cool solo choreography of fluid body movements. The second is two female dancers dressed as sailors who perform a combat sequence, then eventually embrace. I myself preferred the first sequence.
Batuka
This performance begins with the Batukadeiras sashaying onto the stage from the aisles in the Audience. The giant screen goes up and Madonna energetically joins them in her dark wig and purple glittering outfit. They perform a really great number here as scenes from the video are shown on the background screen. The audience usually loves this and Madonna gets a roaring applause.
As the giant screen goes down after Batuka and Madonna introduces the Batukadeira Orchestra, Madonna segues into a long monologue about her time in Lisbon and how it inspired the Madame X album. She talks about how she met Portuguese Fado singer Celeste Rodriguez, then introduces Celeste’s great grandson, Gaspar, who has joined Madonna on tour.
Fado Pechincha
Madonna performs a short snippet of this song with Gaspar on guitar. Madonna’s vocals were always strong and impressive here and usually got her a roaring applause.
Killers Who Are Partying
The giant screen goes up to reveal that the stage has transformed into a beautiful courtyard scene. Starry skies are projected as Madonna performs this song exquisitely. Dancers and the band hang around the set dancing with each other, fanning themselves, playing their instruments, etc. This was one of my favorite moments of the show, I thought it was beautifully done and it sounded fantastic.
Crazy
The same vibe from the last song, but now Madonna performs a dance routine with the dancers. The band really shone during this part of the show. Everything sounded so gorgeous. Crazy was another great number that had such a great vibe and made me love the song even more. Madonna ends the song atop a piano.
Welcome To My Fado Club / La Isla Bonita
I believe this is just a short song that was made up for the show, and it had a portion of La Isla Bonita incorporated in it. The set has gone from the courtyard to the inside of a Fado club.
Sodade
The dancers interact with each other as Madonna performed this cover song playing the guitar atop the piano. It was eventually cut from the show starting on the fourth Los Angeles date. Madonna later confirmed that it was because Guy Oseary told her the show was running too long. I actually didn’t mind this omission as the song was lovely, but not vital to the show. I wouldn’t have minded if she had replaced it with another one of her own acoustic songs.
Medellin
Projections of Maluma appear as Madonna launches into Medellin, which is a pretty fun number during this segment. Madonna and the dancers perform their dance routine, which eventually extends into the audience. At all the shows I went to, I could not see what was going on in the crowd during this part. Madonna and company make their way back to the stage for the final part of the song as scenes of the music video are projected on the giant screen. As it ends, Madonna sits down either on the steps of the stage that lead into the audience, or an empty chair that has been placed for her in the front row, and has a moment of chatter and a sip of beer with a member of the audience.
At the first LA show, the audience guest was magician David Blaine, who performed a magic trick with Madonna and a child in the audience. I couldn’t see a thing and neither could a lot of people so this part really seemed to drag on that night. The second and third nights featured a Madonna fan. On the fourth night, it was comedian Dave Chappelle, who gave Madonna some nice compliments on the show. On the fifth night, Madonna chatted with singer/musician Joe Henry, who is married to her sister Melanie, who was also in the audience that night. The sixth night featured Kim and Kourtney Kardashian (this is the only Los Angeles date that I skipped). On the seventh night, Madonna chatted with Katy Perry, the eighth had Diplo, the ninth had Lil Nas X, and the tenth had Frankie Grande. I didn’t like this part of the show since, unless you’re sitting near Madonna and guest, you really can’t see them talking (and the conversations were usually pretty boring, to be honest).
Extreme Occident
I can’t tall you how much I loved this performance. Madonna sang amongst an extremely minimal set of stair pieces that moved and spun around with lights. She sounded fantastic singing this song every night. As if I didn’t love the song to begin with, this performance elevated it even more for me. I’m going to have to re-rank my songs on the album because it shifted a lot due to this tour.
Rescue Me Interlude
Several dancers perform a strange dance amongst sounds of breathing and gasping. Further into it, lines from Rescue Me are spoken by Madonna. A lot of people seemed impressed by this performance, but I have to admit that it was one of my least favorite parts of the show. It didn’t really seem to connect to anything that came before or after it.
Frozen
As I said in my first review of the show, this is an amazing performance and one of the show-stoppers. Madonna sounded absolutely amazing singing this song and the musical arrangement was so good. This is the best performance of Frozen she has ever done.
Come Alive
People around me were visibly moved by this one. Madonna performs with her choir and dancers amongst a colorful backdrop of colors and patterns. As I’ve said, it was truly a joyous, celebratory performance that left you feeling on an absolute high by the end. The image of Madonna and troupe singing the final lines of the song as they stood together raising their hands was magic. The guy next to me cried on one of my show nights. He told me he was a long-time fan and had seen every tour since The Virgin Tour. When Madonna and her music has been a part of your life for such a long time, it’s really easy to get emotional as you watch her perform and see how far she’s come and how her music has made you feel through the years.
Future
I have to say that I truly enjoyed this arrangement of the song, even more than the album version. Madonna performed this while sitting and playing a piano. Eventually, two dancers that wear head-gear that lights up come onstage and dance around Madonna. The screens show images of a burning forest and city.
Crave
This was a fun disco explosion. I’m so glad she chose to perform this great remix of “Crave”. This was also one of my favorite parts of the show because it was just so much fun. I also loved the costumes. On the second-to-last night, Swae Lee joined Madonna on stage for this song.
Like A Prayer
Madonna and the choir perform this atop stairs shaped like an X while scenes of the classic video are shown on the set. This song obviously really got the crowd going. Everyone was up, singing and dancing at every night during this song. It was a great closer before the encore and always got Madonna a thunderous applause.
Encore: I Rise
At first, I wasn’t sure that this song would work as the final song of the show, but I was really wrong. I got to touch Madonna twice during the finale as she exits through the crowd. On the second night, I touched her shoulder, and at my eighth show, Madonna looked me right in the eyes with a smile and gave me a fist bump. The feeling was incredible.
I had the opportunity to view this show from multiple angles on the floor and the balcony. I found the best spot to be in the first couple of Floor sections. Anything further back would limit your view because of the crowd. The view from the balcony was ok but I can’t tell you how absolutely distracting the crowd is up there. Try to avoid it if you can. Madonna has canceled all of the Boston shows now, which is really unsettling. I really think she needs to take it easier and not schedule so many back to back shows in the future. But, having seen the show nine times, I can say that she gave it her all and was truly amazing!
Anyway, that’s my long recap. I hope you get to see the show!
-A
Albert's Madonna Collection 