Re-inventing Madonna

[Lena]

its finally out, Madonna is getting into designer's mix&match for her promising new tour , mixing her Lacroix with her D&G and her Langerfeld with her Stella's and her Givenchie's.

extracts and visuals from wwd

When Madonna kicks off her “Reinvention” tour here Monday night, she’ll be bringing along lots of her friends — at least fashion-wise. The icon has asked such designers as Christian Lacroix, who did the crystal-studded corset seen here; Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel; Dolce & Gabbana, and Stella McCartney to reinterpret some of the key looks from her past extravaganzas. And the styles are sure to reverberate through the fashion world. As Arianne Phillips, stylist and costume designer for the tour, told WWD: “No one can deny the unique relationship Madonna has with fashion and fashion has with Madonna.”

Madonna’s Latest Look

By Rose Apodaca Jones

LOS ANGELES — On Monday, when the spotlight reveals Madonna on the opening night of her Reinvention Tour at the Great Western Forum here, Christian Lacroix will be right there with her. So will Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel, Stella McCartney, Dolce & Gabbana, Jean Paul Gaultier and several more friends.

Superstars these days might not be able to leave home for tours without a high-profile European designer providing at least a couple of wardrobe changes, but leave it to Madonna to have almost all of them. The pop icon is breaking a record (if such things are kept) by taking on her 14-city North American tour — along with stops over the Atlantic in London, Paris and Arnhem, Holland — not one designer but the custom pieces from 13 of them — 14 if you count Alexander McQueen’s contributions from his archival signature and Givenchy collections.

........

Lacroix was called on to reconfigure the original couture he created for the Steven Klein-photographed portfolio that appeared in the April 2003 issue of WWD’s sister magazine W. Several of the images from that shoot will appear on screens onstage and then “come to life in the three-dimensional aspect of the costume,” said Phillips, who’s worked with Madonna since 1997. This is her second tour with the artist, following 2001’s “Drowned World Tour,” which marked the pop icon’s return to concerts following a seven-year break.

“I’m not a close friend of Madonna’s, but I always felt that she’s a very Christian Lacroix girl,” the designer said. “I remember she sent her measurements for the very first collection in 1987 and she was gorgeous in Vogue magazine in a black jacket with carnation piping and a ‘Madonna’ embroidered on her back.”

The pair, in fact, have only met once, he recalled by e-mail Wednesday, at a post-couture party for him. “Privately, I know we do have a lot of inspirations in common. And I would like to dedicate our work for her to her biggest fan in France, a friend of mine who died from AIDS a few weeks ago, who was so happy knowing I was going to create something for this tour.”

The Klein shoot, in fact, infuses the entire concert. “It had to do with the process of the performer,” said Phillips. “Madonna always talks about focusing on the process and not just the end result. If you do the best you can you’ll reach certainty in the outcome. That is the spiritual side of Madonna and something you see throughout the show.”

Klein also photographed the tour book. For that production, McQueen forwarded some 50 pieces from his own archives and designs he’d done for Givenchy Couture.

 

[Lena]

Act three goes to Chanel, with Karl Lagerfeld dressing Madonna “at her sassiest — as the sexiest chorus girl you could ever imagine,” said Phillips, who, for the sake of keeping some element of surprise, remained mum on the details of the clothes and the song list. “She shows the precociousness we love about her. This part is a wonderful Fellini-esque carnival. What’s really important to Madonna is that the show, the costumes, the choreography all have a subtext of entertainment.”

The “emotional heart of the show,” she continued, bows next. The costumes are quieter, but no less powerful. The Stella McCartney silhouette, Phillips said, “is Madonna at her best.”

McCartney, who hints at the look by referring to its masculine, bespoke styling, calls it a “less is more” moment. “She has worn my bespoke clothing a lot in the past. In fact, the first thing of mine she bought was a bespoke suit.” This particular design, the designer added, is “very Stella McCartney in spirit, but for Madonna, mixing very masculine elements with her iconic energy. It’s simple and tasteful and very wearable. But she’s playing with her masculinity and making a statement of a certain attitude and sexuality.”

Yet audiences also may find Madonna in that fourth act looking equally as striking in a black Yves Saint Laurent top, worn with trousers by Los Angeles rising star Louis Verdad, whom Phillips put on the radar only a year ago after dressing her high-profile client in his Forties-flavored clothes.

“Some of the costumes will change from night to night,” said Phillips. “It can get routine on the road, so what I learned last time is to keep an element of interest and surprise for both Madonna and the audience.”

So, for the third act, Lagerfeld designed two options and Phillips designed another.
........
Phillips designed the complete second and last acts of the five-part show. Act two is a “real rock ’n’ roll section” based on Madonna’s recent “American Life” album. And the finale, she revealed, merges hip-hop sensibilities with traditional Scottish elements, including kilts — something introduced in the last tour.

The extended wardrobe credits are a departure for Madonna, who has always relied on a single designer to costume the bulk of her tours. Her most intimate collaboration has been with Gaultier. As much as he wanted to participate, time constraints — in part due to his new charge at Hermès — made it impossible, said Phillips. But his presence is there in the shirts he sent over for the dancers.

“The generosity from the fashion community has just been incredible,” she noted.

