Madonna sued for late concert times

[Imzadi]

Did Cher provide a 10 minute flashback monologue about turning 40 and appearing on the David Letterman show? I'm wondering if she gives the same speech at every show.

Yes, we got that too. I think she stayed to a pretty tight script. She didn't even give a shout out to NYC. Most performers do, as either they've been here before, are performing at MSG for the first time and know they've reached a moment in their career, or they just know we are a wild & crazy audience.

Even Nile Rodgers gave several shouts out to NYC and a special thanks as several of his songs became famous/popular due to being played at the infamous Studio 54 nite club, (just 20 blocks away from MSG,) during the height of the disco era.

And when Nile Rodgers' drummer sang David Bowie's "Let's Dance," a smile lit up my face. (Usually Bowie's songs make me sad now when I hear them, as I feel he was gone too soon. He was only 69 when he died a couple years ago. Just 4 years younger than Cher is now and she's still going strong. And Bowie was about to release another album. So he still had new music in him. ) But, hearing "Let's Dance," reminded me of when I went & heard David Bowie sing it at MSG during his "Serious Moonlight" tour.

Nile Rodgers and Chic were the opening act and they played for about 50 minutes, longer than I expected. They were good too. Cher appeared about 9:40 pm, about 45 minutes after Chic ended, and played until about 11:15 pm.

Did your concert start at 8pm? Ours started at 7:30. We got there barely on time. I remembered this thread and hoped Cher would start a little late. I forgot Nile Rodgers was opening for her. He was already on when we got there. So I have a feeling he started at 7:25 as people were still coming in. He ended at 8:25. There was a half hour break. And Cher took the stage at 8:55, and played till about 10:30.

 

[Imzadi]

My Photos of Cher. I did a get few decent ones after all.

Our seats, about $200 each, before about $35 in fees. We sat center, 1 section up, just 3 rows from the back row of the center floor section, who paid $455+. AND we were raised up slightly on a platform, so we could see and didn't have to stand if we didn't want to. But, I stood for most of Cher.

The backdrop did double duty. It worked as really intricate special effects set decoration . . .

. . . And was also a state of the art, gigantic, hi-def screen for Cher. There actually wasn't a bad seat in the house.
Makes me wonder if Cher having such a large screen isn't due to her decades of performing and she just KNOWS people want to SEE the performer. Or, as she and her audiences are aging, she knows people may need extra help to see her.

Also, Sonny was then able to sing "with" Cher for a couple songs. I think if I had seen one of her earlier farewell concerts,
the equipment wouldn't have been this high tech and high definition. There are perks to seeing Farewell Tour number 8(?)

Some of her many wigs & costume changes.
I think after Cher and the band, her team getting her
into the wigs & costumes, had to be the hardest working people that evening.

Sorry, mom2rtk, but it's just a side view of her thong
and that iconic leather jacket & thong costume for, I Found Someone, and If I Could Turn Back Time.

Keeping the pace & momentum up to the end:

 

[RedAngie]

Yes, we got that too. I think she stayed to a pretty tight script. She didn't even give a shout out to NYC. Most performers do, as either they've been here before, are performing at MSG for the first time and know they've reached a moment in their career, or they just know we are a wild & crazy audience.

Even Nile Rodgers gave several shouts out to NYC and a special thanks as several of his songs became famous/popular due to being played at the infamous Studio 54, (just 20 blocks away from MSG,) during the height of the disco era.

And when Nile Rodgers' drummer sang David Bowie's "Let's Dance," a smile lit up my face. (Usually Bowie's songs make me sad now when I hear them, as I feel he was gone too soon. He was only 69 when he died a couple years ago. Just 4 years younger than Cher is now and she's still going strong. And Bowie was about to release another album. So he still had new music in him. ) But, hearing "Let's Dance," reminded me of when I went & heard David Bowie sing it at MSG during his "Serious Moonlight" tour.




Did your concert start at 8pm? Ours started at 7:30. We got there barely on time. I remembered this thread and hoped Cher would start a little late. I forgot Nile Rodgers was opening for her. he was already on when we got there. So I have a feeling her started at 7:25 as people were coming in. He ended at 8:25. There was a half hour break. And Cher took the stage at 8:55, and played till about 10:30.

