RE-INVENTION TOUR - FAN REVIEWS Back to tour intro page - Send in your own review

Paris - 01 September - An American in Paris It's now been roughly a week since the shows in London tied up. After several days in beautiful Gent, Belgium to recharge the batteries it was time to arrive in France to continue the second leg of my European tour with Madonna. I had never been to Paris when it was warm as it was. I had always walked the Paris streets wearing a scarf and a sweater under my coat. This time, it was hot... making me miss the crisp, cool autumn days I've been accustomed to. More nerves - I was to meet two fans from Italy for the first time. As before, I had bought seats closer to the stage at Bercy a few weeks prior and they were nice enough to buy my Icon Pre-sale tickets which were a bit further from stage than I preferred to be. They were great guys - handsome, funny and friendly. Deciding to get to our seats early we made our way to the section and were led to our seats by an arena worker who actually asked for a tip... after putting a tear in our tickets! Many other fans were as taken aback as we were. Tipping isn't necessarily something that is asked for and I noticed many people were very annoyed with this and rightfully so. We were in Porte F, six rows up from the stage and it was PERFECT. In the section to my left, sat the VIP package buyers. I was curious if they had as good a time as I had in San Jose (later, a few told me they HAD NOT had a good time and that they didn't get the same treatment I had described in my postings for San Jose. That was so sad to hear as they paid considerably more for the actual seat compared to the shows in the USA). Watching the entire floor FOSSE burst into applause I looked up the stairs to see Jean Paul Gaultier and company come down the stairs. Yes, THIS was Paris! Looking around, Bercy itself is pretty nice-looking place and much, much larger than I was expecting. Here I was - sitting in the very seats featured in TRUTH OR DARE and the very place Bart had all his little adventures back at the 2001 DROWNED WORLD TOUR! It was a dream come true. Once again - even a week had gone by and it was like seeing the show for the very first time! VOGUE - my neighbor busted out in the Blond Ambition moves to this song - so cute! The front FOSSE went crazy during NOBODY KNOWS ME as she flirts with the right side of the audience before rising on the platform. The energy on the floor and the Portes directly across the arena from me (Portes N, O and P) were amazingly lively. The crowd around me, on the other hand, were pretty casual - not comatose, but much more lazy than I was expecting. Terry and myself, on the other hand boogied-down! One shocking thing about this show was the amount of cameras allowed in the auditorium. We had no idea Bercy would allow them as previous arenas in London and USA would have you escorted out if you even held a camera! I wanted a picture of myself in Bercy - but I just couldn't chance having my camera taken away. If only I knew otherwise... The rest of the performance was flawless although I felt a little "uncomfortable" during AMERICAN LIFE perhaps knowing the current view of the USA from the rest of the world. More than before, the song rang True and although I agree with Madonna's *raison d'etre* for the song, the adoration toward her for singing it didn't include the rest of us Americans. At least... it's what it seemed at the time. There was much cheering during DIE ANOTHER DAY where Madonna tangos and twirls with her hunky male dancers. I was informed that such dancing is getting more popular in Europe (as noted the many salsa dance parties along the Seine I saw after the concert). A few moves weren't as fluid as I had seen before, but it was flawless nonetheless. Rest-assured, LIKE A PRAYER had EVERYONE up and going. The most inspirational Madonna song - ever. It STILL weilds much power. Perhaps more than it ever has. It was almost as if this one song drew in the thousands of ticket-buyers from afar to experience. Judging the response of the arena, I wonder... ...yet, the masses whooped and screamed all the way through the show until the confetti of HOLIDAY exploded... sending Re-invention red and white raining on their heads - almost as if Baptised. Well, almost! Given the giant screens close with Re-invent Yourself, some of us are doing that very thing as a result. One more show to go... ~ Steve W. London - 26 August - Shocked "Mr. Woods we are unable to ship your tickets to you in time for the performance. We have arranged for you to pick-up your reservation at the Wembley Will-Call Box Office..." ... and there I stood at 6:00 the evening of Madonna's last show in London. My puzzled friend wondering what I was up to standing in a line to buy tickets while (to his knowledge) we already purchased our tickets. After giving the lady at Wembley my ID, she handed me a tidy, sealed envelope and I made my way out front to see what treasures it held. My friend Terry was annoyed with my secrecy