Madonna Starts 'Sticky And Sweet' Tour In Wales

Even at 50, the queen of pop just can't stop courting controversy. As Madonna kicked off her international "Sticky and Sweet" tour Saturday night in Cardiff, Wales, she took a none-too subtle swipe at the presumptive Republican nominee for U.S. president.Amid a four-act show at the packed Millennium Stadium, a video interlude carried images of destruction, global warming, Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler, Zimbabwe's authoritarian President Robert Mugabe -- and U.S. Senator John McCain. Another sequence, shown later, pictured slain Beatle John Lennon, followed by climate activist Al Gore, Mahatma Gandhi and finally McCain's Democratic rival Barack Obama.The rest of the show had the usual Madonna fixtures: sequins, fishnets, and bondage-style outfits drawn from the 3,500 items of clothing reportedly whipped together by 36 designers specifically for the tour. Dancers sauntered across stage in top hats and tail coats, and Madonna tried her hand at break-dancing and pole-dancing.Some 40,000 fans, many in pink cowboy hats and boas, were treated to a heavy metal version of "Borderline," while "La Isla Bonita" served as backdrop for a flamenco routine. The show, billed as a musical mishmash of "gangsta pimp," Romanian folk, rave, and dance, was an homage to Madonna's continuous reinventions over the past three decades.She took a playful take on her variegated career, mocking dancers dressed as her previous incarnations -- including the "Material Girl" and "Blonde Ambition"-- before they sank into the stage to the tune of "She's Not Me." Madonna finished off the concert with her thumping "Give it 2 Me" from her new urban-inspired album, "Hard Candy."
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Following Cardiff's opening concert, "Sticky and Sweet" moves across Europe, hitting London's Wembley Stadium on Sept. 11 and Paris on Sept. 20. From there, it goes to North America in October before wrapping up Dec. 18 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.