concert tour
A concert tour (or simply tour) is a series of concerts by an artist or group of artists in different cities, countries or locations. Often concert tours are named to differentiate different tours by the same artist and to associate a specific to ...
by American singer and songwriter Madonna, in support of her fifth studio album, ''
Erotica
Erotica is literature or art that deals substantively with subject matter that is erotic, sexually stimulating or sexually arousing. Some critics regard pornography as a type of erotica, but many consider it to be different. Erotic art may use ...
'' (1992). In October 1992, Madonna simultaneously released ''Erotica'' and the
coffee table book
A coffee table book, also known as a cocktail table book, is an oversized, usually hard-covered book whose purpose is for display on a table intended for use in an area in which one entertains guests and from which it can serve to inspire convers ...
''
Sex
Sex is the trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing animal or plant produces male or female gametes. Male plants and animals produce smaller mobile gametes (spermatozoa, sperm, pollen), while females produce larger ones ( ova, of ...
''. The former ended up being Madonna's lowest selling album at the time, while the latter received extensive media attention, and backlash from fans and critics; nonetheless, it was commercially successful. After the critical and commercial failure of the erotic thriller '' Body of Evidence'' starring Madonna, the tour was announced in July 1993. According to some critics, it was the singer's way to "revive" her music career following the negative reaction to the thriller. The tour took its name after an
Edward Hopper
Edward Hopper (July 22, 1882 – May 15, 1967) was an American realist painter and printmaker. While he is widely known for his oil paintings, he was equally proficient as a watercolorist and printmaker in etching.
Hopper created subdued drama ...
painting titled "Girlie Show". Madonna's brother,
Christopher Ciccone
Christopher Ciccone (born November 22, 1960) is an American artist, interior decorator, and designer in New York, Miami, and Los Angeles. He is the younger brother of singer Madonna.
Ciccone began his professional career as a dancer with La G ...
, was appointed tour director.
Like her previous
Blond Ambition World Tour
The Blond Ambition World Tour (billed as Blond Ambition World Tour 90) was the third concert tour by American singer Madonna. It supported her fourth studio album '' Like a Prayer'' (1989), and the soundtrack album to the 1990 film ''Dick Tracy ...
(1990), the concert was divided into different thematic sections: ''
Dominatrix
A dominatrix (; ) or femdom is a woman who takes the dominant role in BDSM activities. A dominatrix can be of any sexual orientation, but this does not necessarily limit the genders of her submissive partners. Dominatrices are known for infli ...
Weimar Cabaret
Weimar is a city in the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in Central Germany between Erfurt in the west and Jena in the east, approximately southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together with the neighbourin ...
'', and an
encore
An encore is an additional performance given by performers after the planned show has ended, usually in response to extended applause from the audience.Lalange Cochrane, in ''Oxford Companion to Music'', Alison Latham, ed., Oxford University Pre ...
. Madonna opened the show dressed as a dominatrix surrounded by topless dancers, while lighter moments included her descending from the ceiling on a giant disco ball wearing an
Afro
The afro is a hair type created by natural growth of kinky hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" ''Ebony'', February 1973. ...
Marlene Dietrich
Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...
. It began in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
on September 25, 1993, and ended in
Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
on December 19 of the same year. The 39-date tour marked the first time the singer visited places such as
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
,
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
,
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
,
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
,
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
and Australia. The Girlie Show received generally positive reviews from critics, who agreed that despite the controversy surrounding the singer, she could still please her audience. Upon completion, it was reported to have grossed US$70 million.
Several organizations in different countries protested to force the cancellation of the concerts, due to their explicit sexual nature. In Puerto Rico, Madonna passed the island's flag between her legs on stage, resulting in outrage among Puerto Rican society. A number of concerts were recorded and broadcast, with the show on November 19, 1993, in Sydney, Australia being aired as a special on HBO; the following year, it was released on video under the title '' The Girlie Show: Live Down Under''. The concerts in Fukuoka, Japan were also filmed, but broadcast exclusively on Japanese television.
Background
In October 1992, Madonna released simultaneously her fifth studio album ''
Erotica
Erotica is literature or art that deals substantively with subject matter that is erotic, sexually stimulating or sexually arousing. Some critics regard pornography as a type of erotica, but many consider it to be different. Erotic art may use ...
'', and her
coffee table book
A coffee table book, also known as a cocktail table book, is an oversized, usually hard-covered book whose purpose is for display on a table intended for use in an area in which one entertains guests and from which it can serve to inspire convers ...
''
Sex
Sex is the trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing animal or plant produces male or female gametes. Male plants and animals produce smaller mobile gametes (spermatozoa, sperm, pollen), while females produce larger ones ( ova, of ...
''. Consisting of sexually provocative and explicit images, photographed by Steven Meisel, the book was met with a strongly negative reaction from the media and the general public, but was commercially successful. The widespread backlash overshadowed ''Erotica'' which, despite positive reviews, ended up as the singer's lowest selling album at the time; Madonna continued her provocative
imagery
Imagery is visual symbolism, or figurative language that evokes a mental image or other kinds of sense impressions, especially in a literary work, but also in other activities such as psychotherapy.
Forms
There are five major types of sensory im ...
commercial failure
Failure is the state or condition of not meeting a desirable or intended objective, and may be viewed as the opposite of success. The criteria for failure depends on context, and may be relative to a particular observer or belief system. One ...
. On July 9, 1993, ''
The Philadelphia Inquirer
''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pennsy ...
