Fans sue pop queen Madonna after show started two hours late

The class action was instigated over a delayed start to the Brooklyn leg of the veteran pop queen’s Celebration Tour.

The claimants said Madonna had a history of late arrivals. Picture: Getty Images

Arriving on stage after midnight one evening at the Colosseum in Las Vegas, Madonna addressed a crowd that had been waiting for hours. “There’s something that you all need to under- stand,” she said. “And that is, a queen is never late.”

Now two of her fans are challenging that notion in court, arguing that Madonna’s late arrival inconvenienced people who came out to see her, particularly those with families waiting at home and work in the morning.

Michael Fellows and Jonathan Hadden say they bought tickets for a Madonna concert last December at an arena in Brooklyn. Fellows, from Brooklyn, paid $US155.90 ($235) for his ticket; Hadden, from the Bronx, bought two for $US292.50, according to the lawsuit.

“The terms and conditions printed on the face of the tickets stated that the musical performance by Madonna was to occur on December 13, 2023, at the venue, commencing at 8.30pm,” they say. But they claim it started more than two hours late.

“Madonna finally took the stage between 10.45pm and 11pm,” their suit says, claiming the show did not finish until 1am.

Julia Garner and Madonna at Barclays Center in December. Picture: WireImage for Live Nation

The diva’s Brooklyn fans were fed up. Picture: WireImage for Live Nation

Fans leaving the arena “were confronted with limited public transport”. “In addition, many ticket holders who attended concerts on a weeknight had to get up early to go to work and/or take care of family responsibilities the next day.”

The class action suit, which seeks compensation for Hadden, Fellows and other fans, says Madonna arrived on stage two hours late the next night, and the night after that. They have sued Madonna, the Barclays Center where the concerts took place, forming part of her Celebration Tour, and the events company Live Nation.

In 2015, during her Rebel Heart. Picture: AFP

The claimants argue “Madonna has a long history of starting her concerts late”. “This history occurred throughout her 2016 Rebel Heart Tour, her 2019-2020 Madame X Tour and prior tours, where Madonna continuously started her concerts over two hours late.”

In Britain, in 2015, when Madonna arrived on stage an hour late in Manchester, she was said to have scolded fans who dared complain. “If you diva bitches want to keep complaining about it then don’t come to my show,” she told them, according to a report at the time. A technical glitch was responsible, she said. “I’m not back there eating chocolate and filing my nails and getting my extensions done, all right?”

During the Madame X tour in 2019, Madonna arrived on stage in Las Vegas at 12.15am, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. It reported that 500 fans had already left, while others greeted her with chants of: “Refund!”

It was noted at the time that rock bands with a reputation for debauchery were more prompt. Guns N’ Roses were said to have shown up close to the appointed time and the Rolling Stones could be relied on to finish by 11pm. When Lady Gaga played a series of concerts, signs were posted announcing, “8pm ON STAGE”, which some saw as a reference to Madonna’s shows.

It’s not the first time Madonna’s fans have become fed up. In 2020, a fan from Queens and another from New Jersey filed a similar complaint, alleging that a concert on September 21, 2019, due to start at 8.30pm did not begin until 11.30pm, while another on October 1 did not begin until 10.40pm. The suits were later voluntarily dismissed.

Madonna, Live Nation and the Barclays Center have not responded to a request for comment.

The Times