Yes, the Philly concert was advertised as an 8pm start. We arrived at the arena about 745 and had just about settled into our seats when Chic started. Nile Rodgers gave a shout out to Philly and said the town's radio stations were responsible for making Dance, Dance, Dance (yowsah yowsah yowsah) a hit. He also mentioned Studio 54. I wasn't aware until last night that he wrote or co-wrote or produced Bowie's Let's Dance, some of Diana Ross' hits, and We Are Family by Sister Sledge.

No Philly shout out from Cher.

Two women, probably in their 30's, in the next section over, wore Cher costumes. One had the If I Could Turn Back Time thong and leather jacket look and the other a 70's Sonny & Cher era long straight hair and funky pantsuit.

 

[Imzadi]

Two women, probably in their 30's, in the next section over, wore Cher costumes. One had the If I Could Turn Back Time thong and leather jacket look and the other a 70's Sonny & Cher era long straight hair and funky pantsuit.

I was surprised to see so many women in their 30s & younger there.

BTW Cher is a bit more dressed in her updated version of her, I Could Turn Back Time, thong and leather jacket look than in the music video. (At least from the front.) This is a bad pic of her. The reflected light off her costume makes her look like she has a bit of a belly. But, in all the pics above, you can see she doesn't have one.

 

[Julie's Haircut]

I was a bit disappointed that she didn't sing Gypsies, Tramps & Thieves and Half Breed, but it was a great show anyway. She joked that she might sing those songs on her next Farewell Tour.

Didn't expect her to sing some Abba songs.

I counted 7 different costumes during the show.

Plenty of younger fans in their 20s and 30s were there.

I'm glad we arrived in time for Nile Rodgers and Chic. They were really good and one singer (probably not the original) had a phenomenal voice.

Parking for Flyers games costs $25 in the standard arena lot. It rose to $38 for Cher. $50 for the premium lot. Ouch!!! Too rich for me. So we parked in the Eagles Lincoln Financial Field lot for $20.

I used to have a framed black&white poster of Cher in her leather jacket, thong, and fishnet stockings. The photo was taken from the back and you could see the tattoos on her butt. I got it for a dollar at a garage sale.

 

[Julie's Haircut]

For curiosity I checked Ticketmaster on Friday morning. There were still about 100 standard priced tickets for Cher remaining. Plus at least 200 tickets for resale, some as low as $25.

The two seats next to me remained vacant the entire night. I'm pretty sure they were unavailable when I bought my tickets.

Cher is in Boston tonight. I checked and there are hundreds of lesser quality seats still available, maybe even 1000. Lots of nosebleed seats for $28.75 Even dozens of lower level seats for $67.95. Plus many for resale. Hmmm, I wonder why they're so much cheaper than Philly (and I'm guessing NYC) prices.

 

[Imzadi]

Didn't expect her to sing some Abba songs.

I didn't either. I thought at first she was just singing a medley of 70s & 80s songs. She sang, Walking in Memphis, too. I don't remember her covering that decades ago, but Google does list it as one of her hits.

Anyway, when she stood at the balcony for, Fernando, in that blonde wig, that's when I remembered she was in the Mamma Mia 2 sequel. She sang it to Andy Garcia in the film. (I vaguely remember she might have sung the other songs in the film too.) That just came out last year. So, she's still acting in stuff, as recently as a year ago. And I just realized the name of Mamma Mia 2 is also titled: "Here We Go Again," same as the name of her tour.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Hmmm, I wonder why they're so much cheaper than Philly (and I'm guessing NYC) prices.

It's literally freezing here, or will be by showtime.
And the seats are cramped after a renovation added 500 more seats. TD Garden seems to be taking cues from airlines.

 

[Imzadi]

For curiosity I checked Ticketmaster on Friday morning. There were still about 100 standard priced tickets for Cher remaining. Plus at least 200 tickets for resale, some as low as $25.

The two seats next to me remained vacant the entire night. I'm pretty sure they were unavailable when I bought my tickets.

Cher is in Boston tonight. I checked and there are hundreds of lesser quality seats still available, maybe even 1000. Lots of nosebleed seats for $28.75 Even dozens of lower level seats for $67.95. Plus many for resale. Hmmm, I wonder why they're so much cheaper than Philly (and I'm guessing NYC) prices.