'' announced that Madonna would embark on The Girlie Show, a new concert tour. Some critics suggested that the tour was as an attempt by the singer to "revive" her musical career after ''Body of Evidence''. Madonna's inspiration for the tour was a painting by
Edward Hopper
Edward Hopper (July 22, 1882 – May 15, 1967) was an American realist painter and printmaker. While he is widely known for his oil paintings, he was equally proficient as a watercolorist and printmaker in etching.
Hopper created subdued drama ...
of the same name, depicting a burlesque dancer.
The tour was set to kick off at London's
Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 2002 to 2003. The stadium ...
on September 25, 1993. Madonna then said she was "not interested in preaching to the converted", hence why she decided to begin The Girlie Show in London; "I am going to the places where I have the most enemies", she explained. It was initially planned not to visit the United States, instead focusing on regions the singer had never toured before, such as
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
,
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
,
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
,
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
,
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
and Australia. However, due to demand, some shows were booked in certain US cities. A concert in Beijing's Workers' Gymnasium was also planned; the official China News Agency reported that she would be allowed to perform as long as there wasn't include any "indecent exposure" in the show. Madonna allegedly agreed, since she was interested in visiting the country. However, said concert never happened. A promotional
extended play
An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.
, titled ''The Girlie Show'', containing all six singles from ''Erotica'', was released in Brazil to commemorate the singer's visit. Similarly, limited editions of ''Erotica'' and ''
The Immaculate Collection
''The Immaculate Collection'' is the first greatest hits album by American singer Madonna, released on November 13, 1990, by Sire Records. It contains fifteen of her hit singles recorded throughout the 1980s, as well as two brand new tracks, ...
'' (1990) were released exclusively in Australia. The tour was then chronicled in a photo book of the same name, released in November 1994. This release included a CD with three live tracks: " Like a Virgin", "In This Life", and "Why's It So Hard". Madonna wrote in the book:
"When I finished the
Blond Ambition tour
The Blond Ambition World Tour (billed as Blond Ambition World Tour 90) was the third concert tour by American singer Madonna. It supported her fourth studio album '' Like a Prayer'' (1989), and the soundtrack album to the 1990 film '' Dick Tra ...
, I swore on my life that I would never even think of going on tour again as long as I lived. I was spent. I was exhausted. I was sick of traveling. I wanted stability. So, I threw myself into making movies, recording a new album, and I also put out a book called ''Sex''. So much for stability.
Needless to say, as rewarding as all these creative endeavors were to me, they could not take the place of performing live. Theater is my life--or is my life theater? I'm not sure and it really doesn't matter. Being on stage is where I feel most alive, and it's where I'm able to pull all of my creative energies into one outlet. It's the only place where I can combine all of my influences and all of my inspirations into one living, breathing animal. The stage is the only environment where cubist painting, burlesque, flamenco dancing and the circus can live together under one cozy roof. Taking the adventure one step further is to play in front of a different audience every night. dealing with different cultures, different expectations, different ways of expressing pleasure and bewilderment--this to me is the ultimate thrill. The ultimate risk. And I love taking risks. You may have heard that about me. There's no way this book could truly recapture the excitement of the "Girlie Show", but it comes pretty damn close.
By the way, if you ever hear me say, "I'm never going on tour again", don't believe me."
Development
In early 1993, Madonna contacted her brother
Christopher Ciccone
Christopher Ciccone (born November 22, 1960) is an American artist, interior decorator, and designer in New York, Miami, and Los Angeles. He is the younger brother of singer Madonna.
Ciccone began his professional career as a dancer with La G ...
, who had worked with her on Blond Ambition, and appointed him tour director; besides directing, Ciccone was also in charge of supervising the crew, designing the stage set, and handling all the dancers. Auditions for dancers took place in Los Angeles; an ad was displayed for "androgynous boyish girls with very short hair". The singer said about the hiring process:
"First I had choreographed stuff I had them do. Then I asked them to dance and improvise, whatever the music moved them to do. Then I called back all the people who looked good and could really dance and I asked each of them to tell a joke or an amusing story. If they were really embarrassed and couldn't do it I didn't pick them. Then the ones that were left, I asked them if they would shave their heads. Not that I was going to shave their heads. I just wanted to see how far they were willing to go for me".
Madonna and Ciccone decided to work with five different
choreographers
Choreography is the art or practice of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which motion or form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A choreographer is one who c ...
, one of them being American actor Gene Kelly, whom the singer wanted to choreograph the performance of single "
Rain
Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water ...
". However, tension soon arose as Kelly was uncomfortable with the dancers; he believed they had been selected based on personality rather than for their abilities as dancers. He also wasn't too fond of the show's "heavy sexual overtones", according to Ciccone. Feeling Kelly's position wasn't working out, Ciccone convinced the singer to fire him; eventually, Madonna, "shamefaced at having single-handedly conceived of such a terrible fate for this venerable American icon", agreed with her brother and dismissed Kelly.Alex Magno was then appointed one of The Girlie Show's main choreographers. For the show's main theme, Madonna and her brother agreed on a "burlesque circus" and, for inspiration, would watch
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...
films,
Thai dance
Dance in Thailand ( th, นาฏศิลป์, or th, นาฏกรรม, ) is the main dramatic art form in Thailand. Thai dance can be divided into two major categories, high art ( classical dance) and low art ( folk dance).
Overview ...
numbers,
Carol Reed
Sir Carol Reed (30 December 1906 – 25 April 1976) was an English film director and producer, best known for '' Odd Man Out'' (1947), '' The Fallen Idol'' (1948), ''The Third Man'' (1949), and ''Oliver!'' (1968), for which he was awarded the ...
