Houston celebrated one of pop music’s greatest icons with one of the most visually satisfying spectacles of the year as the queen of pop, Madonna, rolled into the city.
Appearing at the first of two sold out shows at Toyota Center as part of The Celebration Tour on Thursday night, Madonna brought it all — countless hits, an elaborate and eye-popping stage show, endless costumes and dancers.
Compared to other famed one-named female artists, none of them broke down barriers and reshaped music and culture quite like she did. The entire show served as a reminder why all other pop stars who followed in her wake – Britney, Christina, Taylor, Cardi B, among others – owe her a debt of gratitude.
The numbers bear that out. 400 million albums and singles sold worldwide. Highest selling female artist of all time. 12 No. 1 songs. Countless awards won, including seven Grammys. Music video innovator. Socio-sexual provocateur. Gay rights activist. Madonna was quite simply the most famous woman on the planet for a long time.
Madge offered a rapid-fire look back across her varied and massively successful career, crammed into 2.5 hours. Songs crisscrossed 40 years of chart-toppers and fan faves through seven acts, from her days as an MTV innovator to her hyper-sexualized ‘90s, and onto the electronic influenced 2000s albums and beyond. Even her film soundtrack work shared the spotlight during the show that started at 10 pm and ended well past midnight.
At 65, Madonna is somewhat removed from her commercial heights when she ruled global pop culture. But after rescheduling dates due to a serious health scare, the legend showed she had plenty of gas left in the tank and a still-rabid, multi-generational, multi-gendered base of adoring fans.
As a hero to the LGBTQIA+ movement, there were plenty of same sex partners in the audience, but there were numerous other fans she had gathered along the way, done up in their favorite Madonna outfits. They were treated to high-tech, eye-popping set pieces with a stage that worked its way across the arena floor to make the proceedings feel more intimate.
“This is not just a concert, this is not just a party, this is a celebration, bitches,” emcee Bob the Drag Queen exclaimed in full Victorian garb. Then Madonna arose on a rotating stage for Ray of Light track, “Nothing Really Matters,” her 23rd No. 1 song on the U.S. dance charts. Dressed in head-to-toe black, religious-themed garb and crown, it was pure, juicy theater.
A remixed version of “Into the Groove” was the first true banger of the setlist, the hit from the ‘80s flick Desperately Seeking Susan sounding as good as it did when it took over the radiowaves and MTV, despite somewhat muddled acoustics in the venue. At 65, Madonna was not as limber as she once was (who among us is?) during choreographed bits, but she was more than game.
“That’s how we used to dance in the 80s,” she said, slyly commenting on her limits. “Did you like it? Some nights I like it. Some nights I’m embarrassed.”
“Open Your Heart,” from 1986’s smash, True Blue, and “Holiday,” from her 1983 self-titled debut were more successful, her voice finding its stride with Art Deco visuals and a giant, human-sized disco ball.
Act II highlights included the stone-cold classic jam, “Like A Prayer,” with more religious iconography: nuns, a carousel of crosses and bare-chested, six-packed men in cages, snippets of Gregorian chanting and Sam Smith’s “Unholy.” Very Madonna and oh so good.
She later referenced her famous run-ins with the Catholic Church. Raised in a strict Catholic household, she joked that she held the Guinness Book of World Records for being excommunicated by the church three times.
Act III shifted the vibe to Madonna’s years of pushing the boundaries of empowered sexuality in the pop music medium in the early-‘90s, with the one-two punch of “Erotica” and “Justify My Love.” Scantily clad dancers acted out boxing scenes while Madonna grinded in a Marilyn Monroe wig. It ended with her receiving simulated pleasure on a bed with red satin sheets by a Truth and Dare era lookalike, alluding to the time she was almost arrested while on tour.
The mix of her Erotica and Bedtime Stories era hits were bolstered by arguably Madonna’s best song of the 21st century in the ABBA-cribbing disco gem, “Hung Up,” from 2005’s Confessions on a Dance Floor. It was one of the best songs of the setlist, bringing straight fire, the heat felt up to the highest rows of Toyota Center, no doubt the tingles partially caused by the topless male and female dancers writhing on stage.
Act IV included the pop ballads, starting with 1985’s “Crazy for You.” That morphed into an underground vogue competition to coincide with the hit song of the same name, “Vogue.” Madonna’s 11-year-old daughter Estere Ciccione featured as DJ and dancer in a glittery black and gold sequined outfit and matching headphones.
Act V leaned into acoustic numbers, including the awesome back-to-back acoustic versions of the No. 2 Like A Prayer hit “Express Yourself” and top five True Blue classic, “La Isla Bonita,” the crowd singing along with every word with their cellphone lights aloft.
Act VI took it home with one of the best moments of the night with late-‘90s comeback tune, “Ray of Light.” Madonna hovered over the crowd in a floating truss in a reflective outfit, pink wig, and futuristic glasses. Lasers mimicked a prism across the stage as the heavy techno remix got fans dancing in the aisles.
And if we hadn’t seen enough costume changes, Act VII song, “Bitch I’m Madonna”, included each of her dancers sporting individualized classic Madonna attire, including her dress in the Material Girl video and even her Rockford Peaches uniform from the popular film, A League of Their Own.
While she seemed to be dragging at times – she was clearly not feeling 100 percent – there were few criticisms to be had. Fans of “Material Girl,” “Music” or “or “Frozen” will be disappointed by their exclusion. Those hoping to hear entire versions of songs will wish she hadn’t cut so many short.
Overall, the night’s performance was a sexy, visual and audible feast for all sexes and genders, proving that Madonna hadn’t lost her touch for putting on a show. It wasn’t a concert, it was an interpretation of her career through an artistic lens, Easter eggs dropped throughout for casual listeners and diehards alike.
Those heading to the Toyota Center for her second show on Friday night are in for a treat.
Setlist
Act I
“Nothing Really Matters”
“Everybody”
“Into the Groove”
“Burning Up”
“Open Your Heart”
“Holiday”
Photo by Johnston Farrow
"Like a Prayer" was one of numerous No. 1 hits performed by Madonna at Toyota Center.
Act II
“Live to Tell”
“Like a Prayer”
Act III
“Erotica”
“Justify My Love”
“Hung Up”
“Bad Girl”
Act IV
“Vogue”
“Human Nature”
“Crazy for You”
Act V
“Die Another Day”
“Don’t Tell Me”
“Mother and Father”
“Express Yourself”
“La Isla Bonita”
“Don’t Cry for Me Argentina”
Act VI
“Bedtime Story”
“Ray of Light”
“Take a Bow”
Act VII
"Billie Jean” / “Like a Virgin”
"Bitch I’m Madonna”
"Celebration
