Jump to content

June 3/4 - Abu Dhabi


Camacho

Recommended Posts

That area Butter9 was referring to was the "local citizens" VIP area - a lot of these women are probably really high up in the Emirates ruling / royal family. And yes, I noticed women there on both nights present till the very end of the show. I am sure they loved it!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well if that noted classic Sex and the City 2 is anything to I by I fully expect those women to head back to their secret place, take off those traditional clothes and reveal their cone bra ensembles underneath while they dance to GGW

:lol:

Seriously though, that movie was an abomination

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't know if this footage was posted but it makes me LOVE :wow: Celebration as a closer so much more! I can't wait for the DVD! I want to learn this dance!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

^ She really lets loose there. She's really energetic, even in the heat & with all those clothes she's wearing (and at the very end of the show).

Madonna Abu Dhabi concert delays blamed on technical issues

The firm behind Madonna’s Abu Dhabi gigs has issued a statement regarding the delays in the start of the concerts.

FLASH Entertainment said: “Following recent reports in the media, FLASH Entertainment and Live Nation would like to acknowledge that the Madonna concerts at the du Arena, Yas Island began slightly later than some fans expected.

“Whilst show times were never publicised, we do appreciate that many fans expected Madonna to take the stage between 9.30 and 10pm on both nights.

“Unfortunately, over the course of the weekend, a series of unforeseen technical issues resulted in slight delays to rehearsals and performance times. We hope that concert goers can appreciate that with events of this scale, occasionally, unexpected circumstances can impact on plans.

“FLASH Entertainment would like to thank the many thousands of fans who have flown in from all over the world for what has been two truly memorable nights and we wish to thank everyone for their support and understanding.”

A number of readers contact 7DAYS and posted comments on the websites www.7daysindubai.com

and www.7daysinabudhabi.com saying they were unhappy about the late starts.

However, others also praised the concerts.

http://www.7daysindu...tail/story.html

---

I think it's more to do with the crazy heat, but maybe there were also issues?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[media=]

[/media]

I don't know if this footage was posted but it makes me LOVE :wow: Celebration as a closer so much more! I can't wait for the DVD! I want to learn this dance!

Never understood the hate for this song... I think it's very good and ver catchy, :Disco_Ball:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

http://www.thenation...ng-them-waiting

Madonna blows fans away after keeping them waiting

Marie-Louise Olson

Jun 4, 2012

ABU DHABI // More than 22,000 Madonna fans braved the heat last night to see their idol's first performance in the Arab world.

The entertainer, who is known for her daring and extravagant performances, was as controversial as ever as she took to the stage at du Arena on Yas Island.

Boos and cat whistles rippled through the arena, getting louder and louder, as impatient fans were subjected to more than an hour of Michael Jackson songs while waiting for Madonna to appear.

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That area Butter9 was referring to was the "local citizens" VIP area - a lot of these women are probably really high up in the Emirates ruling / royal family. And yes, I noticed women there on both nights present till the very end of the show. I am sure they loved it!

I think that is so cool. I love that a fucking TIGRESS like Madonna went to the Middle East and brandished those tits and FUCK OFF attitude. She blows the doors off, and paves the way. :thumbsup:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great link! I love celebration more now than before tour. Only if i must say probem with this song as the close up is this short minutage. There should be just maybe interaction with audience like durrin CT RI S&S...but fine.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is really cool, please read it

Emirates gays welcome Madonna's Abu Dhabi gay rights display

Madonna shows gay kisses and other pro-LGBT messages in her United Arab Emirates performance, despite gay sex being illegal there

07 June 2012| By Dan Littauer

Gays and lesbians in the Emirates have welcomed Madonna's performance there, where she displayed strong messages of support for LGBT rights.

The global pop star played stadium gigs in Abu Dhabi on 3 and 4 June as part of her MDNA album world tour.

Around 25,000 attend the Madonna's first ever performance in the Arab world at the Yas Island Stadium, at Abu Dhabi, the federal capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) where gay sex is still criminalized.

Her performance, including 22 songs and a lazer show, included multiple ‘strong and clear messages about LGBT rights’, reports 'Shamil', member of the UAE LGBT group and Gulf region editor of GayMiddleEast.com.

Shamil told Gay Star News: ‘She didn't hold back at all!'