's ''
Trapeze
A trapeze is a short horizontal bar hung by ropes or metal straps from a ceiling support. It is an aerial apparatus commonly found in circus performances. Trapeze acts may be static, spinning (rigged from a single point), swinging or flying, an ...
'' (1956), as well as the work of
Marlene Dietrich
Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...
,
Louise Brooks
Mary Louise Brooks (November 14, 1906 – August 8, 1985) was an American film actress and dancer during the 1920s and 1930s. She is regarded today as an icon of the Jazz Age and flapper culture, in part due to the bob hairstyle that she helpe ...
,
Erté
Romain de Tirtoff (23 November 1892 – 21 April 1990) was a Russian-born French artist and designer known by the pseudonym Erté, from the French pronunciation of his initials (, EHR TEH). He was a 20th-century artist and designer in an a ...
, and
Zizi Jeanmaire
Renée Marcelle "Zizi" Jeanmaire (29 April 192417 July 2020) was a French ballet dancer, actress and singer. She became famous in the 1950s after playing the title role in the ballet ''Carmen'', produced in London in 1949, and went on to appear ...
.
The wardrobe was in charge of fashion designer duo
Dolce & Gabbana
Dolce & Gabbana (), also known by initials D&G, is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in 1985 in Legnano by Italian designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. The house specializes in ready-to-wear, handbags, accessories, and cosmet ...
; Madonna gave them instructions to watch a number of films, including ''
My Fair Lady
''My Fair Lady'' is a musical based on George Bernard Shaw's 1913 play '' Pygmalion'', with a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. The story concerns Eliza Doolittle, a Cockney flower girl who takes speech lessons ...
'' (1964) and ''
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining o ...
'' (1972), to bring to life the "striptease, Vegas type of show" she envisioned. 1,500 costumes were created for the tour's troupe, that ranged from
dominatrix
A dominatrix (; ) or femdom is a woman who takes the dominant role in BDSM activities. A dominatrix can be of any sexual orientation, but this does not necessarily limit the genders of her submissive partners. Dominatrices are known for infli ...
boots, a
sequin
A sequin () is a small, typically shiny, generally disk-shaped ornament.
Sequins are also referred to as paillettes, spangles, or ''diamanté'' (also spelled ''diamante''). Although the words sequins, paillettes, lentejuelas, and spangles can ...
ed bra, and a Victorian-inspired dress to a simple white tank-top and cut-off denim shorts.
Domenico Dolce
Domenico Mario Assunto Dolce (; born 13 August 1958) is an Italian fashion designer and entrepreneur. Along with Stefano Gabbana, he is one half of the luxury fashion house Dolce & Gabbana (D&G). Since founding D&G in 1985, Dolce has become on ...
recalled that "both Madonna and I share a Fellinian version of the circus, but we also like those glamorous costumes that you can see in the movies from the '50s"; the duo agreed on "perfection" being the biggest challenge they encountered while working with the singer. The designers would "redo" the stuff that would rip or come apart during the tour; "We followed the tour this way. From time, shorts and other things were missing. We followed the tour and assisted Madonna, despite being always in Milan", they explained.
The show had a more complex stage than those from Madonna's previous tours; it included a catwalk that extended from the main stage and led out towards the audience, and two
hydraulic
Hydraulics (from Greek: Υδραυλική) is a technology and applied science using engineering, chemistry, and other sciences involving the mechanical properties and use of liquids. At a very basic level, hydraulics is the liquid counte ...
risers that rose from beneath the stage to elevated platforms and several smaller balconies. A large illuminated sign reading "Girlie Show" was hung above the stage. Two huge drawings, portraying the face of Madonna hidden behind a black mask, were placed on the sides. Two aircraft were needed to ferry the tour around Europe, including the largest Soviet transport plane ever made; it took four full days and 100 employees to assemble the stage, with one additional day for the setting up of production. During
MTV Australia
MTV is a 24-hour general entertainment channel specialising in music and youth culture programming which serves Australia and New Zealand. It is operated by parent company Paramount Networks UK & Australia headquartered in London with a local of ...
's special ''Girlie Talk'', Madonna commented about having her hair cut before the tour: "my hair was hot pink. I went through this
Pippi Longstocking
Pippi Longstocking ( sv, Pippi Långstrump) is the fictional main character in an eponymous series of children's books by Swedish author Astrid Lindgren. Pippi was named by Lindgren's daughter Karin, who asked her mother for a get-well story w ...
phase where I just had to have, like, pink red hair and braids ..and when I dyed my hair of all these crazy colors ..I tried to make it blond again, ut itstarted to break off everywhere so I kind of gave myself a haircut whatever I like it or not. For the tour I wanted something clean and after I cut all the dancers' hairs I was trying to decide what I wanted to do with my hair and I thought of having it dark like in my 'Rain' video, but then I didn't want to have the same color hairs of all the dancers, so I shortened and kept this color."
Concert synopsis
The concert was divided into four different thematic sections: ''
Dominatrix
A dominatrix (; ) or femdom is a woman who takes the dominant role in BDSM activities. A dominatrix can be of any sexual orientation, but this does not necessarily limit the genders of her submissive partners. Dominatrices are known for infli ...
Weimar Cabaret
Weimar is a city in the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in Central Germany between Erfurt in the west and Jena in the east, approximately southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together with the neighbourin ...
'' and an
encore
An encore is an additional performance given by performers after the planned show has ended, usually in response to extended applause from the audience.Lalange Cochrane, in ''Oxford Companion to Music'', Alison Latham, ed., Oxford University Pre ...