As we were deciding on tickets for Celine Dion, I noticed a whole block of seats near where we were looking at, which the days before, were marked at a higher "Official Platinum" price of the $300-$455 range, were suddenly dropped down in price to "standard seating" at $200-ish. Meanwhile some of the seats in the section we were looking at were randomly, suddenly priced up at the "Official Platinum" prices.

Since the seats we were thinking about were at the "standard seating" price, and we didn't want to find they suddenly jumped up in price, we decided to get her tickets. I just went to look at the seats available, and yep, the few seats left in my section are now at a higher price with VIP perks included for the higher prices, yet they are further back too. As I get older and am decluttering all my stuff, I'm not interested in those extra perks that will just end up in a drawer.

Makes me realize that I never have to buy tickets the first day they are available, unless it is someone (like Kanye,) guaranteed to sell out. When Ticketmaster says the seats "fluctuate" in prices, they really mean it, and I can probably get less expensive tickets later on, as the "Official Platinum" price seats are dropped in price. It's also nice to know that the scalpers resalers have not already gotten the best seats.

Perhaps, as the tour goes on, and others in different cities are getting word about how the prices fluctuate so, people are waiting in Boston & other places before buying tickets? Maybe they already know about this price fluctuation thing already. I didn't. If you hadn't mentioned how cheap the nosebleed tickets were, only a state away, I never would have gone to check the prices here again to see if there was anything decent left at a price I'd be willing to pay. Again THANKS!

Also, people might also be waiting to see other people's photos of the tour. I didn't think till after we got tickets to Cher, and were considering ticket to Celine, to see if photos of the concert were already posted by others. It was then that I knew there would be no bad seats for Cher. If one is considereing the nosebleed seats, no need to over-pay for her.

For Celine, however, from the few pics I've seen, she will NOT be using the backdrop as a large screen of herself. (She does one song dedicated to Rene, and he's on the screen behind her and the kids.) Depending on the venue, one has to depend on the screens the venue may have already up. Barclays Center has 2 screens on either side of the stage, over the side audience sections. So, if we chose seats off to the side, yet closer, we'd always be seeing Celine from the side, or we'd have to always be swiveling our heads 90 degrees to see the screen.

This was MSG when Cher didn't use the backdrop as a screen of herself. Unfortunately, Barclays Center will look the same for Celine. Close enough to see well, but not close enough to see details of her face or the screens well enough.

We've got practically the same seats at Barclays. Either, we'd have really good seats for both concerts. Or, we'd learn if we need to do anything different for Celine. We'll bring a couple binoculars to watch her ballads. (I did bring my opera glasses, which work for Broadway shows as the venues are smaller. But we were too far for them to be effective at MSG. And we didn't need them for Cher.)

 

[Julie's Haircut]

It's literally freezing here, or will be by showtime.
And the seats are cramped after a renovation added 500 more seats. TD Garden seems to be taking cues from airlines.

I read about Bruins fans complaining about the newer cramped seating. Are they trying to revert to the old Gah-den days?

With fluctuating Ticketmaster prices, maybe the promoter lowered them for TD Garden since many lesser seats were still unsold. The handful of better seats still available were expensive.

I rarely attend concerts these days, but in the future I may wait until a day or two before to see if there are any cheap resale seats available. I often do this for baseball and hockey and can usually score better seats for less than face value from season ticket holders who can't attend.

 

[kaytieeldr]

I read about Bruins fans complaining about the newer cramped seating. Are they trying to revert to the old Gah-den days?

One of my brothers gave another brother one of the original Gahden seats for Christmas, after the major renovation.

Anyway,I wouldn't look out the window to see Maspdonna, but if I'd known I could get a ticket for Cher for under $30, I'd be there instead of lying on the couch watching SVU reruns.

 

[RedAngie]

Madonna appeared in Philly Saturday and Sunday nights and has two more shows on Tuesday and Wednesday. Online reviews were mixed. 1030pm advertised start time, didn't appear until 1145pm on Saturday. Cell phones had to be placed in a locked pouch. You could return to the lobby to unlock the pouch if necessary, then had to lock it up again before returning to the seating area.