She opened the performance already provocatively, with religious chanting during which a huge incense pot vacillated above her fans. During her song 'Gang Bang' she projected a bad girl image provocatively dressed, drinking and sporting an ‘AK47’ while ‘shooting’ a man in a motel.

Shamil said: ‘One of the strongest visuals for LGBT rights and against homophobic bullying was during Nobody Knows Me where the interlude video highlighted the plight of young people who are driven to commit suicide because they are victims of homophobic bullying.'

Another clear message of support were projected during Express Yourself which included a tribute to Lady Gaga’s Born This Way with images projected including men kissing men, women kissing women and a straight embrace. It also featured J Howard Miller's famous 'We can do it' American propaganda poster depicting a woman with her sleeve rolled up, popular with lesbians.

The Emirates audience was also treated to topless male dancers in high heels during Girls Gone Wild, a striking contrast to the UAE's usual insistence on strictly traditional gender roles.

And during Erotica Madonna stripped down to her underwear, pointed to her genitalia saying ‘this thing is hot!', inviting the crowds to 'act dangerously' while flirting with girl band dancers, while the male dancers dressed up as women in corsets'

‘Vogue was just spectacular with the male dancers in particular strutting their stuff’, reported Shamil. ‘Perhaps Madonna is so far the only artist who portrayed and supported LGBT rights in the UAE. Last year I attended Scissor Sisters concert and they didn't or couldn't do anything.’

Homosexuality is punished with up to 14 years jail in Abu-Dhabi, and article 354 of the Federal Penal Code may even prescribe the death sentence for ‘consensual sodomy’.

Public displays of affection, gay or straight, are illegal and can carry harsh sentences including several months in jail, fines and deportation for non-Emirati residents. Several recent cases have, however, demonstrated that it is not always easy for LGBT people to find 'private' places for consensual displays of same-sex affection.

'Adilah', an Emirati lesbian member of the UAE LGBT told Gay Star News: ‘Madonna's concert was the first time I was in an environment in the UAE that had this much of a feel for unity, love, respect, admiration, adoration for LGBT people. In public!

'Performance wise Madonna's showcase had messages that aren't new to her gay or gay friendly fans. We all know how she feels about us but anyone who ever had a doubt or felt gays and lesbians are lesser forms of life definitely now knows more about our place in the world.

'And how could they not? I mean, there was a gay/lesbian group standing, jumping, and smiling every six inches. And so many of them were Emiratis too!

'We were stood next to a gorgeous group of boys in Balmain tops with studded shoulder pads and Jeffery Campbell heels! It was just so great to be amongst all our gay friends, in one place, being ourselves, and knowing every time Madonna flashed a gay sign everyone cheered.’

'Nasira', another lesbian member of the group stated: ‘Whilst the concert was predominantly about music and advertising for her new album, I left the show with the sense and overwhelming feeling that I had just witnessed, if not been a part of, something more extraordinary.

‘There aren't many times as an LGBT person living in the Middle East that we are able to see ourselves, on such a large platform as that night, represented, included, respected and most of all accepted in such a public way.

'The message was simple, that we are all capable of some truly terrible and terrifying acts of violence and love, but moreover that we are all capable of loving one another in a variety of different but beautiful ways.

‘Whatever else is said about that night, there is simply no way to negate the simple fact that as a human being, rather than a musical legend, Madonna should be revered. To be so confident and unwavering in ones support for the rights of all people should be something to which we all aspire.

‘In this part of the world, it is not often that such a bright and hopeful light is shon upon LGBT issues and for that, I don't think I am alone when I say that I walked out of that concert a more hopeful and proud person that one day we won't have to celebrate the lives of our lost LGBT children, that instead we can enjoy each other, gay or straight, living freely as we were born to do so.’

'Abdulla', the founder and chair of the UAE LGBT group was equally inspired.

He said: 'She is an inspiration I honestly applaud her for sending a direct and clear message about her support for LGBT rights, and tackling issues that other musicians would not usually speak about in a conservative country.

'She is not a sell-out, she bends to no one and still tells it as it is. She gives hope to her fans and many Emiratis who are LGBT; her concert has definitely energized our campaign to advocate and push for equality and not to give up.’

