Several months before attending the show, David and I created our own setlists. I think that his was more of a dream setlist, but I did my best to make mine as realistic as possible. I was anxious to see how close that I would be. This is the setlist that I created:
- Illuminati
- Iconic
- Borrowed Time
- Hollywood
- Hung Up / Addicted
- Ghosttown
- Give Me All Your Luvin'
- Bitch I'm Madonna
- Girl Gone Wild
- Vogue
- Borderline
- Turn Up the Radio
- Give It 2 Me
- Unapologetic Bitch
- Devil Pray
- Holy Water
- Erotica / S.E.X.
- Human Nature
- Veni Vidi Vici
- Rebel Heart
- Celebration
- Like a Prayer / Living for Love
I was, however, way off on my predictions. The only "dream" inclusion was a mashup of "Hung Up" and "Addicted." I knew that she wouldn't perform "Addicted," anyway, let alone perform it mashed up with "Hung Up" (but I sure do wish that someone would do that). Although I was wrong about what song that she would open with, my expectation was that "Iconic" would, at the very least, be near the beginning of the show, and I was right about that, as the show opened with "Iconic." I was also right about "Devil Pray" and "Holy Water" being played back to back, but it was actually in reverse order and closer to the beginning of the show. Aside from that, I was terribly wrong, and it really pains me to admit that I was, overall, disappointed with what I got. I would have preferred my setlist. For starters, Madonna closed with a pretty generic performance of "Holiday," violating my expectation that she would close with "Living for Love" (since closing with the lead single from the associated album is essentially what she has done since the Drowned World Tour in 2001). The main reason why I was disappointed with that is that she has closed so many tours with "Holiday," so it was nothing new. The Who's That Girl world tour, The Girlie Show, and the Re-Invention World Tour all closed with "Holiday." I was also really disappointed with the "Living for Love" performance itself. It was essentially the same performance that we have seen in the past (with the cape and the minotaurs), and I was quite honestly fine with that. It worked in the past, and I didn't mind being presented with something familiar but also still fresh. What I didn't like, however, was that it was a remix that was performed, a remix that essentially killed the power and strength of the chorus.
I did not spoil myself regarding the setlist prior to seeing the show. I wanted to be surprised by what I heard, but before going in, I determined that she would most definitely perform "La Isla Bonita." I didn't put that on my predicted setlist because it didn't occur to me until afterward that Madonna always performs "La Isla Bonita." It must be a favorite of hers because ever since the song was released on True Blue in 1986, she has performed it on every single tour. It's a good song and is certainly a classic, but it's getting old. I found myself really disappointed with the setlist overall because aside from the Rebel Heart songs that she performed, most of the songs that were included were old songs from the eighties that have been done time and time again ("Burning Up," "Material Girl," "Everybody," "Lucky Star," etc.). I understand that they're classics, but absolutely nothing from American Life (my favorite Madonna album and also the album that I feel fits the best with the rebel theme) was performed, and only one song between Music and Rebel Heart was performed, which was "Candy Shop" from 2008's Hard Candy. "Candy Shop" is not a single, but this seems to be another song that Madonna enjoys performing live because she has done so on every tour since the Sticky & Sweet Tour. Although they were not on my setlist (because, as I said, it was primarily meant to be a realistic prediction, not a dream setlist), I really would have liked to have heard more Rebel Heart songs like "Inside Out," "Wash All Over Me," and "Hold Tight." It is also a sin that she didn't perform "Veni Vidi Vici" because even though it isn't really one of my favorites from Rebel Heart, the reflective, introspective nature of it made it a necessity to perform on the tour, and it should have either been near the beginning of the setlist or near the end.
There were, for me, three primary highlights of the show. The first was the fourth song performed, a medley of "Holy Water" and "Vogue." This performance reminded me of The Girlie Show (the tour to promote the 1992 album Erotica), primarily because of its provocative, sexual nature (see performance here). I remember leaning over to David and saying that if she hadn't already taken heat from conservatives, she surely would. Much to my surprise, I have not seen any related headlines. Another highlight for me was her acoustic performance of "True Blue." Although an oldie, she hasn't performed the song in nearly twenty years, and, as I said, it was an acoustic rendition (see here), and it was absolutely beautiful. I cannot wait for a studio version to surface. The third highlight for me was the title track, "Rebel Heart." Although I was disappointed (but not the least bit surprised) that she performed the album version of the song as opposed to the superior Avicii demo version, it was still such a surreal experience to hear the melody live. The Avicii demo is the first song from this era that I (and probably most Madonna fans) heard, and I was blown away by how good that it was. If the album had collectively lived up to the standards set by that demo, then it most certainly would have been her best album yet. Although I couldn't see it all very well, a video played while Madonna sang the song, a video featuring fanmade artwork and whatnot, and near the end of the performance, I felt overwhelmed by emotion and got teary-eyed. As I said, it was just a really surreal experience to hear that song being performed live in front of me.
The majority of the remainder of the show was, however, rather disappointing, especially since, overall, it did not match the intended goal of the era - which was, as it has been put (even in the intro of the show), a revolution. "Messiah" is a beautiful song, one of my absolute favorites from the album, and although I am glad that it was included at all (I honestly didn't expect that it would be), it deserved to be actually performed rather than serve as an interlude. I really enjoyed most of the outfits (especially this utterly beautiful, colorful dress worn during the middle section of the show), but as I said, I didn't have the greatest view. That's why I can't really effectively review the dancing, the props, etc.; I didn't get a good view. In fact, David tried to point out a depiction of the Last Supper to me, but I couldn't see it. It's a shame that tickets to see her are so majorly overpriced because I would have immensely enjoyed myself had the seats been better. Madonna seemed really free and happy, and all that I could think throughout a majority of the show was how lucky the people on the bottom floor near the stage were. Even the merchandise was majorly overpriced. I got a t-shirt because I wanted a keepsake, but it was $40. Hoodies were, I believe, $75. David and I wanted programs but did not get them because I believe that they were $30 apiece. Again, I don't know who decides on these prices, but it's ridiculous. Seeing Madonna was on my mental bucket list, and I feel so lucky and blessed that I was able to make that a reality, but if I were ever to see her again, it probably wouldn't be unless it were close and/or if I had the money to afford (a) better seat(s) because otherwise, I don't think that it would be worth it. I think that I will get much more out of this tour when I see it on blu-ray or DVD than I did seeing it live.
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