She only sang 3 of her hits. The rest was new music from "Madame X" and "Portuguese music." Lots of talking, more like ranting, on a variety of subjects. Dropped the F bomb at least a dozen times.

 

[Imzadi]

Madonna appeared in Philly Saturday and Sunday nights and has two more shows on Tuesday and Wednesday. Online reviews were mixed. 1030pm advertised start time, didn't appear until 1145pm on Saturday.

Was the 10:30pm start time because she had someone else as an opening act and that would be when SHE started? Or was that when she was expected to start?

I have a sneaky suspicion that her shows used to be advertised to start around 8pm. But, as she routinely started late, the promoters just changed the advertised start time to when she would finally arrive, (but didn't tell Madonna.) But, once Madonna found out she wasn't expected till 10:30, she then takes her sweet time from that time, and now she's even more late.

 

[DisneyGuy]

Madonna appeared in Philly Saturday and Sunday nights and has two more shows on Tuesday and Wednesday. Online reviews were mixed. 1030pm advertised start time, didn't appear until 1145pm on Saturday. Cell phones had to be placed in a locked pouch. You could return to the lobby to unlock the pouch if necessary, then had to lock it up again before returning to the seating area.

She only sang 3 of her hits. The rest was new music from "Madame X" and "Portuguese music." Lots of talking, more like ranting, on a variety of subjects. Dropped the F bomb at least a dozen times.

I have tickets to her Wednesday show this week at the Met in Philadelphia and I'm really excited about it. While there's no excuse for her lateness (technical difficulties aside) the rest of what you mentioned I pretty much expected. Madonna really hasn't ever done a tour full of hit songs, one after the other except her first two tours. Blond Ambition was the beginning of a more theatrical performance and the songs were chosen to fit the theme(s) and stories that were being told from that point on - even more so with the Girlie Show and forward. That's not to say that she doesn't do an equal mix of new and old on tour but the set-list are usually heavier on new material and the hits that are performed are chosen out of how they fit the show/theme rather than because it's a hit. As a fan I actually appreciate it and it's one of the things that keeps me coming back rather than seeing the same string of hits and the same medleys over and over again that many artists do on tour - right down to the same stage layout.

It's true that the Madame X tour has the most focus on new material than any of her previous tours but it is the "Madame X" tour and in a theatre setting. I counted about 8 hits on her set-list - although I don't know if they are performed in full - and i'll admit a couple of those may just be fan favorites rather than "hits" but their still older tracks.

The tickets originally said 8:30pm I believe, but months ago it was changed to 10:30pm. This is the first time it's been announced ahead of time.

I'm curious about how the show will be with no phones in anyones faces or bright lights in the audience. While it's somewhat inconvenient not to have it available, it will be interesting to see how it plays out.

Glad to see everyone enjoyed Cher! She's fun to see live...

 

[RedAngie]

Was the 10:30pm start time because she had someone else as an opening act and that would be when SHE started? Or was that when she was expected to start?

I have a sneaky suspicion that her shows used to be advertised to start around 8pm. But, as she routinely started late, the promoters just changed the advertised start time to when she would finally arrive, (but didn't tell Madonna.) But, once Madonna found out she wasn't expected till 10:30, she then takes her sweet time from that time, and now she's even more late.

No mention was made of an opening act. Yes, earlier in the tour the advertised start time was 830 pm, but after many people already bought tickets they received an e-mail notifying them of the new 1030 pm start. Even on a weekend I don't want to be in a theater until after 2 am for a concert.

I saw her in 1990 (Blonde Ambition) and 1993 (Girlie Show) and as far as I remember, the shows started "on time," about 30 minutes after the opening act was finished.

 

[Searc]

No mention was made of an opening act. Yes, earlier in the tour the advertised start time was 830 pm, but after many people already bought tickets they received an e-mail notifying them of the new 1030 pm start. Even on a weekend I don't want to be in a theater until after 2 am for a concert.

I saw her in 1990 (Blonde Ambition) and 1993 (Girlie Show) and as far as I remember, the shows started "on time," about 30 minutes after the opening act was finished.

I'd be demanding a refund for the bait and switch.

 

[kaytieeldr]

This is not bait & switch. Not saying refund shouldn't be demanded, but changing a concert time (or date, or venue) isn't want bait & switch is.