. It began with a
calliope
In Greek mythology, Calliope ( ; grc, Καλλιόπη, Kalliópē, beautiful-voiced) is the Muse who presides over eloquence and epic poetry; so called from the ecstatic harmony of her voice. Hesiod and Ovid called her the "Chief of all Muse ...
fanfare as a
pierrot
Pierrot ( , , ) is a stock character of pantomime and '' commedia dell'arte'', whose origins are in the late seventeenth-century Italian troupe of players performing in Paris and known as the Comédie-Italienne. The name is a diminutive of ''Pi ...
– who made several cameos later – appeared on stage. This was followed by a topless dancer sliding down a 20-foot pole high above the stage. Then, Madonna emerged as a short-haired dominatrix, wearing a black sequined ensemble consisting of jacket, bra, hot pants, elbow-length gloves, knee-high boots, and
domino mask
Dominoes is a family of tile-based games played with gaming pieces, commonly known as dominoes. Each domino is a rectangular tile, usually with a line dividing its face into two square ''ends''. Each end is marked with a number of spots (also ca ...
while brandishing a
crop
A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. When the plants of the same kind are cultivated at one place on a large scale, it is called a crop. Most crops are cultivated in agriculture or hydropon ...
to perform "
Erotica
Erotica is literature or art that deals substantively with subject matter that is erotic, sexually stimulating or sexually arousing. Some critics regard pornography as a type of erotica, but many consider it to be different. Erotic art may use ...
"; her dancers posing suggestively in the background. The next number was "
Fever
Fever, also referred to as pyrexia, is defined as having a temperature above the normal range due to an increase in the body's temperature set point. There is not a single agreed-upon upper limit for normal temperature with sources using val ...
", which Madonna performed alongside half-naked male dancers. Towards the end, the singer and the two men disappeared in a flamed circle on the stage. The third song, "
Vogue
Vogue may refer to:
Business
* ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine
** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine
** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine
** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine
** ''Vogue China'', ...
", featured Madonna wearing an elaborate Asian beaded headdress and engaging in a Thai-inspired choreography. For "
Rain
Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water ...
", Madonna and back-up singers and dancers
Niki Haris
Niki Haris (born April 17, 1962) is an American singer and dancer of pop, R&B, dance music and jazz, perhaps best known for having been one of Madonna's backing vocalists from 1987 to 2001, and as being the guest lead vocalist on various Snap! s ...
and
Donna De Lory
Donna De Lory is an American singer, dancer and songwriter. Part of a musical family, De Lory has been performing since a young age. Her voice can be heard on albums by Carly Simon, Ray Parker Jr., Kim Carnes, Santana, Martika, Laura Braniga ...
wore long see-through black robes and sat on stools in the center of the stage. An instrumental interlude closed the act: the pierrot, along with several dancers dressed in black and twirling umbrellas, did a choreography reminiscent of the 1952 musical film '' Singin' in the Rain''.
The ''Studio 54'' act began with " Express Yourself"; a distorted voice from off-stage claimed "I'm gonna take you to a place you've never been before". Then, Madonna descended from the ceiling on a giant disco ball, wearing a blond
afro
The afro is a hair type created by natural growth of kinky hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" ''Ebony'', February 1973. ...
wig, 1970's style halters and royal blue Bell-bottom pants. She was joined by Haris and De Lory in similar outfits. The end of the performance was connected to the next song, "
Deeper and Deeper
"Deeper and Deeper" is a song by American singer Madonna from her fifth studio album, '' Erotica'' (1992). It was written and produced by both Madonna and Shep Pettibone, with additional writing from Anthony Shimkin. In Australia and most Eur ...
", which featured a male member from the audience jumping onstage, seemingly trying to dance with a startled Madonna, ripping off his tearaway pants and revealing himself as one of the dancers from the show. "Why's It So Hard" saw Madonna simulating an
orgy
In modern usage, an orgy is a sex party consisting of at least five members where guests freely engage in open and unrestrained sexual activity or group sex.
Swingers' parties do not always conform to this designation, because at many swin ...
with all the dancers, while "In This Life", the act's final song, saw her singing alone on the stage while being watched by the pierrot from afar. The show's second interlude, "
The Beast Within
''The Beast Within'' is a 1982 American horror film directed by Philippe Mora and starring Ronny Cox, Bibi Besch, Paul Clemens, L. Q. Jones, Don Gordon, R. G. Armstrong, Logan Ramsey, Katherine Moffat, and Meshach Taylor.
''The Beast With ...
", featured two men doing an apocalyptic dance with sexual overtones as Madonna, from off-stage, recited the lyrics.
" Like a Virgin" opened the ''Weimar Cabaret'' segment: Madonna wore
top hat
A top hat (also called a high hat, a cylinder hat, or, informally, a topper) is a tall, flat-crowned hat for men traditionally associated with formal wear in Western dress codes, meaning white tie, morning dress, or frock coat. Traditional ...
and a
tailcoat
A tailcoat is a knee-length coat characterised by a rear section of the skirt, known as the ''tails'', with the front of the skirt cut away.
The tailcoat shares its historical origins in clothes cut for convenient horse riding in the Early Mode ...
while singing in the guise of actress
Marlene Dietrich
Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...
, pronouncing the word "virgin" as "wirgin". " Bye Bye Baby" saw Madonna, Haris, and De Lory performing with three scantily clad women in a choreographed, highly sexual routine. "I'm Going Bananas" was then sung in "
Judy Holliday
Judy Holliday (born Judith Tuvim, June 21, 1921 – June 7, 1965) was an American actress, comedian and singer.Obituary '' Variety'', June 9, 1965, p. 71.
