| World tour by Madonna | |
&sq=Envato&lang=en&file=File:Madonna_-_The_Girlie_Show_(poster).png) Promotional poster for the Tokyo concerts | |
| Location |
|
|---|---|
| Associated album | Erotica |
| Start date | September 25, 1993 |
| End date | December 19, 1993 |
| Legs | 5 |
| No. of shows | 39 |
| Box office | US$70 million[a] |
| Madonna concert chronology | |
The Girlie Show was the fourth concert tour by American singer and songwriter Madonna, in support of her fifth studio album, Erotica (1992). It began on September 25, 1993, at the Wembley Stadium in London, England, and ended on December 19 of the same year at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan.
In October 1992, Madonna simultaneously released Erotica and the coffee table book Sex. The former ended up being Madonna's lowest selling album at the time, while the latter received extensive media attention, and backlash from fans and critics; nonetheless, it was commercially successful. After the critical and commercial failure of the erotic thriller Body of Evidence starring Madonna, the tour was announced in July 1993. The 39-date tour marked the first time the singer visited places such as Turkey, Israel, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Argentina, Brazil and Australia. According to some critics, it was the singer's way to "revive" her music career following the negative reaction to the thriller. The tour took its name after an Edward Hopper painting titled "Girlie Show". Madonna's brother, Christopher Ciccone, was appointed tour director.
Like her previous Blond Ambition World Tour (1990), the concert was divided into different thematic sections: Dominatrix, Studio 54, Weimar Cabaret, and an encore. Madonna opened the show dressed as a dominatrix surrounded by topless dancers, while lighter moments included her descending from the ceiling on a giant disco ball wearing an Afro wig for "Express Yourself" (1989), as well as singing "Like a Virgin" (1984) in the guise of actress Marlene Dietrich. The Girlie Show received generally positive reviews from critics, who agreed that despite the controversy surrounding the singer, she could still please her audience. Upon completion, it was reported to have grossed US$70 million.[a]
Several organizations in different countries protested to force the cancellation of the concerts, due to their explicit sexual nature. In Puerto Rico, Madonna passed the island's flag between her legs on stage, resulting in outrage among Puerto Rican society. A number of concerts were recorded and broadcast, with the show on November 19, 1993, in Sydney, Australia being aired as a special on HBO; the following year, it was released on video under the title The Girlie Show: Live Down Under. The concerts in Fukuoka, Japan were also filmed, but broadcast exclusively on Japanese television.
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- ^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.