That goes down to Madonna’s toes. Shoes are necessary for the choreography, and several designers swiftly obliged with custom pairs. There are the steep 4-inch heels, no less, from Miu Miu, and Jimmy Choo and Gina of London provided footwear for a video portion. And, Phillips noted, “Yves Saint Laurent shut down production” to make six pairs of above-the-knee leather boots with 3-1/2-inch heels, based on a favorite pair Madonna owns from a couple of seasons ago.

In a video clip, there is a costume by Jeremy Scott, and Dolce & Gabbana provided most of the undergarments.

Asked about the wardrobe budget, Phillips paused before replying: “No expense was spared, whether it was something we covered, or the designers covered. Money’s never been an issue. These fashion designers put a lot of time and energy and heart into being a part of this"

from wwd

 

[softgrey]

money wasn't an issue...hmmm...she probably didn't pay for a thing!... ...

thx lena ...

 

[Lena]

AN ITEM NOT ABOUT MADONNA: Just kidding. Madonna’s “Re-Invention” tour opens in Los Angeles today and there’s so much fashion in it that even more details keep pouring forth. The latest entrée into the fray is Banana Republic, which has contributed 50 T-shirts custom-made to Madonna’s specifications — reprising the “Italians Do It Better” silk-screened logo last seen on the Material Girl in the 1986 video for “Papa Don’t Preach.” When she sings “Papa” on tour, Madonna is said to be throwing the Banana renditions to a lucky audience member at each performance.

 

[nycgirl84]

I'm sure the costumes will be amazing. Pity they won't be draping someone better than Madonna.

 

[hollyslookingdry]

Originally posted by nycgirl84@May 24th, 2004 - 4:29 pm
I'm sure the costumes will be amazing. Pity they won't be draping someone better than Madonna.

What's wrong with Madonna?

I think the whole point is that these clothes fit her personality. If they were just going to be for some model to wear they wouldn't look nearly as exciting, in my opinion.

 

[nycgirl84]

I simply don't like Madonna. Don't like her in expensive, custom-made outfits or in a burlap sack.

 

[Plumour]

sounds wonderful

 

[Dior]

X static process




Christian L

 

[slinky_vagabond]

The key to madonna's success is reinvention, which is why this all seems to be a good choice. Gualtier is a good choice of course.

 

[stylegurrl]

The New York Post today has an article (with photos) entitled Wardrobe Malfunction, which offers their views on Madge's design choices for the tour.

NY Post

May 26, 2004 -- MADONNA's blond ambition is fading to bland.

That's evident from these exclusive photos of her costumes for the "Re-Invention" concert tour, which kicked off Monday night in Los Angeles.


The name "Re-Invention" promised some new and exciting looks, but there was no mojo in her erratic series of guises.


She wore so many kooky looks — from showgirl corsets to combat boots to the inevitable Kabbalah T-shirt — that she apeared to be having an identity crisis. Whatever happened to Madonna, the trend-setting icon?




Here's a pop star whose entire career was built on distinct fashion phases: from the black fishnets and torn T-shirts of "Lucky Star" to the white corset and tulle skirt of "Like a Virgin" and the red gown and white gloves of "Material Girl."


Just over a decade ago, when the sassy provocateur created a firestorm by displaying her blond ambition in a pointy cone bra, it would have been insane to suggest she would mellow to the point of wearing buttoned-up army fatigues onstage.


Age, religion and motherhood no doubt have had an impact on the 45-year-old mother of two — and those who attended Monday night's concert took note of the changes.


"I knew there would be a lot of politics and religion tonight. It's kind of like she's grown up, but she's still hot," said Dee Dee Kennedy, 36, a saleswoman for Ketel One Vodka, who saw Madonna 20 years ago.



Instead of a sexy, flashy, fun-filled show, concertgoers Monday night got an endless dose of political and social commentary.


She sat in an electric chair and dances and sang against a backdrop of war images, President Bush and Saddam Hussein. The sound of detonating bombs punctuated the song "American Life."


Onstage, dancers dressed like soldiers did push-ups and calisthenics as helicopters swept in and infernos blazed on the video screens behind them.


And then she sang John Lennon's "Imagine," accompanied by a video of sick and injured children from around the world.


There was religion, too — plenty of it. Madonna's passion for fashion has clearly been usurped by her fetish for Kabbalah, as evidencd by the flashes of untranslated Hebrew text displayed in the background of her performance, which hits Madison Square Garden on June 16.


In a review in yesterday's Los Angeles Times, critic Robert Hillburn begged Madonna to "bring back the sex. Or at least something with flesh and blood, please."


We just want her to bring back the cone bra.

— with Post wire services

 

[brian]

Originally posted by nycgirl84@May 24th, 2004 - 7:14 pm
I simply don't like Madonna. Don't like her in expensive, custom-made outfits or in a burlap sack.

 

[brian]

Originally posted by stylegurrl@May 26th, 2004 - 8:05 am
The New York Post today has an article (with photos) entitled Wardrobe Malfunction, which offers their views on Madge's design choices for the tour.

NY Post

!!!

...poor dear old madonna surely has lost her it factor

 

[Scott]

Boring old slag,if you ask me