The names of GSN's sources in the UAE have been changed to protect their identities.

http://www.gaystarnews.com/article/emirates-gays-welcome-madonnas-abu-dhabi-gay-rights-display070612

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A fan review

“I attended the first Abu Dhabi show with a group of friends. We got passes for ‘Friends and Family’ in the Golden Triangle, exceptional experience seeing Madonna so close and touching her hand.

The show was breathtaking, literally also because of the heat and humidity. It was one of a kind experience.

Uncertainty, whether Madonna would amend the show due to the ‘locals sensitivity’, and some worries that if she does not, she could be in troubles. We get jailed here for a greeting kiss if not married. So our fears were justified. It seems that she knew about the audience feelings for her, and she displayed a huge fake tattoo on her back “NO FEAR”. It was a short message conveying so much … at least it meant that much to me.

The show was great, the sweat was literally running out of stage; there were some minor technical difficulties, Madonna lost her mic, which rolled down of the stage, the stage lifts were not working properly in some moments. But what was working 100 percent it was her. We were absolutely puzzled how well she coped with the weather and at the same time singing and dancing. We live there for years and we find it difficult to cope with our daily routines during summer time. She is in absolute shape –body, face, singing – perfection.

We met few dancers after the show in hotel and all they said that it was very hard to do the show because of the heat and humidity and they had to dance in gas masks in one of the numbers – imagine that?”

http://allaboutmadonna.com/2012/06/mdna-tour-in-abu-dhabi-pictures-and-review-by-victor.php?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+allaboutMadonna+%28all+about+Madonna%29

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I found a gif of that mic slip incident:

tumblr_m5c04uWD0D1qlt6avo1_500.gif

;)

And I just found a gif of her face right after:

s3zxqg.gif

I think she's about to laugh? I'm not completely sure lol.

P.S. This is really random but I can't start a new topic... how do you guys get photos/gifs in your signatures so big? I had to make my gif really small to fit in the sig and it's bothering me...

Edited by hydrangeas
Link to comment
Share on other sites

"I came away, mesmerized. I am sure that when I am dying and visuals from my life flash before my eyes, Madonna’s image from this concert will be one of them."

I agree. I feel like her live shows are grouped together with my fondest memories (of my life, my childhood, youth, etc...) even the DVDs of the shows I haven't gone to myself. Her videos, songs, her influence over me. I'm sure many of you will agree, that she has the energy to make us feel free and at the peak of our happiness.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And I just found a gif of her face right after:

s3zxqg.gif

I think she's about to laugh? I'm not completely sure lol.

P.S. This is really random but I can't start a new topic... how do you guys get photos/gifs in your signatures so big? I had to make my gif really small to fit in the sig and it's bothering me...

I think she was coughing and smiling at the same time, not sure though.

About the gifs on the sign I don't know too. It never refused any gif I put. :dazed:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

Hey y'all, I wrote a review of the Abu Dhabi concert for one of the most influential online news portals in the Philippines. Hope y'all can check it out!

http://www.rappler.c...-for-redemption

Madonna's canonicals of pop and spectacles for redemption

by Nico Marco

Posted on 08/07/2012 6:28 PM | Updated 08/07/2012 7:56 PM

ls-pics-madonna-concert-review-3-carousel-2012-july-09.jpg

TOUGH, GUN-TOTING MADONNA. All photos by Nico Marco

BANGKOK, Thailand - It is telling that the most notorious pop-religionist decided to open her latest world tour in Tel Aviv.

And, for the first time ever, she performed not one but two shows at the cradle of progressive Middle East: Abu Dhabi.

Madonna’s MDNA World Tour is rich with religious imagery, references to past eras (think early 90s Erotica era) and, more vividly, performance art that strongly depicts Madonna — 30 years at the top — as a scorned woman still dealing with a lot of demons.

One thing's for certain, however: after a highly-charged, two-hour spectacle, the Queen of Pop would leave one realizing that "in the midnight hour, you'd indeed feel her pow'r."

A Madonna concert is not just a typical diva showcase; it is an indelible pop-culture experience.

But, boy, it wasn't an easy one to partake of.

I had to fly 7 hours from this side of the world to Abu Dhabi, spend my hard-earned pink dollar on a visa, an air ticket, her tour merchandise (Material Girl always wins, you see); not to mention put up with nearly 50 degrees of urban desert heat.

