February 7, 2012

 

MADONNA AT HALFTIME

  1. . . . Looked like Brunhilda, the pig-tailed warrior of the Valkyries, wearing a Viking helmet with those horns sticking up on top.
  2. . . . Like she stepped right out of the Richard Wagner German opera, “Ride of the Valkyries.”
  3. . . . (At other times she reminded me of Goldilocks, with all that hair.)
  4. . . . But the Norse-type look was mixed with an Egyptian/Roman theme too, as she was charioted to the stage, drawn by a Cleopatra-like fleet of armor-plated soldiers dressed like Spartacus.
  5. . . . She arose from a gold throne and proceeded to the stage, which had a big ‘M’ “engraved” on it.
  6. . . . FIRST SONG: “Vogue.” (Sire Records, 1990)
  7. . . . “Strike a pose,” she began.
  8. . . . Madonna and her troupe started voguing (a dance that originated in Harlem subculture which features model/mannequin-like movements, a genre started by African and Latino Americans in New York).
  9. . . . They were walking like Egyptians. (Walk Like an Egyptian-The Bangles, Columbia Records, 1986)
  10. . . . During her performances she seemed to be moving (somewhat) awkwardly, like she had too many clothes on.
  11. . . . Maybe they were too heavy.
  12. . . . Not smooth and slinky like she was in her Erotica (1992) video.
  13. . . . Maybe the “gladiator-inspired Givenchy couture ensemble,” as it was described by Alison Parr of Fabsugar.com, was weighing her down.
  14. . . . Surprising (coming from Madonna).
  15. . . . The stage was lit from the bottom and featured her face in an iconic black and while image accented with red lips. It looked great.
  16. . . . Pullback shots also revealed the word ‘Vogue,’ appearing in the dance-floor lightbox.
  17. . . . NEXT UP: “Music,” her 2000 “Hey Mr. D.J., put a record on, I wanna dance with my baby...” hit.
  18. . . . She and the dancers pranced all over the multi-colored bleachers. The lighting on the set was fantastic.
  19. . . . The stage floor looked somewhat like computer keys and they, too, were lit from the bottom up.
  20. . . . Clean-looking.
  21. . . . It sorta reminded me of Tom Hanks and Robert Loggia dancing on those giant piano keys in that movie, “Big” (1988).
  22. . . . Madonna squat-danced while a high-topped, sneaker-wearing, toga-attired acrobat bounced and bobbed on a tightrope. Pretty versatile.
  23. . . . It was a sideshow . . . but entertaining.
  24. . . . Now over to LMFAO (Laugh My F_ _ _ _ _ _ A_ _ Off, for those not in the know) who weaved in their Party Rock Anthem with Madonna’s song.
  25. . . . “Party rock is in the house tonight...”
  26. . . . They also squeezed in a little bit of their “I’m Sexy and I Know It” hit.
  27. . . . She was assisted by the group’s Redfoo (son of Motown Records founder Berry Gordy) in doing multiple cartwheels, which reminded me of Nancy Grace doing the same thing on Dancing With the Stars.
  28. . . . NOW THIS: “Give Me All Your Luvin’,” her new single (Live Nation/Interscope Records), which was peppered with two members of the current crop of rap/hip-hop acts: Nicki Minaj (the one who wears the funny-colored wigs) and M.I.A. who, for some reason, held up her middle finger during her sequence and shouted out what seemed to be “I don’t give a sh_ _.”
  29. . . . That wasn’t a very nice thing to do.
  30. . . . The press got all up in arms about that and made it the headline in many reports, which were exaggerated.
  31. . . . (They like to do that.)
  32. . . . Maybe she was just acting rebellious, like Madonna used to be.
  33. . . . Pom-pom-shaking cheerleaders started it off with “L-U-V, Madonna . . .”
  34. . . . “Y-O-U, you wanna.”
  35. . . . Reminded me of Toni Basil’s similarly-themed “Mickey” song from back in ’82.
  36. . . . SHOW-CLOSER: “Like A Prayer.” (1989, Sire Records)
  37. . . .A uniformed, high-stepping, all-drummer marching band enters the stage from opposite ends, led by Cee Lo keeping time with a big baton.
  38. . . . The rhythm was great and infectious and sounded like the drums in Destiny’s Child’s “Lose My Breath” (2004) video.
  39. . . . Mr. Lo and Ms. Ciccone blended in a little bit of “Open Your Heart” (1985) and “Express Yourself” (1989), other Madonna hits, in a sort of dueling mode with each other.
  40. . . . Then the lights dimmed and came up to reveal a church-like choir in black and white robes on the stage with Madonna and Cee Lo singing in their midst and who have changed their garments for a spangled black robe (Cee) and a floor-length, witchy-looking concoction that looked like a tent (Madonna).
  41. . . . They swing and sway to the music.
  42. . . . Cee Lo has a good wail.
  43. . . . “Just like a prayer, I’ll take you there...”
  44. . . . Madonna continues to sing and dance with the choir and then starts lowering herself down to the floor, still dancing.
  45. . . . She looked like she was shrinking under that big dress.
  46. . . . Then she gets up, turns around and walks to the top of the stairs and singing...
  47. . . . “Life is a mystery. I hear you call my name and it feels like...”
  48. . . . PAUSE.
  49. . . . Geysers of smoke shoot up in the firmament.
  50. . . . “Home,” as she sings the last word of the song.
  51. . . . And she’s gone, no more.
  52. . . . Disappears.
  53. . . . Just like the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz when she used to take off on her broom.
  54. . . . Then a huge wide shot with thousands of lights in the background appears and the message, “World Peace,” appears in the foreground.
  55. . . . The End.
  56. . . . ASSESSMENT: A good time was had by all.
  57. . . . Madonna was obviously lip-syncing most of it; she had to be.
  58. . . . But she did do a good job of it and she had a lot to do. There were a lot of sections to the show.
  59. . . . Impressive.
  60. . . . Her brand was all over the place: Changing logos on the dance floor, etc., plus she was in promo mode for her upcoming new album, “MDNA” (coming March 26) and her 2012 World Tour, which begins May 29 in Tel Aviv.
  61. . . . It showed a lot of talent-not just Madonna’s but the whole cast’s.
  62. . . . She seemed to enjoy it all. She was a non-stop machine, going from one segment to the next, skipping along like a young girl (even though she’s 52).
  63. . . . Whoever directed the TV spectacle did an outstanding job. (He/she’ll have a job next year.)
  64. . . . On the Today show on the couch Ann Curry asked Matt Lauer what he thought of the halftime show.
  65. . . . “I liked part of it and not other parts of it,” he sorta said, not elaborating, and taking himself out of the rest of the conversation.
  66. . . . (He did, after all, interview the president of the United States in Washington yesterday, which was a much more serious endeavor than a mere entertainment show.)
  67. . . . Ann said women liked it.
  68. . . . Natalie (Morales) said “Like a Prayer” was her favorite.
  69. . . . Weatherman Al (Roker) said there was good audience reaction out there in Indianapolis and that they “set up the stage [for the halftime show] in just eight minutes!”
  70. . . . That’s saying something.
  71. . . . UH . . . He Was Really Sayin’ Somethin’-The Velvelettes, on V.I.P. Records (Motown), 1964.


rocci.fisch@gmail.com

Archives


© Rocci Fisch/Random Thoughts

Services provided by BrowserMedia.com