Madonna celebrates 40 years with career-spanning concert at United Center

Not since Einstein has someone made us pay so much attention to time as Madonna.

Over the course of her global Celebration Tour, there have been countless headlines about Madge’s late arrival to the stage, particularly after a pair of fans went so far as to sue the pop star for her tardiness at a Brooklyn date in December.

She’s still not exactly prompt — the advertised showtime of 8:30 p.m. became 9:56 p.m. for her Thursday night concert at the United Center. That said, the focus of Madonna’s first-ever retrospective tour is the astute ways in which she examines the passage of time in her life, and how she continues to still stay ahead of it.

“Are you ready to hear the story of my life?” Madonna prompted the very done-up crowd as she kicked off the 25-song, two-hour set, which paid tribute to the 40 years since her 1983 self-titled debut, weaving a tapestry of her life journey — for better or worse.

A video prologue started the look back, explaining how, at 19-years-old, the Michigan native arrived in New York City in 1978 with $35 in her pocket. As the show progressed, the dueling, rotating circle stage and runway thrusts were decorated with remnants of all her personal reinventions.

Kevin Mazur/WireImage for Live Nation

There were background sets of New York subway scenes and skylines, notes of her Marilyn-esque Blond Ambition era, all the erotica of her Truth and Dare epoch and flashes of her more recent Madame X days, all told through a dizzying amount of creative themes (boxing rings, strip clubs, religious pantomime, wild west holdups, futuristic VR, and on and on).

Among the best were “Vogue,” presented as a full-on fashion show that paid homage to New York City nightlife; “Live To Tell,” a gripping tribute to the many who have died from AIDS; and the sinner’s delight of “Like A Prayer” that mixed in parts of Sam Smith and Kim Petras’ “Unholy.”

Gone are the days where topline artists offer mere full album plays to commemorate big anniversaries. We are living in the “Eras” moment, where full careers are explored. Where Madonna and her team upped the ante was finding a way to bring in narrative elements to make the Celebration Tour come off as a real-time documentary or living museum of sorts, with Madonna as host and curator.

There were some interesting creative elements to pad the concept. Like when the entire two-dozen dance ensemble appeared during the finale of “B - - - - I’m Madonna” dressed in period wear from the fashion icon’s capsule collection (cone cups and “A League Of Their Own” uniform included). At several points, Madonna was also joined by her “past life” shadow — a dancer wearing a silicone mask and an iconic Queen of Pop look — fully interacting with the mute figure.

Selena Fragassi/For the Sun-Times

The tour does have an emcee, the affable Bob the Drag Queen, who provided narration to keep the sometimes lagging story moving. But it was the moments when Madonna took the mic that were the most memorable. In particular, ahead of a tender solo acoustic take on “Express Yourself” in which she opened up about the serious illness last June nearly claimed her life and postponed the tour’s kickoff.

“This summer I almost died. When I was in an induced coma, the first thing I said coming out of it was ‘no.’ I think God said to me, ‘Are you ready to go?’ And I said, ‘no.’”

A few of Madonna’s children were in tow for the show. Daughters Stella and Estere took turns in some of the dance routines, while Mercy played the piano for an emotional rendition of “Bad Girl.” It was one of the few instrumentals of the night as the pop star opted for pre-recorded backing tracks instead of a live band, resulting in an overriding hollowness to the show.

But there were lags — some incredibly odd pacing, some off-key vocal moments and some very awfully placed dropdown screens that blocked a number of sightlines. Madonna’s incredible dancers stepped in to save the day. The troupe continues to be one of the highlights of the show and go to extremes to fit her artistic vision (even appearing topless for a song).

Madonna’s attempts like these to remain controversial have fallen apart at the seams, which is perhaps more a commentary on society than it is on the agent provocateur. But she still manages to get the last laugh. As she says at one point, “I think the most controversial thing I’ve done is to stick around.”

Madonna returns to the United Center for a second and final show Feb. 2.

SET LIST

ACT I

• Nothing Really Matters
• Everybody
• Into the Groove
• Burning Up
• Open Your Heart
• Holiday

ACT II

• Live to Tell
• Like a Prayer
• ACT III
• Erotica
• Justify My Love
• Hung Up
• Bad Girl

ACT IV

• Vogue
• Human Nature
• Crazy for You

ACT V

• Die Another Day
• Don’t Tell Me
• Mother and Father
• Express Yourself
• La Isla Bonita
• Don’t Cry for Me Argentina (Andrew Lloyd Webber cover)

ACT VI

• Bedtime Story
• Ray of Light
• Rain

ACT VII

• B - - - - I’m Madonna