An old Reinvention

The Madonna concert on May 18 in the Jean Paul Bustier Theater in Detroit was a phenomenon, a part of her Re-reinvention tour. Although Madonna’s music is not the kind I am used to I was thoroughly entertained.

The first thing that struck me was the audience, like a brick to the face. Mostly female, the audience was close to rabidly obsessed. All 50,000 of them that filled the venue seemed to be dressed in an early 80s Madonna fashion and eagerly anticipating the starlet’s appearance. When her band started to play the only thing that could have possibly drowned out the cries of the crowd was the volume of the music. A blaring sound that undoubtedly destroyed more than a few eardrums. 

Blue and purple lights flashed and down the white stairs descended Madonna. The crowd’s enthusiasm grew past any limits I could have possibly imagined. “Oh my god, Madonna!” was the crowd’s response.

Madonna was wearing an interesting ensemble. From head to toes she was a beautiful mess of colors. She had a purple headband and a gaudy vest with colorful sequins that showed her firmly toned midriff. She was also wearing purple leggings under her green skirt. Her makeup was caked on and thick.

A massive bunch of springy blond curls bounced along with the chains around her neck as she rocked to the beat of her first song “Dress You Up”. Her energetic performance kept all eyes glued on her throughout the song.

Her next song “Express Yourself” came with a change in both set and costume. She had a “modified” business suit showing off her underwear. The backup dancers seemed to be performing what seemed to be a “pop-opera” in the background. Her dancing was in no way modest or orthodox. Midway through the song she stripped off her top showing off her lingerie. She broke all boundaries with a near pornographic dance routine that will not soon be forgotten. not everyone was happy with this performance, "private parts are not for public use," said Cheryl Moore mother of Madonna fan Jenny, 8.

The final song in the set, Madonna’s famous “Vogue”, was as explosive if not more than the last two. Giant screens hovered in the background as the music queued and a platform rose out of the stage with a hunched over Madonna riding it up. On the screen was a visual assault, color and images popped and flashed. Her backup dancers were dressed in takes on fashion throughout the ages.

Nothing I could say about her performance of the song would make any non-fans like her, or make her current fans leave her. The songs were preformed as well as they could have been.  

      -Alexander Escobedo, Yaritza Hernandez