She began her career as part of a nightclub act before working in Broadway plays and mus ...
Cyndi Lauper
Cynthia Ann Stephanie Lauper Thornton (born June 22, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and activist. Her career has spanned over 40 years. Her album ''She's So Unusual'' (1983) was the first debut album by a female artist to achi ...
-ish vocals." For the next number, "
La Isla Bonita
"La Isla Bonita" is a song by American singer Madonna from her third studio album '' True Blue'' (1986). Written and produced by Madonna and Patrick Leonard, with additional lyrics by Bruce Gaitsch, the song was originally presented by Leonard ...
", Madonna removed the tailcoat, and performed in a blue and white striped shirt. She sang on top of a rising platform while one of the musicians walked around bare-chested playing the acoustic guitar. The final song before the encore was " Holiday"; it featured Madonna and the dancers wearing long
trenchcoat
A trench coat or trenchcoat is a variety of coat made of waterproof heavy-duty fabric, originally developed for British Army officers before the First World War, and becoming popular while used in the trenches.
Originally made from gabardine, ...
s and doing a
military parade
A military parade is a formation of soldiers whose movement is restricted by close-order manoeuvering known as drilling or marching. The military parade is now almost entirely ceremonial, though soldiers from time immemorial up until the la ...
while an
American flag
The national flag of the United States of America, often referred to as the ''American flag'' or the ''U.S. flag'', consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the ca ...
was hung in the background. The final numbers were "
Justify My Love
"Justify My Love" is a song by American singer Madonna from her first greatest hits album ''The Immaculate Collection'' (1990). It was released on November 6, 1990, by Sire Records as the lead single from ''The Immaculate Collection''. The song w ...
Sly and the Family Stone
Sly and the Family Stone was an American band from San Francisco. Active from 1966 to 1983, it was pivotal in the development of funk, soul, rock, and psychedelic music. Its core line-up was led by singer-songwriter, record producer, and multi ...
's "
Everybody Is a Star
"Everybody Is a Star", released in December 1969, is song written by Sylvester Stewart and recorded by Sly and the Family Stone. The song, released as the B-side to the band's 1970 single "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)", reached number ...
" (1969) and Madonna's own " Everybody": the former had the singer and dancers wearing Victorian costumes and her holding a
lorgnette
A lorgnette () is a pair of spectacles with a handle, used to hold them in place, rather than fitting over the ears or nose. The word ''lorgnette'' is derived from the French ''lorgner'', to take a sidelong look at, and Middle French, from ''lo ...
, and the latter saw them change into white tops and denim shorts. Afterwards, as a red curtain fell and carnival music played, the pierrot emerged yet again, only to reveal its identity as Madonna herself. The singer closed the show by singing the phrase "Everybody is a Star" as the curtain fell once again.
Critical response
The Girlie Show was generally well received by critics. In his book ''Madonna: An Intimate Biography'', J. Randy Taraborrelli wrote: "While still sexy, it was still more of an innocent burlesque rather than a blatant attempt to shock ..this concert had the feeling of a racy Barnum and Baileys circus", and praised it for revealing a "softer" side of the singer. On a similar note, Gar Graff from the ''
Detroit Free Press
The ''Detroit Free Press'' is the largest daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, US. The Sunday edition is titled the ''Sunday Free Press''. It is sometimes referred to as the Freep (reflected in the paper's web address, www.freep.com). It primari ...
'' noted the tour revealed a more personal side to Madonna than her previous tours; he called it a "stylish, theatrical ..sophisticated, tightly scripted, two hour cabaret." Thom Duffy from '' Billboard'' said the tour "transcended its own playfully erotic hype and earned kudos as pure entertainment", also noticing a "sense of humor and burlesque" that the Blond Ambition World Tour lacked. Duffy concluded that, despite the controversy surrounding Madonna at the time, she could still "confound and excite her audience." Similarly, Richard Corliss, writing for ''
Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...
'', expressed that "Madonna, once the Harlow harlot and now a perky harlequin, is the greatest show-off on earth", and deemed the tour "at once a movie retrospective, a
Ziegfeld
Florenz Edward Ziegfeld Jr. (; March 21, 1867 – July 22, 1932) was an American Broadway impresario, notable for his series of theatrical revues, the ''Ziegfeld Follies'' (1907–1931), inspired by the ''Folies Bergère'' of Paris. He also p ...
Cirque du Soleil
Cirque du Soleil (, ; "Circus of the Sun" or "Sun Circus") is a Canadian entertainment company and the largest contemporary circus producer in the world. Located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul on 16 Ju ...
."
Paul Taylor from ''
The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...
'' was positive on his review of the show's opening night at London; "her performance-which featured
spanking
Spanking is a form of corporal punishment involving the act of striking, with either the palm of the hand or an implement, the buttocks of a person to cause physical pain. The term spanking broadly encompasses the use of either the hand or im ...
, four-letter outbursts and suggestive references to oral sex and the size of one dancer's manhood clearly delighted most of her fans." Also of the opening night, ''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cu ...
''s Tyler Brule commented that "Madonna may have lost some of her glitter lately. But as she demonstrated in the kickoff of her Girlie Show tour at London's Wembley Stadium, she hasn't forgotten the twin pillars of her success—how to put on a show, and how to make a buck." Frances Hubbard from the '' Daily Express'' opined that the singer is "at her worst when she turns moody and pretentious" and that "if Madonna is on her way down, it's a gentle descent. The world's best-marketed pop goddess will be around for a while yet." In his review at the show at New York's Madison Square Garden,
Jon Pareles
Jon Pareles (born October 25, 1953) is an American journalist who is the chief popular music critic in the arts section of ''The New York Times''.The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' noted that "after the proudly uningratiating "Blond Ambition" tour in 1990 .."The Girlie Show" tweaks fewer taboos." Pareles pointed out that the singer "sings just enough solo parts to prove she's not
lip-synching
Lip sync or lip synch (pronounced , the same as the word ''sink'', short for lip synchronization) is a technical term for matching a speaking or singing person's lip movements with sung or spoken vocals.