and I finally 'fessed up. "Open your envelope" I said referring to the ones we made and brought with us. It was empty (I had sold them to a fan from Germany who saw my ad on the internet offering to sell them a month earlier. They had been in Row 12 on the floor - ironically the 3rd time I'd be in a Row 12 at the shows I had seen thus far). While he just stared at me with a puzzled look, I told him, "Here is your ticket" and I handed him a pink ticket with the RIT logo on it. "now, read it over and make everything is in order..." "I'm in total shock," he said. Here's what it read: Section A2, Row 1, Seat 13. SCORE! Front-row seats purchased a mere weak before the concert! From 1984 to this point it was now my turn to finally see this woman up close in person! "Oh my God... how COULD YOU!!!!" There it was... my special surprise to my best friend. All he kept saying was, "I'm just shocked..." "Now, just DON'T be lazy and just stand there when Miss Thing comes our way!" I stated. I meant it. Seems Pier was unable to get tickets to tonights show. If only I had known when I bought these tickets. If only... We stood around trying to calm our nerves by people-watching. Soon, I saw AstroKid from Icon being interviewed with the Documentary-makers. We went up for a closer look and saw him telling them about the red string he had around his wrist. It was nice to see someone from Madonna's official fan club get noticed this way. I had been following his many posts the past few months and it was great to finally see a familiar face. I introduced myself and you could tell he was on Cloud 9 - having travelled from Australia to see Madonna's European shows. Now THAT's one fan following his dream! Making our way through the smokey halls of Wembley we were led to our seats and we sat down to take it all in. The screens stood high in front of us like the gates to heaven. The various, slightly hardened stage staff ambled to and fro on the other side of the divider in front of us. The seats around us were the last to fill up (fashionably late, I suspect). A lady next to us with a VIP pass (not the Fan club ones...these were for those with 'connections') stuck to her lapel. She was handed a bag full of free RIT goodies. I suspect she knew someone on the show. I didn't get the feeling she was much of a fan, either. Buy she seemed to be happy with getting a bunch of free stuff. The people on the other side of me were flanked by two bored bodyguards. Then, in the center of it all, were me and Terry. Goodness, what a pair. Once the music started and all the way until it stopped we were the only ones in the front row dancing, hands-in-the-air and singing to the lyrics. THIS was the night of all nights made better by the seemingly lack of enthusiasm around us. We stood out. VOGUE was incredible, but being so close from where we were I could only see her from the knees-up (and I couldn't see her do the crabwalk). When Madonna came stomping toward us in her thigh-high boots to the beats of NOBODY KNOWS ME, I blew her a kiss and she came right over and just *responded*. This woman is a master at flirting and when someone like that gets attention, she throws it right back! Then, she looked right at Terry and saw his Mr. Peabody's Apples T-shirt and I'll never, for as long as I live, forget the expression on her face: surprise mixed with touched emotion! Here was this adult wearing one of her official children's shirts and she was caught off-guard! Then, when the platform rose high above us, a true camera moment if there ever was one: Madonna peered right over the edge and gave me a "Suprise!" look on her face before standing up once again out of view to continue singing. I could just see it in a photo - just the underside of the platform and her head looking down at us, hair hanging straight down... it was PRECIOUS! As the show went on, we made some more eye-contact and...well some of you know this: when Madonna is singing this close, DON'T BE SHY! Go with it, give her some energy! We did...surprisingly nobody else in our section up close really did. Including the VIP-ers. It was odd - here are these terrific screaming fans in the back of the arena and the ones in the front were pretty much just standing there. However, I'm not complaining since it worked to our advantage in the most major way! During LIKE A PRAYER I gave it my sincere all - in my mind emulating the most church-going Southern U.S. Baptist you ever did see! Remember "Shug Avery" from THE COLOR PURPLE? Well I was her. Unknown to me until the song ended was a huge camera about a foot away from me filming my every move...yes, it was the documentary-makers capturing my "Aunt Esther-does-London" routine before moving on to film Terry and zooming in on his Mr. Peabody's Apples T shirt. Oh dear...I don't know if I want to be immortalized that way but if it makes you laugh when the films comes out, well...enjoy! Just after PAPA DON'T PREACH, Madonna gave a wonderful 'Thank You' to us - she even got teary ("I can't sing when I'm