Madonna’s “The Celebration Tour” was in Cleveland last night (Thursday; 02.08.24). The Queen of Pop was celebrating with a set that spanned her entire 40+ year career. While not supporting any one album in particular on this tour, this concert showed off a career-best of the best. On this night, Clevelanders finally had its own “Eras Tour.” No, not the ever-elusive Taylor Swift tour that Cleveland can’t secure, but still, a legend who played her songs dating back to 1984 and moving forward to her most recent bodies of work.
The evening was exactly what someone would have expected. It would be impossible to swing a boa and not hit someone wearing mesh, leather, elaborate makeup, or a kick-ass hat. Cleveland came out big for this night (non-offensive pun intended?), filled the bars and restaurants beforehand, giving anyone not going to the concert an eyeful! Despite the 8:30 listed start time, it was rumored that the show would start much closer to 10:00, based on reports of other stops on the tour. This rumor proved to be true when those sitting in their seats at the start time were met with DJ Mary Mac, who had the task of filling over an hour for the excited fans.
ACT I
The show kicks off with “It’s a Celebration,” accompanied by Bob the Drag Queen. There were several moments where key songs played with theatrical videos, which were used for wardrobe changes as the show moved between acts. This time, there was an element of suspense! Following a two-hour wait, the stage lit up and came to life! The big question mark as to what all the commotion is about was answered when Madonna’s stage opened up, she appeared and began her show with “Nothing Really Matters.”
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‘Nothing Really Matters’ – Clip
The rest of Act I set the tone for how elaborate this production is. Once joined by her dancers (and, by dancers, it’s really more of a dance team, and by dance team, it’s more of a dance village), the number of people, costumes, and characters that each plays is something to marvel at.
Act II
Madonna was taking everyone through a journey of her past self. One at a time, dancers would come out wearing period-specific iconic Madonna outfits. She would join Madonna on stage and invoke a small story about that time in her career. The only difference is that these Madonnas were without faces. The masks they wore kept the Madonnas neutral, albeit a little creepy. The highlight of Act II was the actual Madonna’s performance of “Live to Tell.” This song was powerful and amazing. An illuminated metal frame was attached to a ceiling system. This rig would raise the frame over the audience as it went up and down and side to side. It was reminiscent of an arcade crane game with Madonna being the prize! The song and stage setting were emotional. While Madonna was floating over the crowd, screens unrolled from the rafters and projectors powered on. Suddenly, the faces of many young and promising men were displayed. The dates of their deaths were visible at the bottom of each screen, representing a person who died too young from AIDS. The work that Madonna has done for AIDS in her lifetime is matched by only a handful. (Even in 1989, she was informing her fans about AIDS by including fact sheets in her albums.)
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“Live to Tell” – Clip
Act III
There were some pretty great moments during Act III. One of the early highlights of the act was the costume change. Madonna came out ready to fight! During her performance of “Erotica” and “Justify My Love,” (performed as a mashup of sorts), three separate boxing rings appeared on the stage. This was achieved by laser ropes staggered throughout posts as a cool fog rolled in. Madonna and her boxing team of dancers took turns performing in the various rings, much to the excitement of the audience.
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“Erotica” – Clip
Act III had one last surprise, which showed off another side of Madonna that fans don’t always get to see: Mom! Just before Madonna performs her last song of the act, a grand piano is raised from underneath the center stage. Sitting at the piano was Mercy, Madonna’s 18-year-old adopted daughter. Marcy was a hell of a piano player and performed while her mom watched and sat. As the solo came to an end, Madonna lowered the top lid of the piano and claimed a seat on top. From there, she wrapped up this era with “Bad Girl.”
Madonna and 18year-old daughter Mercy on piano
Act IV / Act V
There were many moments that were condensed. This is a necessity when trying to cover 40 years of music in a little over 2 hours. Sometimes there were combined songs and other times songs blended right into one another. That didn’t mean that Madonna didn’t take her time when the song called for it, such as her performance of “Die Another Day.” The song requires moments of pause and mixed moments of dance and excitement.
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“Die Another Day” – Clip
Another sweet moment was when Madonna’s 18-year-old adopted son, David, came out to perform with his mom. He floated out on the same square frame that his mother did earlier in the night. David was relaxed, playing guitar along with his mom. As if the mother/son moment wasn’t precious enough, the two wore matching cowboy hats. They performed a shortened version of “La Isla Bonita” together.
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“La Isla Bonita” – Clip
Act VI / Act VII
As the night went on the audience got to experience a few more eras and a few more faceless Madonnas. As seen here, her stage was a force to be reckoned with. So much thought and care went into the entire production. Her dancers are unmatched in talent and energy. Madonna doesn’t need to be the dancing spectacle she once was. She’s put in her time and just needs to sing for folks to be satisfied.
Of course, Madonna has to worry about her health, too. She had a health scare last year that included 48 hours in a coma, postponing the originally scheduled Cleveland tour stop. Madonna said that she needed this show to go on. She also noted that she wanted to show off her talented children. It was her children who were the only live musicians that the show had visible. It’s unclear if there was a live band backstage, but most of Madonna’s songs have electronic components that are more easily played via track than performed. That’s okay, though, because there’s one woman who everyone came to see. Whether she was swinging from the ceiling, rising off the ground with her giant merry-go-round style spinning stage, or dancing under a mirror ball the size of a Volkswagon or boxing center ring, Madonna put on a show for everyone present to love. It’s not every day you get to see a legend. It’s not every day a Thursday concert goes until 12:30 AM! If they are there to see Madonna and experience what everyone did, they have no room to complain because Bitch, she’s Madonna!
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