Audio for lip syncing is generated th ...
" and concluded that with Blond Ambition she was "pop's least flirtatious sex symbol", but was "likeable again" on The Girlie Show. The ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...
''s Jeff Kaye wrote that "despite the scanty costumes adorning the star and her troupe of singers and dancers, and the liberal doses of group groping and gender-bending, there wasn't anything that could be called shocking ..there was a sense that this adoring crowd had seen and heard all this stuff before."
However, not all reviews were positive. The British press took what Kaye called a "mean-spirited stance" against the singer and the tour; after she arrived in London, a British magazine proclaimed itself a "Madonna-Free Zone", refusing to publish or show any pictures of the concerts. Bruce Elder from ''
The Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...
'' gave a mixed review; "the best that could be said ..was that it was an event, an occasion, a place to be seen at, but as pure dance, pop or
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
entertainment, it was nothing special." He also wondered if the singer was "really committed to celebrating sexual liberation or id shesimply hijacked sadomasochism and homosexuality in the name of good old American capitalism." Elder further noticed a "kind of coldness and distance" in the performances and pointed out "too many flat spots ..to make this a truly memorable concert." More negative was ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
''s
Tom Shales
Thomas William Shales (born November 3, 1944) is an American writer and retired critic of television programming and operations. He was a television critic for ''The Washington Post'' from 1977 to 2010, for which Shales received the Pulitzer Pr ...
, who wrote that "her attempts now to shock and titillate have become belabored self-parodies ..Madonna's 'Girlie Show' is silly, not shocking." On their rankings of Madonna's tours, '' The Advocate''s Gina Vivinetto and VH1's Christopher Rosa placed The Girlie Show in the fourth and fifth position, respectively.
The Odyssey
The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Iliad'', th ...
's Rocco Papa considered it Madonna's best concert tour: "Not only did he Girlie Showfeature some of the best staging of Madonna's career, it was also impeccable musically ..She also displayed a happiness and warmth to the audience that made this show stand out".
Commercial reception
The Girlie Show proved to be commercially successful. In London, 15,000 tickets were sold within two hours, while the opening night was attended by 72,000 people. Madonna's very first concert in Israel attracted an audience of 50,000 people. The three shows at New York City's Madison Square Garden grossed US$2,020,475 million, while the three Mexican concerts grossed $8,927,703 million; prices ranged from $28.13 to $125. The first show at Argentina's
River Plate Stadium
Estadio Monumental (), officially Estadio Mâs Monumental for sponsorship reasons, In Brazil, she broke attendance records: 86,000 and 120,000 people attended the concerts in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, respectively. It remains the second largest crowd ever on Rio's Maracanã Stadium for a concert by a female artist, behind
Tina Turner
Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939) is an American-born Swiss retired singer and actress. Widely referred to as the " Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", she rose to prominence as the lead singer of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue before ...
's 1988
Break Every Rule World Tour
Break Every Rule World Tour is the sixth concert tour by singer Tina Turner. The tour supported her sixth solo album '' Break Every Rule'' (1986). It was sponsored by Pepsi-Cola and broke box office records in 13 different countries: England, Ge ...
(attended by 188,000 people). The average ticket price for the shows was $15.
In Australia, Madonna set the record for the biggest ticket sales with over 360,000 tickets sold; the first date sold 52,000 tickets in an hour and 20 minutes, with prices ranging from $45 to $142. The single concert at the
Adelaide Oval
Adelaide Oval is a sports ground in Adelaide, South Australia, located in the parklands between the city centre and North Adelaide. The venue is predominantly used for cricket and Australian rules football, but has also played host to rugby le ...
attracted over 40,000 people, standing as one of the most attended concerts in the venue's history. The dates in Melbourne and Sydney sold 147,241 and 135,000 tickets, respectively. In Sydney, over 90,000 tickets were sold in an hour. ''Billboard'' then reported that the eight Australian concerts had grossed over US$18.5 million. Upon completion, the tour was reported to have grossed a total of $70 million from 39 concerts.
Controversies
Like previous Madonna tours, The Girlie Show was subject to controversy. One planned concert in Frankfurt was condemned by a German politician who declared it "exceeded the bounds of decency" and should be banned to those under 16.
Norbert Geis
Norbert Geis (born January 13, 1939 in Großwallstadt, Bavaria) is a German politician. He is a member of the Christian Social Union of Bavaria (CSU).
Life
Geis studied Philosophy, Theology and Law at the Universities of Freiburg and Würzburg ...
, parliamentary spokesman for Chancellor
Helmut Kohl
Helmut Josef Michael Kohl (; 3 April 1930 – 16 June 2017) was a German politician who served as Chancellor of Germany from 1982 to 1998 and Leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) from 1973 to 1998. Kohl's 16-year tenure is the longes ...