crying! she exclaimed.) and had to pause and wipe her eyes before continuing finishing and continuing into CRAZY FOR YOU. It was wonderful to hear and it was genuine, heartfelt and I got teary because I had travelled so far to be here for this moment. Just as the tribal beats of HOLIDAY once again gave the show a rousing closure to the excitement, a wad of confetti that was still clumped together flew threw the air and landed on my chair. Perfectly preserved, I picked it up and put in my satchel. So many positive occurrences surrounding this tour have happened to me: perfect travel arrangements, meeting fellow fans, incredible tickets made available after seeming so impossible-to-get back in April... everything happened so easily and seemed to come our way after the tough times we endured the previous year. My memories, like the batch of unbroken confetti that landed in my lap (well, almost!) remain preserved in memory (and this site). Madonna was not the only one to give "thanks" that night. Looking up at the night sky in London as we made our way to the Underground station I silently gave Thanks, too. Two down, two more to experiece... next stop: PARIS. ~ Steve W. London - 25 August - One event, one Star and a legion of fans "Mr. Woods we are happy to confirm your tickets for Madonna Re-invention Tour Wembley Arena 25, August..." thus began the start of my little overseas adventure - or rather: book-ending my Madonna experiences after seeing her in San Jose back on June 6th. My new friend from London Pierluigi and I conspired to hand-off my original Wembley tickets to two of his best friends whilest I had my new FLOOR A2, Row 12 tickets safely tucked in their custom (well, homemade) Madonna envelopes. The ticket-taker at Wembley loved the envelopes and was extra-careful to tear the stub correctly. Thank you! I took some time to stay outside the seating area keeping a look-out for Pier so I could meet his friends to see how they looked in my own unofficial VIP badges. The narrow corridors at Wembley didn't allow for much people-watching and, after enjoying one too many tipsy British ladies asking me if I worked there (was it my badge, you think?), I went back to my seat in time for the lights to go down... ...it was like seeing it all over again. After a 3 month gap between shows I felt as if the previous concerts were merely dreams (did they happen?). The crowd was... relaxed. Casual, even. After the yelling and screaming before the show, they settled down a great deal and it seemed to catch Madonna off-guard. At one point, she asked if everyone was tired or just bored. It wasn't until later that the audience really got into it and by HOLIDAY - they were all on their feet and the songs party-atmosphere took hold. Perhaps the audience was somewhat mellow but their appreciation for her was definitely there. Also there were us fans who just can't stay still including Pier, who was having the time of his life in Section 16 next to the stage giving his love to Madonna. She returned the sentiment with a few verses of CRAZY FOR YOU just for him. If I'm not mistaken, I think I saw two fans that I saw in San Jose also. Ironically, placed a few rows in front of us once again. Loved the lilac-colored corset for VOGUE. During BURNING UP, Miss M shouted, "It's f*cking hot in heeeeere" while going-to-town on the guitar. Pretty soon, her hair was blowing in the air-conditioning current and the whole tone of the event changed for the better. One person in front was scolded for sitting. Surprisingly, said person kept sitting... like a stubborn child refusing to join the party. Would you have done the same? Didn't think so! After the tribal beats of HOLIDAY ended and Madonna bid us farewell, we made our way out of the arena into the cool, moist night air. Upon reaching the Underground station (after waiting-out the crowds) we (by chance) ran into Pier and his two friends. Here we were - strangers (until tonight), ALL meeting for the first time after weeks of emails and planning...brought together as if we had known each other for years. One event, one Star and a legion of fans coming together from all over the world as old-friends. Looking back, it was nothing short of amazing. The same has been said of Madonna... but this honor goes to her faithful fans. ~ Steve W. London/Paris - No swearing in Paris This is my little lowdown on the RE-Invention Tour. I went to the first show in London at Earls Court and Paris on the 4th. Both shows were amazing as was Madonna, i was a little disgruntled at the lack of swearing from Madonna in Paris, not a single MotherFu**er passed her lips, shame! I truely believe that words cannot express these shows as they were the bessed days of my life!! ~ Lou Babycakes Arnhem - 08 September - An experience from the pit Hello dear Mad-Eyes! I have an experience that I would like to share with you. Tuesday I was called by national radio station Sky Radio and a girl told me that I was the lucky winner of two dancepit tickets for the first night in