Madonna live at The O2: Queen of Pop remains as unpredictable as ever

The idea that getting older is a terrible thing is conveyed in the following quote, “I think the most controversial thing I have ever done is to stick around,” which was spoken by Madonna on an old recording. This occurred near the end of The Celebration, while a variety of negative media headlines and critical comments, as well as footage from the 1990s of Cher calling Madonna “mean,” were displayed throughout the O2 arena.

Throughout her four decades in the music industry, Madonna has caused controversy on several occasions. She has been criticized by the Vatican and faced the threat of being arrested by the Canadian police during her Blond Ambition tour for her suggestive actions on stage. Few other musicians are as daring as she is, and one of the things that makes Madonna so intriguing is how much she relishes stirring up reactions from people.

Not much has been modified about the retrospective shows that are taking place at The O2 lately. The debut night showcased large crowds of people moving vigorously, rings of fire, oily-body dancers who were nailed to a spinning merry-go-round, partially nude performers, and a modified version of the renowned bed sequence, all for a quick segment of "Papa Don’t Preach." In this new edition, Madonna was accompanied by a person who wore a flesh-colored latex mask and frequently acted as a foil to the main star.

Many times throughout the show, Madonna wore outfits that were reminiscent of her past performances. For her first song, Nothing Really Matters, she wore a kimono that was a copy of the one she wore in the music video. She also wore her well-known cone bra corset, along with cowboy hats, sparkling dresses, mirrored jumpsuits from Versace, and a total of 17 looks from her past performances.

In another place, Madonna was accompanied by several of her offspring on the stage. Mercy played the piano for the song "Bad Girl", while Lourdes and Estere joined in a ballroom routine in "Vogue". Stella participated in the line dance, while David, her son, played the guitar during "Mother Father".

Madonna spoke to her audience about how important it was for her to be there for her children, which actually saved her life after she was hospitalized for a serious bacterial infection earlier this year. She mentioned feeling unsure if she would survive at one point. Madonna also made a comment about the ongoing conflict between Israel and Gaza but highlighted that even though it's a very difficult situation, their morale could not be broken.

Although it was advertised as a collection of the best songs, it actually seemed more like a live performance of the artist's personal story. The set list included some unexpected choices, including the dreamy collaboration with Björk called Bedtime Stories, the rare live performance of the ballad Rain from the album Erotica, and the controversial theme song from the movie Die Another Day.

The first album song called "Burning Up" was performed in memory of her debut stage show at the CBGB dive bar in New York. She danced happily in a reproduction of the popular disco club, Paradise Garage, during the performance of "Holiday". In the track "Don’t Tell Me", she flawlessly recreated the line-dancing routine from the music video. During the performance of "Live to Tell", black and white photos of her friends who have passed away, such as Keith Haring and Robert Mapplethorpe, were displayed. This transformed the performance into a touching tribute to "all the bright lights we lost from AIDs" and stood out as a notable moment of the show.

There were some problems during the show. A strange tribute to Michael Jackson was included, where a pre-recorded version of Like A Virgin and Billie Jean were mixed together. This caused confusion among the audience. At the beginning, the show was well organized and told a story of Madonna's life. However, as the show progressed, it lost direction and became more muddled.

Madonna faced some problems at the beginning of her performance and had to struggle through a long period of stand-up comedy for almost 10 minutes. She humorously acknowledged that this is not how you want to start off your first show. She did her best to get through it, but it remains uncertain whether the delay caused some of her songs, including Cherish, Frozen, and Borderline, to be left out of the setlist. However, we should still give her credit for persevering.

Despite everything, we couldn't really call it a true Madonna concert without a few unexpected quips regarding offering sexual services for hot water early on in her professional journey and a couple of music choices that are unusual. After being at the forefront of the pop industry for forty years, her unpredictability is still as potent as ever.

Madonna's ongoing Celebration Tour will take place at The O2 until October 18th.