's party, had previously warned: "Either Madonna drops these obscenities... or she will not be allowed to appear". The concert ended up being cancelled, with the organizers citing "technical difficulties" as the reason. Trouble in Israel occurred when
Orthodox Jew
Orthodox Judaism is the collective term for the traditionalist and theologically conservative branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as revealed by God to Moses on ...
s staged protests to force the cancellation of the singer's first show in the country; Avraham Ravitz, from the Torah Judaism Party, expressed that "this is a holy land ..people from all over the world did not move here in order to see this human garbage". However, rallies were unsuccessful as the sold-out show went on as scheduled.
In Puerto Rico, certain groups feared Madonna's influence over teenagers and demanded the concert's cancellation. During the show, Madonna held a small Puerto Rican flag to her bosom and then slipped it slowly through her legs. This was met with backlash: the leader of the Independence Party called the act "an infamy without parallel in the history of our country"; Governor
Pedro Rosselló
Pedro Juan Rosselló González, (; born April 5, 1944) is a Puerto Rican physician and politician who served as the governor of Puerto Rico from 1993 to 2001. He was President of the New Progressive Party from 1991 to 1999 and 2003 to 2008, a ...
described it as "an unfortunate incident", and urged the people from the country to repudiate the singer. Senator
Enrique Rodríguez Negrón
Enrique Rodríguez Negrón (born July 14, 1933 in Toa Alta, Puerto Rico) served as a member of the Senate of Puerto Rico from 1989 to 2001. From 1993 to 2001, he chaired the Senate Tourism Committee and partnered with then Executive Director of t ...
filed a censure resolution, which was rejected by President of the legislature Roberto Rexach Benítez. Representative David Noriega called Madonna "vulgar and insensitive", and accused her of abusing the country's hospitality. Luis de Rosa, president of the Puerto Rican Chamber of Commerce of South Florida, said Madonna "has no right to go to someone's homeland and pass their flag through her private parts". The chamber and other Puerto Rican groups urged Hispanic citizens to gather outside the singer's Miami home to wave Puerto Rican flags and destroy her records; about 30 people showed up. Madonna's supporters claimed she meant no harm, and had simply put the flag there because she couldn't find her pocket.
More controversy arose in Argentina; cardinal Antonio Quarracino, archbishop of Buenos Aires, called the singer "blasphemous and pornographic" and asked then-president Carlos Menem not to receive her. Additionally, Bishop Osvaldo Musto called for a cancellation and recommended
confession
A confession is a statement – made by a person or by a group of persons – acknowledging some personal fact that the person (or the group) would ostensibly prefer to keep hidden. The term presumes that the speaker is providing information th ...
for any practicing
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
who attended the concerts elsewise. Jorge María Storni, president of the organization Tradición, Familia y Propiedad, supported the cancellation of the concerts, since according to his words, Madonna's main goal was to "undermine the foundations of social order". Alexander Molinas ―consultant of Menores e Incapaces de la Cámara Civil― went as far as to ask civil judge Marcela Perez Pardo to ban the shows because they threatened "intimacy and religious conscience"; the request was dismissed but the judge did order that anyone under 13 be accompanied by an adult.
In Mexico, an anti-abortion organization urged Interior Ministry officials to deny the singer's entry to the country. A spokesman dismissed this request and explained that there was no reason to deny her a visa. Pro Life President Jorge Serrano Limón said Madonna was mocking the Catholic people, and that those attending the concerts did not have "the right to publicly mock the moral and religious values of Catholics or the patriotic values of Mexicans". Additionally, social communicologist Nino Canún presented a
television special
A television special (often TV special, or rarely television spectacular) is a standalone television show which may also temporarily interrupt episodic programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Some specials provide a full range of ent ...
called ''¿Y usted qué opina?'' (English: ''So what's your opinion?''), where the audience, among them a
priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...
, presented their arguments as to why "this morally clueless singer shouldn't be allowed to perform in the country". A ministry official dismissed the controversy by saying that "whoever likes it can go o the concertand whoever doesn't, well don't go". Later, during the concert, Madonna wore a
sombrero
A sombrero (Spanish , ) is a type of wide-brimmed Mexican men's hat used to shield the face and eyes from the sun. It usually has a high pointed crown, an extra-wide brim (broad enough to cast a shadow over the head, neck and shoulders of the w ...
and simulated an orgy as response.
Upon Madonna's arrival in Australia, controversy aroused when she was given by
Michael Gudinski
Michael Solomon Gudinski AM (22 August 1952 – 2 March 2021) was an Australian record executive and promoter who was a leading figure in the Australian music industry. Born and raised in Melbourne to Jewish Russian immigrants, Gudinski form ...
, one of the promoters of the tour's Australian leg, a didgeridoo, a traditional instrument among the Aboriginals which is allowed to be played only by men; "the fact adonnais a Westerner and the didgeridoo as a gift does not change the fact she should not be carrying it around", said Badangthun Munmunyarrun, an Aboriginal elder. Gudinski later explained that he was working with
Yothu Yindi
Yothu Yindi ( Yolngu for "child and mother", pronounced ) are an Australian musical group with Aboriginal and '' balanda'' (non-Aboriginal) members, formed in 1986 as a merger of two bands formed in 1985 – a white rock group called the Swam ...
at the time, and presented Madonna with the didgeridoo Yindi had given him, but planned to get the instrument back from her and replace it with a new one. In 2015, Madonna confirmed she still had the didgeridoo.
Broadcasts and recordings
'' Cashbox'' magazine reported on November 6, 1993 that one of the shows at the Sydney Cricket Ground stadium would be broadcast through HBO on November 20; this marked the second time Madonna worked with the network following the Blond Ambition broadcast three years earlier. Initially, Madonna intended to film the tour in Argentina or Mexico, but she ultimately chose Australia instead, as she liked the event being billed as "Madonna Down Under". On November 13, 1993, ''Billboard'' reported
Westwood One
Westwood One is an American radio network owned by Cumulus Media. The company syndicates talk, music, and sports programming.