Arnhem! You can't believe my reaction. At first I just didn't believe it. I asked her about 5 times if she wasn't kiddin'! No, she wasn't. So on Wednesday we (my dad and myself) met her at 18.30 hours at the main entrance of the Gelredome. Sky Radio presented me with the two pit letters. We were to wait for Alison now. When she came, she told us, she couldn't take us in yet, because the soundcheck hadn't finished yet. It took quite a while, but at about 19.15 we were taken to a seperate entrance where we were searched. Alison then instructed us about the well-known does and don'ts in the pit. She really is a great woman! We were divided into right and left pit and given wristbands. We were taken to what Alison called the right pit. This appeared to be the pit on the left when facing the stage from the public. It was an incredible feeling walking into the stadium in front of thousands of people who did notice the pitgroups entering the venue. I saw some fans I had met in Paris and we were just freaking out. We were able to walk into the public areas and get back into the pit. Showtime was getting so close now! We took our positions in the pit and waited. Then the lights went out and we saw a glimpse of Madonna stretching right before she went on, or actually under the stage. The screens slid aside and Vogue started, she came out of the stage and was so incredibly close! Amazing. She looked so pretty wearing the gold top. I noticed during the first songs that both Madonna and the dancers weren't smiling that much. But they did make a lot of eye contact. Our pit was going crazier throughout the show and the dancers kept coming our way, as did Madonna. Of course she also teased with the head band, asking us with that nasty smile of her if we wanted it and dropping it out of reach. That was so amazing! That smile on her face! Great. Donna and Siedah also made a lot of contact with us. They both smiled a lot and touched my hands. I gave them and the dancers thumbs up and they all smiled and some even winked. WOW! The best moment for me was right before Crazy for you, Madonna walked to our side of the stage. She looked at me and gave me a warm smile, and after that she touched my hand! I couldn't believe it and got tears in my eyes! She also touched my dad's hand who was right beside me! Unfortunately the sound in the pit wasn't that good, I couldn't hear what she was saying to the audience. But who cares! It was the second show I saw with one coming up the next day. Being there was so cool. Practically all dancers high-fived with me, and one of the girls took my hand during Holiday. She held it and we both were jumping up and down together. She was so sweet! The show was over. We saw all of them coming together on the stage behind the two screens and they were all hugging. She disappeared leaving us with memories we will never ever forget. Yesterday I was centerstage, practically front row with unobstructed view. A whole different experience, but also with a lot of eye contact, especially by Madonna. She was in a much better mood than Wednesday and smiled a lot more. Now the tour is over for me, leaving me and my dad (who visited all three shows with me, he also loves Madonna!) with amazing thoughts. Thank you Sky Radio, Alison, the crew, dancers, Donna, Siedah and last, but certainly and most definitely not least MADONNA! All my love, ~ Natalie Paris - 04 September - What a lady Last night I saw Madonna for the 1st time ever live in Paris. Wow! What a lady! It is just an ordinary woman, but she has something over her that makes you get the chills all over. It was a fantastic show, you can tell a lot of effort was put into it. Next thursday I'll be seeing her in my homecountry, Holland. Can't wait! Maddy, you go girl, nothing but the greatest respect for ya! ~ Tanja Paris - 04 September - Thanks for becoming so human I 'm a 30 year-old fan of Madonna and I already saw her in 1987 (some of you were just born!) and in 2001. It's the first time I saw her so happy, so peaceful and full of love. She even forgot some of the lyrics on Music, I think. She really sang with her heart, she opened it to us and I cried a lot of times with so much love! Thanks Madonna for becoming so human. ~ Nicolas Paris - 04 September - More than words can say I LOVE MADONNA MORE THAN WORDS CAN SAY !!! She is a real pro!! This was my 5th QUEEN OF POP's concert and I just would like to thank her for being what she is and for all the unique sensations she is able to give us! My congratulations also to her staff! LONG LIFE TO THE QUEEN !!! ~ Sabrina XXX Paris - 01 September - Thanks for all the pleasure I was at Bercy last Wednesday and it was amazing. The show is excellent and people had fun. I saw her at 3 meters. She is so nice. She had fun too, said "Vive la France" and thanked French fans for supporting her, even when her American life album was not welcome in USA. Songs are well remixed and Madonna sang wery clearly and perfectly. I'll be there tomorrow again for the last show in Paris. Thanks