World-renowned Italian DJ Benny Benassi, who produced the club-banging songs on Madonna’s latest album, MDNA, was the opening act.

It was a decent set, but it would have been more appropriate in an enclosed club venue than a concert arena. After Benassi played, the real crowd action began.

And it wasn’t because the main act was already onstage.

Madonna made the crowd wait for a good hour and a half, with only Michael Jackson’s Thriller album playing in the background as finishing touches were being made to her stage.

The Queen paying homage to The King? It was a sweet gesture, but it didn’t matter to the crowd.

Jeers and boos filled the arena. During this waiting period, some fans in the jam-packed Gold Circle (VIP section) started fainting and fighting — literally — as the Abu Dhabi nighttime humidity became increasingly unbearable.

But all that quickly wore off the moment Madonna hit the stage.

Known for her grand concert entrances, Madonna may have done her best to date: deafening chanting from robed monks, smoke blowing onstage from a ginormous incense chalice, human gargoyles and the most famous Catholic rebel in pop-culture history — inside a confessional box reciting her now signature Act of Contrition.

And then she came onstage, poignantly between giant visuals of breaking cathedral murals. Madonna sang (with generous help from backup singers) and break-danced to Girl Gone Wild.

The entire first set was filled with non-stop singing and dancing, with a theme that was also glaringly dark and violent.

The second performance, Revolver, saw her adopting an assassin vibe, complete with an all-female backup dance troupe and gun-toting choreography.

This mood continued throughout Gang Bang where she broke into a dance-(and kill)-off routine with masked dancers as she drank from a Jack Daniels bottle.

If there was a pop spectacle version of a Tarantino flick, that would have been it.

ls-pics-madonna-concert-review-1-2012-july-09.jpg

THE CROWD THAT ENDURED the nighttime humidity of Abu Dhabi

Madonna in recent tours has also started to incorporate a guitar segment.

For MDNA, she kicked this segment off with an album highlight, I Don’t Give A. This is a song about the multi-tasking life of the busiest woman on earth.

Despite the absence of a dance routine, Madonna managed to rock the crowd; a special video appearance from Nicki Minaj gave it an even harder oomph.

The concert greatly benefited from the large, movable LED screens, where images and visuals that accompanied every song was played, giving the audience an out-of-this-world experience. Think of Madonna’s now-legendary Super Bowl half-time show, and imagine that kind of production quality tailored for a concert crowd.

Of course, a Madonna performance wouldn’t be one without a societal message.

One of the highlights came from a video interlude of Nobody Knows Me, a moving abstract of Madonna collaged with images of famous and notorious leaders and icons. It was a fitting tribute to the victims of bullying around the world.

Madonna has often been berated for her supposedly limited vocal ability, and though there were backing-track-assisted parts (only when she was dancing her derriere off), her voice soared beautifully in the more somber songs — particularly in the Golden-Globe-winning Masterpiece.

Those who expected to see Madonna sing most of her classic hits would have been disappointed; the set list contained songs mostly from her latest album. Though she’s probably the most non-nostalgic star of the rock era, Madonna, almost uncharacteristically, served the audience with 3 of her lesser-performed classics: a few verses of Papa Don’t Preach, an all-out Open Your Heart and — the most controversial — Express Yourself, brilliantly mashed up with Lady Gaga’s Born This Way.

Perennial favorites Vogue and Like A Prayer still remain as crowd-pleasing as ever. It was in singing these songs that Madonna appeared the most comfortable and powerful.

Closing song Celebration officially ended the dark tone of MDNA, as if symbolically telling the audience that Madonna’s redemption from her sins has finally arrived. The mood was perfected by the scene-stealing appearance of her son, Rocco Ritchie.

The Madonna and son looked genuinely gleeful onstage.

ls-pics-madonna-concert-review-2-2012-july-09.jpg

SHE SANG AND DANCED at the same time

Much has been said and written about Madonna’s place in pop-culture history. At several points during the concert, there were collective oooohhhs and aaaahhs from the crowd, and so much of “OMG she’s amazing!” “We love you Madonna!!!” and, my personal favorite, “How old is she again?”

As if the crowd needed an affirmation that, at 53 years old, Madonna is, indeed, our musical star equivalent of a superhuman. - Rappler.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...