Madonna Pushes Back ‘Madame X’ Opening, Citing Scheduling Limitations And Venue Availability

Citing production issues, the first three performances of Madonna’s Madame X underplay tour have been postponed or canceled. 

The first three shows were scheduled to take place Sept. 12, 14 and 15 at BAM Howard Gilman Opera House in Brooklyn, N.Y. The Sept. 12 and 14 shows have been moved to Oct. 10 and 12 and tickets for the previous events will be honored at the corresponding new date. Due to “scheduling limitations and venue availability” the Sept. 15 show has been canceled. Refunds for the rescheduled dates will be made available via original ticket purchase link and refunds for the Sept. 15 show will be automatically issued. 

The opening show of the tour will now be Sept. 17 at BAM Howard Gilman Opera House. 

Madonna issued a statement on the announcement of the scheduling change, writing “Madame X Is a perfectionist and wants to give you the most unique, magical, and musical experience.  She underestimated the amount of time it would take to bring this kind of intimate theatrical experience to you and wants it to be perfect!!! Thank you so much for your understanding.”

The Madame X tour starts with an extended run at BAM, then hits Chicago Theatre in the Windy City; The Colosseum At Caesars Palace and Caesars Palace in Las Vegas; The Wiltern in Los Angeles; Wang Theatre – Boch Center in Boston; The Met Philadelphia in Philadelphia; and Fillmore Miami Beach At Jackie Gleason Theatre before heading overseas. 

The chance to catch Madonna in an intimate venue is a break from her regular fare of arenas and stadiums. Live Nation’s chairman of global music Arthur Fogel told Pollstar upon the announcement of the tour that it was an important for an artist like Madonna to change up her routing and style of touring. 

“It’s a part of what excites fans, keeps artists energized. I mean if you go out and do the same thing every tour, eventually that catches up to you. I think it’s great when people change it up, do different things, certainly, as it relates to creating music. There used to be a lot more tolerance for people changing things up and trying different things. I think doing that live is really important to longevity as well.”

Fogel also responded to claims in the New York Post that the tour was struggling to sell tickets, calling the article “absolute lies.”