Madonna for all the pleasure you gave me. ~ Morgan Paris - 01 September - Poor is the man, who'd be forever deprived of a Madonna concert How I have longed to see Madonna perform live once. I was still too young to attend a concert during her Blond Ambition Tour, I wasn't even aware she was touring with her Girlie Show (nor was I aware of the Who's that Girl? Tour, let alone that I would have been old enough) and because many years had passed between the Girlie Show and the Drowned World Tour, I was getting a little desperate about ever going to have a chance. When word was finally out she was going to tour the world with her Drowned World Tour, I was very, very eager to get tickets. Since I live in Belgium, I would have to go to Paris. Sadly, I failed to get tickets. At that point, I thought that was it. I had totally squandered my final opportunity. After all, she wasn't 30 anymore and she was married and mother of two. Priorities tend to shift when one is in such a stage of their life. So can you imagine my excitement when I found out she would tour again? I bet you can. Can you imagine my excitement when I acquired tickets? I hope you know that feeling. After approximately 5 months of waiting the time had finally come. Madonna, the re-invention tour, the Paris September 1 show. I waited outside for 5 hours (which isn't that extreme) in the scorching heat and surrounded by any imagineable variety of the "Italians do it better"-t-shirt. The show started 50 minutes late due to people who didn't have the courtesy to be on time, but all of those things were immediately forgotten and replaced by sheer joy and excitement (if anyone knows a word or an _expression that surpasses what "sheer excitement" captivates, please let me know. If not, I might ask George W. Bush to just invent something) as soon as the lights went out. The beast within everyone present that night was set free instantly. The beast that I had set free danced and sang along for a little less than 2 hours. It watched with total amazement (Vogue, American Life, Bedtime Story, Holiday). It heard notes that it never knew Madonna could deliver live on stage (Deeper and deeper, Nothing fails). It was touched (Don't tell me, Crazy for you) and surprised (Burning up). It was thankful (Express yourself, Into the Groove) and it was joyful (Like a Prayer). It even cried during a concert for the very first time (Imagine). Shortly put, it was fed. I fear that I have to admit I was little anxious prior the concert. I wondered if it would live up to all my expectations. And it did, it even surpassed them all. I had found my answer to where the party is. Actually, it was a lot more than a party. We were witness to the greatest artist of all doing all the things she does best and improved them. Evolution got a deeper meaning. It was re-invention, a re-invention of celebration. Madonna, we will never ask you to stop. We will stick by you through thick and thin for at least another 20 years and we thank you for acknowledging that. Just imagine... ~ Adrian Sack, 25 years of age, fan since '89. Slane - 29 August - Stick that to the critics! Finally, after over 20 years as the reigning Queen of Pop, Madonna took her Re-Invention World Tour to Ireland, and played to the largest open air music crowd in the country - 80,000 fans at the picturesque Slane Castle. I had luckily gotten there early, as it's general admission, so I had to run all the way down the slope to the front, sadly I wasn't there early enough to get into the pit! The warm up acts were ok, although Iggy Pop kinda went a bit nuts during his set, Paul Oakenfold kept the crowd going with a great DJ set. After weeks of speculating in the Irish media as regards poor ticket sales, the concert was a sell out! Stick that to the critics! The crowd was a mix of mid-30's couples, late teens, families and the usual crowd of gay fans - myself included! There were even a few cones and cowboy hats on display (in reference to Madonna's Blonde Ambition Tour and Music/Don't Tell Me videos) - and yes, there were even a few 'wannabes', complete with lace gloves and bangles. Madonna was due on stage at 8.30 but just before then there was a massive rain shower, and she was delayed by 45mins as they swept the rain off the stage... we didn't mind as I had memories of the Blonde Ambition's inauspicious start in Japan during a monsoon where Madonna and the dancers just wore bomber jackets! Finally, the clouds cleared and the screens came on for The Beast Within... the crowd were cheering like crazy, then went silent as the video progressed. Finally the appeared out of the floor for Vogue and the crowd went nuts, you couldn't even hear the music! I thought all in all it was a great show, the only poor part I thought was her version of Imagine... she sang off-key so the crowd was way ahead of her for most of the song, and the anti-war sentiment left a bad aftertaste. She was very pleasant with the crowd, and really got them going during Music and Holiday! My personal fave performances