RIO DE JANEIRO –
Madonna performed a free concert on Copacabana Beach on Saturday night, turning Rio de Janeiro’s vast stretch of sand into a massive dance floor packed with a throng of adoring fans.
It was the last show of The Celebration Tour, their first retrospective tour, which began in October in London.
The “Queen of Pop” kicked off the show with her 1998 hit “Nothing Really Matters.” The boisterous crowd pressed against the fences cheered. Others followed the concert at parties in brightly lit apartments and hotels overlooking the beach. Helicopters and drones flew over the area, while boats and sailboats near the stage filled the bay.
“Here we are in the most beautiful place in the world,” Madonna told the crowd. Pointing to the view of the sea, the mountains and the Christ the Redeemer statue overlooking the city, she added: “This place is magical.”
Madonna performed her hits, including “Like A Virgin” and “Hung Up.” For the introduction of “Like A Prayer,” her head was completely covered with a black cape and she was carrying a rosary in her hands.
The star paid a moving tribute to “all the bright lights” lost to AIDS while singing “Live to Tell,” featuring black and white photos of people who died from the disease.
Later, he was joined on stage by two young Brazilian artists. Anitta judged a dance competition with “Vogue” and Pabllo Vittar danced to a version with samba musicians of “Music” for which everyone, including Madonna, wore t-shirts similar to those of the Brazilian soccer team and the Brazilian flag on the screens in the background of the stage.
Rio spent the last few days preparing for the performance.
The city council said an attendance of around 1.5 million spectators was expected, 10 times more than Madonna’s record of 130,000 attendees at the Parc des Sceaux in Paris in 1987. Madonna’s official website had announced the show as the biggest in his four-decade career.
In recent days, the commotion was palpable. Fans milled outside the majestic beachfront Copacabana Palace hotel, where Madonna stayed, hoping to catch a glimpse of the pop star. During the sound check on the stage in front of the hotel, they danced in the sand.
Around noon on Saturday, hundreds of fans had gathered in front of the hotel. A man with a white beard carried a sign that said: “Welcome Madonna, you are the best, I love you.”
Flags with the word “Madonna” printed on Copacabana’s signature black-and-white wavy-pattern sidewalks hung from balconies. The area was packed with street vendors and attendees dressed in themed t-shirts, sweating under the scorching sun.
“Since Madonna came here, I have been coming every day in this outfit to welcome my idol, my diva, my queen of pop,” said Rosemary de Oliveira Bohrer, 69, who was wearing a gold cone bra. and a black cap.
“It’s going to be an unforgettable spectacle here in Copacabana,” said Oliveira Bohrer, a retired civil servant who lives in the area.
Eighteen sound towers were spread along the beach to ensure that everyone in attendance could hear Madonna’s hits. Their two-hour show began at 10:37 pm local time, almost 50 minutes late.
The city council prepared a report in April estimating that the concert will inject 293 million reais ($57 million) into the local economy. Hotel capacity was expected to reach 98% in Copacabana, according to Rio’s hotel association. Enthusiasts from all over Brazil and even Argentina and France sought accommodations at Airbnbs for the weekend, the platform said in a statement. And Rio’s international airport had forecast 170 additional flights from May 1 to 6, from 27 destinations, City Hall said in a statement.
“It’s a unique opportunity to see Madonna, who knows if she’ll ever come back,” said Alessandro Augusto, 53, who flew from the state of Ceará, about 2,500 kilometers (1,555 miles) from Rio.
“Welcome queen!” said the Heineken ads plastered all over the city, with the letters over an image of a cork that resembled a crown.
Heineken wasn’t the only company seeking to profit from the excitement, as bars and restaurants are said to be making “Like a Virgin” cocktails, named after Madonna’s 1984 hit. A store in the famous downtown neighborhood By selling Carnival outfits she completely reinvented herself, stocking her shelves with Madonna-inspired costumes, fans, fanny packs and even underwear.
The organization of the mega-event was similar to New Year’s Eve, when millions of people gather in Copacabana for the world-famous fireworks show, local authorities said. That annual event often results in widespread robberies and muggings, and there was some concern that such problems could occur at Madonna’s show.
The security plan for the state of Rio included the presence of 3,200 soldiers and 1,500 civil police on alert. Prior to the concert, the Brazilian Navy carried out inspections on the ships that wanted to position themselves at sea to follow the show.
Large concerts have taken place on Copacabana Beach, including a 1994 New Year’s Eve show by Rod Stewart that attracted more than 4 million fans and was the largest free rock concert in history, according to Guinness World Records. . However, many spectators had come to see the Rio fireworks show, so a more apt comparison might be that of the Rolling Stones in 2006, which saw 1.2 million people crammed into the arena, according to the Rio military police quoted by the Folha de São Paulo newspaper at the time.
Ana Beatriz Soares, a fan who was in Copacabana on Saturday, said Madonna has left her mark for decades.
“Madonna had to run so today’s pop artists could walk. That’s why it’s important, because she serves as an inspiration for today’s pop divas,” Soares said.
“And that was 40 years ago. Not 40 days, 40 months. It’s 40 years,” she said.