2023-10-15 15:27:00
Madonna is back and she has done it with a bang with the premiere of her Celebration Tour in London. A tour that has been modified and delayed (finally begins in Europe and not in the United States as initially planned) after the serious health setback that the singer suffered last June. In the words of her representative, “a serious bacterial infection that led her to spend several days in the intensive care unit” and “putting all of her commitments on hold.”
But three and a half months later, Madonna has not only reappeared in top form but she has done so by making a plea against ageism. The artist born in Bay City (Michigan) 65 years ago has reviewed great hits such as Holiday, Like a Prayer, La Isla Bonita, Justify My Love (performed for the first time since 1993) or Hung Up with complex choreographies, accompanied as always by her dancers, and true to their trademark of introducing sex as part of the show. Because for Madonna nothing has an age, sex, of course, doesn’t either.
Madonna performing in London. Photo: Getty
Two years ago, when she celebrated the anniversary of her book SEX, Madonna wrote on her social networks: “30 years ago, I published a book titled SEX. In addition to including photographs in which she appeared naked, there were photos of men kissing men, of women kissing women, and mine kissing everyone. I also wrote about my sexual fantasies and shared my views on sexuality. I spent the next few years being interviewed by closed-minded people who tried to shame me for my way of empowering myself as a woman. They called me a whore, a witch, a heretic and even a demon. Now, Cardi B can write about her vagina. Kim Kardashian can appear on any cover with her bare buttocks. And Miley Cyrus can come like a wrecking ball. You’re welcome, bitches.”
Despite the attacks she has received throughout her career, Madonna has never stopped putting sex at the center of her unique way of understanding the show. Dressed for much of the London concert in lingerie – first in red with high boots and a blindfold and then in blue – Madonna made it clear that age is no impediment to continue playing to provoke and even make everyone uncomfortable. the limits of sexual freedom. “If people talked more about sex freely, we would have more people practicing safe sex and also less sexual abuse,” said the singer regarding the commotion and cancellation caused by the publication of her book SEX The professor, essayist and winner Pulitzer’s Louis Menand said in his book American Studies (2003): “Madonna is a leader, a spokesperson for safe sex.”
Madonna singing during her concert in London. Photo: Getty
Madonna’s attitude towards sex is even more transgressive in 2023 than it was in the past. Now the queen of pop also has to face the age factor, one more reason for misogyny to affect women. “Women have been brainwashed to hate our bodies. It’s a fact,” said Emma Thompson about her naked scene in Good Luck, Big Leo, a film that opened the debate about the taboo of showing naked bodies when the protagonists have passed the age of 50.
The stigmatization of female aging has been a constant in an entertainment industry that deliberately ignores actresses and singers as they age. These are some of the messages that Madonna received online a few days before entering the ICU and in the middle of rehearsals for the Celebration Tour. “Girl, please accept that you are getting older”, “enough cosmetic surgery”, “you have to accept your age before you break down psychologically”, “no one wants to kiss someone who is 60”, “pay to see her break her hip in the scenario?”, “brain dead” or “seriously, you better leave. You haven’t done anything good or interesting in years. Only you continue to think you are relevant.”
Madonna at a moment during her concert in London. Photo: Getty
«Once again I am caught in the glare of ageism and misogyny that permeates the world we live in. A world that refuses to celebrate women over 45 and feels the need to punish them if they continue to be strong, hardworking and adventurous,” said the singer after participating in the Grammys last February. But throughout her career, Madonna has cared little about what others thought. And today, after going through a health problem that almost led to her death, even less so. She has her own antidote to misogyny and ageism. Her first concert at the 02 Arena in London ended up being what all fans expected: provocative, uncomfortable and very festive. And no matter how many years pass.
Madonna with two dancers. Photo: Getty
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