Three hours late: Angry fans walk out on Madonna

Madonna's classics got the warmest reception from the crowd at Wednesday's Brisbane show. Photo: Bradley Kanaris

There is something breathtakingly arrogant about an artist taking to the stage late.

Madonna kept her fans waiting three hours for those who took the door time as gospel, two hours for those who figured there would be some kind of support, and 44 minutes for those who listened to the centre announcements saying she would take to the stage no earlier than 10.30pm.In the end she rocked up at 11.14.

Really, she had made fans wait 23 years to see her, so when you have been waiting that long, what's another three hours.And for the die-hard fans who had waited that long, the three hours would have felt like nothing.

For the rest of the audience, it was tiresome, annoying and meant that a show that could have been done by 11pm finished well after 1am.When she did eventually grace the Brisbane Entertainment Centre with her presence, what she offered was pretty decent.

This was no trip down memory lane, no "hey, here's what you've missed these past two decades" this was the Rebel Heart tour and Rebel Heart tracks you would receive.The album peaked at Number 1 in Australia but the singles hardly set fire to the charts, which was obvious in the audiences reception to them.

Conversely, when she wheeled out a few classics - Material Girl and Holiday being the two particular highlights - the audience were effusive in their appreciation.

Interestingly, it was on the more vintage numbers that the Queen of Pop sat more comfortably vocally. Music and La Isla Bonita both sounded fantastic and demonstrated why Madonna has enjoyed such an enduring career, while Illuminati and Holy Water sounded strained.

And while it is sacrilegious to suggest that she may not have performed the entire show live, there were definitely moments where the voice was coming through the speakers but the microphone was not at the mouth.

Production-wise, this is one of the slickest shows to roll through the entertainment centre in a while.

The show travels through a variety of themes - religion, a mechanic scene, bedrooms, carnivals ... there's a lot - and it all looks brilliant. 

Creative director Jamie King, who has also done tours for Cirque du Soliel and Britney Spears, knows how to put on a good show.

The choreography is particularly excellent and some of the show's biggest highlights are when the dancers are doing their thing.

But at the end of the day the crowd is only there to see Madonna and even the tired and slightly annoyed Brisbane audience were pleased with what she delivered.

This was, by no means, the best show that we have seen, but it was Madonna, in person, being herself and that's all anyone could ask for.

Source: Brisbane Times