The company takes its name from an earlier network also named Westwood One, a company founded in 1978. The compan ...
would do a simultaneous broadcast of the special; it officially aired on HBO as ''Madonna Live Down Under: The Girlie Show''. HBO started its broadcast from Club USA in New York City, leading to the concert itself. With a 17.0 rating and 27 share overall, it became the network's second most-watched original program of the year, following the
George Foreman vs. Tommy Morrison
George Foreman vs. Tommy Morrison, billed as the ''Star-Spangled Battle'', was a professional boxing match contested between George Foreman and Tommy Morrison on June 7, 1993, for the vacant World Boxing Organization Heavyweight Championship.
B ...
fight.
On April 26, 1994, the special was released on LaserDisc and VHS under the title '' The Girlie Show: Live Down Under''. It earned Madonna a nomination for Best Long Form Music Video at the 37th Annual Grammy Awards and peaked at number 31 and 32 on ''Billboard''s Year-end Top Music Videos and Top Video Sales charts, respectively. In addition to the official release, British radio station
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...
broadcast the London show on December 26, 1993. The concerts in Fukuoka, Japan were filmed and aired exclusively on Japanese television.
Set list
Set list and samples adapted per Madonna's official website and the liner notes of ''The Girlie Show: Live Down Under''.
Act 1: Dominatrix
# "The Girlie Show Theme"
# "
Erotica
Erotica is literature or art that deals substantively with subject matter that is erotic, sexually stimulating or sexually arousing. Some critics regard pornography as a type of erotica, but many consider it to be different. Erotic art may use ...
"
# "
Fever
Fever, also referred to as pyrexia, is defined as having a temperature above the normal range due to an increase in the body's temperature set point. There is not a single agreed-upon upper limit for normal temperature with sources using val ...
"
# "
Vogue
Vogue may refer to:
Business
* ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine
** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine
** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine
** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine
** ''Vogue China'', ...
"
# "
Rain
Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water ...
Deeper and Deeper
"Deeper and Deeper" is a song by American singer Madonna from her fifth studio album, '' Erotica'' (1992). It was written and produced by both Madonna and Shep Pettibone, with additional writing from Anthony Shimkin. In Australia and most Eur ...
"
# "Why's It So Hard"
# "In This Life"
# "
The Beast Within
''The Beast Within'' is a 1982 American horror film directed by Philippe Mora and starring Ronny Cox, Bibi Besch, Paul Clemens, L. Q. Jones, Don Gordon, R. G. Armstrong, Logan Ramsey, Katherine Moffat, and Meshach Taylor.
''The Beast With ...
La Isla Bonita
"La Isla Bonita" is a song by American singer Madonna from her third studio album '' True Blue'' (1986). Written and produced by Madonna and Patrick Leonard, with additional lyrics by Bruce Gaitsch, the song was originally presented by Leonard ...
Justify My Love
"Justify My Love" is a song by American singer Madonna from her first greatest hits album ''The Immaculate Collection'' (1990). It was released on November 6, 1990, by Sire Records as the lead single from ''The Immaculate Collection''. The song w ...
"
# "
Everybody Is a Star
"Everybody Is a Star", released in December 1969, is song written by Sylvester Stewart and recorded by Sly and the Family Stone. The song, released as the B-side to the band's 1970 single "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)", reached number ...
Niki Haris
Niki Haris (born April 17, 1962) is an American singer and dancer of pop, R&B, dance music and jazz, perhaps best known for having been one of Madonna's backing vocalists from 1987 to 2001, and as being the guest lead vocalist on various Snap! s ...
- vocals
*
Donna De Lory
Donna De Lory is an American singer, dancer and songwriter. Part of a musical family, De Lory has been performing since a young age. Her voice can be heard on albums by Carly Simon, Ray Parker Jr., Kim Carnes, Santana, Martika, Laura Braniga ...
Paul Pesco
Paul Pesco (born May 13, 1959) is an American session guitarist, singer-songwriter, film score composer and record producer.
Biography
Pesco was born in Canandaigua, New York, to a Sicilian father (an opera singer and voice instructor) and Ko ...
Omar Hakim
Omar Hakim (born February 12, 1959) is an American jazz, jazz fusion and pop music drummer, producer, arranger and composer. He has worked with Weather Report, David Bowie, Foo Fighters, Sting, Madonna, Dire Straits, Bryan Ferry, Journey, Kate ...
Carrie Ann Inaba
Carrie Ann Inaba (born January 5, 1968) is an American television personality, dancer, choreographer, actress, and singer. She is best known for her work on ABC TV's ''Dancing with the Stars'' for which she has served as a judge since 2005. She c ...
* Alex Magno - choreographer
*Keith Young - choreographer
*Michelle Johnston - choreographer
*Niki Haris - choreographer
Wardrobe and crew
*
Dolce & Gabbana
Dolce & Gabbana (), also known by initials D&G, is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in 1985 in Legnano by Italian designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. The house specializes in ready-to-wear, handbags, accessories, and cosmet ...
- designers
*Rob Saduski - designer
*
Christopher Ciccone
Christopher Ciccone (born November 22, 1960) is an American artist, interior decorator, and designer in New York, Miami, and Los Angeles. He is the younger brother of singer Madonna.
Ciccone began his professional career as a dancer with La G ...
- production designer
*Jai Winding - musical director
*Jeffrey Hornaday - stage director
*Peter Morse - lighting director