Madonna opens American leg of tour at Izod Center

by Jay Lustig/The Star-Ledger
Sunday October 05, 2008, 12:06 PM

SAED HINDASH/THE STAR-LEDGERMadonna performs in concert Saturday night at at the Izod Center.

Madonna. Where and when: 8 p.m. Oct. 6-7 and 11-12 at Madison Square Garden, New York; 8 p.m. Nov. 22 at Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City. How much: $64.50-$354.50 for New York, $50-$350 for Atlantic City. Call (201) 507-8900 or visit ticketmaster.com.

Stubborn button-pusher that she is, Madonna couldn't make it through her Saturday night concert at the Izod Center in East Rutherford -- the opening show of the American leg of her "Sticky and Sweet Tour" -- without a few Sarah Palin references.

First came a short rant: "Sarah Palin can't come to this party! She is not in my show! She will never be in my show!" During her punk-metal version of "Hung Up," she introduced a purposely grating guitar solo with the line, "This is the sound of Sarah Palin's husband's snowmobile when it won't start." Finally, she donned eyeglasses for the show's closer, the ecstatic dance number, "Give It 2 Me."

Palin's ticketmate John McCain got far harsher treatment. In a video interlude, Madonna grouped McCain with history's villains (example: Adolf Hitler) and Barack Obama with history's heroes (example: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.). Even by pop-concert standards, this was absurdly heavy-handed.

Then again, Madonna wouldn't be Madonna without a little overkill. The show, which is also coming to Madison Square Garden and Atlantic City's Boardwalk Hall, was a characteristically lavish affair, with correspondingly lavish prices ($55-$350). She made her grand entrance on a throne, and led a cast of 27 (including dancers, instrumentalists and backing vocalists). There were lasers for "Ray of Light" and "Give It 2 Me"; a catwalk with conveyor belts, extending out to a mid-arena mini-stage; a boxing ring for two dancers to face off in during one of Madonna's costume changes; and, during "Into the Groove," an elaborate group jump-rope routine, plus videos adapted from the artwork of the late Keith Haring.

SAED HINDASH/THE STAR-LEDGERMadonna performs with her guitar Saturday night at the Izod Center.

A video featuring a piece of candy working its way through some intricate, futuristic machinery accompanied "Candy Shop." And Madonna's costumes often had a whimsical flair. During "4 Minutes," for example, she wore a football player's shoulder pads, turned into something colorful and glittering.

For "She's Not Me," a song directed at a romantic rival who "started dyeing her hair/And wearing the same perfume as me," some of Madonna's dancers dressed as former versions of herself -- the street urchin, the dominatrix and so on. Madonna ripped the wig off one and threw it on the ground, then indulged in a full-blown, theatrical tantrum.

Guests vocalists on Madonna's recent "Hard Candy" album (Justin Timberlake, Kanye West, Pharrell Williams, Timbaland) appeared via videotape, singing or rapping their parts. Four video Timberlakes actually contributed to "4 Minutes," moving around the stage on portable screens.

An extended gypsy/flamenco segment featured support from the Russian group the Kolpakov Trio and included, among other songs, a radically reworked version of "La Isla Bonita." "Borderline" got an overhaul, too, with a spunky new-wave pop arrangement. And "Music" was remade as old-school electrofunk.

When not reinventing her old songs, Madonna was usually playing new ones -- nine of the show's numbers came from "Hard Candy." There usually wasn't much substance to the lyrics ("My sugar is sweet," she boasted in "Candy Shop," while "Spanish Lesson" offered lines like "Yo te quiero means I love you"). But generally, the beats and hooks were strong enough -- and there was so much else going on, visually -- that you didn't notice.

There were a few pensive moments in the show, such as the longing "Miles Away" (a new song about the difficulties of a long-distance romance) and the stately ballad "You Must Love Me" (from "Evita"). Late in the evening, Madonna asked for requests and, after fans held up signs for "Open Your Heart," sang that oldie with the audience clapping along and just one musician, the drummer, playing along.

But in general, the show was about the new. It was also about spectacle, and dancing (Madonna's middle-aged athleticism is nothing short of astonishing), and blowing off a little steam. "Express yourself, don't repress yourself," she sang in "Human Nature," and she followed that advice, no matter how fanciful or (in the case of the McCain/Hitler video) puerile her ideas were.

Here is the show's setlist:

"Candy Shop"

"Beat Goes On"

"Human Nature"

"Vogue"

"Die Another Day" (video/dance interlude)

"Into the Groove"

"Heartbeat'

"Borderline"

"She's Not Me"

"Music"

"Here Comes the Rain Again" (video/dance interlude)