were Vogue, Nobody Knows Me and Crazy For You, although the best performance as regards the crowd is a toss between Like A Prayer and Don't Tell Me... WE LOVE YOU MADGE!!! ~ Anthony Shevlin Slane - 29 August - See you in the pub! Finally after all these years I get to see Madonna and I get to see her at home! The concert totally blew me away, her stage presence is phenomenal. All the stories about poor ticket sales seems to be rubbish as the place must have been at or very close to it's 80,000 capacity. The rain before the concert was pretty bad and she was about 45 minutes late getting on the stage. Mostly because they had to dry it off. It didn't matter though as she was so worth it. She had to wear a long-sleeve vest under the corset for Vogue as she was so cold. With the amount of activity on the stage I don't know how she was cold but I guess out in the open in Ireland is new thing to Madonna. When she got the crowd to sing Material Girl with her she told us afterwards "That was excellent", naturally the crowd went crazy then! When she came out for Nothing Fails she was wearing an extra jacket as she was so cold and a crew member had to hold an umbrella over her which she seemed to find rather amusing! She commented on how she finally got here with "Jesus Christ, what took me so long?" To a massive roar. The bigger roar of the night though must have been after she took some water and shouted "Cheers! I'll see you all down the pub afterwards!" During Don't Tell Me when she sings "Tell the sun not to shine" she followed it with "well maybe today" After Papa Don't Preach when she was spinning around she then shouted out "I am just trying to get warm". The walk-way was down for the whole show and it was quite low so she was really down beside the fans when she was out on it. I have to say that all the criticisms of the imagery in the show forcing Kabbalah and anti-war at people is nonsense. Regardless of what she believes in, nothing was forced and with the Kabbalah imagery it was more of a case that they were interesting images rather than a sermon. Overall the outdoor venue didn't affect the show at all, it seemed to go very smoothly and the effect was superb - I didn't wonder if the show would work outdoors and boy did it. At the end of the show she thanked us and said "Ireland, you're the best!" We also got the confetti and were then treated to a bit of a firework show. I have dreamed of seeing her live and she lived up to all my expectations and exceeded them. The cold and the rain couldn't dampen my enthusiasm at all and nor did it affect her performance - just hope she doesn't catch any sort of a cold/flu now, wouldn't want her to miss any of the shows she still has to do. ~ Eamon London - 19 August - I'll never forget I went to see Madonna/Esther at Earls Court London on the 19th August. I'm only 16 and it was the first time that i have ever been to a concert and it was FUCKING fab-U-lous from beginning to end, i loved every minute of it. The Atmosphere was great! Although there was some boring bast*rds that sat down through the whole thing and where telling u to shut up! I mean what is that all about? It was the best experience ever and the best birthday prezzie i could want. I will never forget it. Thanks Madge xXx ~ Joanna Porter London - 19 August - Fucking amazing! Forgive my French! I went to see Madonna last night, in her second concert at Earls Court in London, and it was fucking amazing! Forgive my French! Opening with The Beast Within was such a good choice. Then Vogue was spectacular! Although I didn't quite understand her message about war through all those songs like American Life, Express Yourself, and Burning Up, there was a contrast between the images shown in the background about bleeding children and hurt soldiers while Madonna was partying on stage!... and Material Girl? Iif she doesn't want to sing that song, why does she force herself to? She missed the first part of the song saying "Oh, help me remember the words of this song", "Oh, no, that's the second line"?, while the music was playing. I really started enjoying the show once she sang Deeper and Deeper, then all the strings of fabulous songs! When she sang Like A Prayer, everybody was standing up, dancing, there was such a cool atmosphere, it made me shiver! For Don't Tell Me she changed the Parisian background for an English one, showing Big Ben and Tower Bridge. She had the Brits Do It Better shirt on, while singing Papa Don't Preach, and then spoke to the audience: "The first time I came to London I just couldn't stand it, the humour, the weather... but now I live here, I even married a Brit, and now I am wearing a fucking kilt... I wrote a letter to the Queen to come to the show, but she's not here... well, maybe she doesn't know what she's missing" I just can't imagine the Queen attending a pop concert! All in all, I quite enjoyed the show, Madonna is really good at dancing and performing on stage. By far, the Queen of Pop. ~ Jacob Pesquera » Read the US fan reports