So, is Madonna coming to Singapore or not?
Concert promoter remains mum, but fans are abuzz over Feb 28 show details on Madonna's website
UPDATE: The Singapore tour date has been removed from Madonna's official website.
A check on Thursday (Dec 17) morning showed that the last date for her tour in Southeast Asia is at the Mall of Asia Arena in Manila on Feb 25.
Will Madonna perform here or won't she?
The answer is "yes", at least according to her official website.
When The New Paper checked the site yesterday, it said that the 57-year-old Queen of Pop will stage a concert at the National Stadium on Feb 28 as part of her Rebel Heart world tour.
Her other stops in Asia include Taipei, Bangkok, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Macau and Manila.
According to the website, a pre-sale of the concert tickets will start today at 10am and it is exclusively for fans who purchase the Icon Live Pass for $20.
The pass includes membership into the official Madonna worldwide fan club ICON and access to the ticket pre-sale (limited to four tickets per person), among others.
The website also stated that public ticket sales start on Dec 22 at 10am.
It would be Madonna's first time performing here.At press time, concert promoter IMC Livesaid they were unable to comment.
Last month, its spokesman told The Sunday Times that they were "in the preliminary stage of working out details with the National Stadium" and that ticket prices "will be kept in the same range as pricing categories in the other Asian stops of the tour".
Tickets for the Manila show start at $93 and go up to $1,720 for VIP tickets.
Responding to queries from The New Paper, the police confirmed "that the application for a Public Entertainment Licence is currently under assessment".
A spokesman from another established concert promoter, who declined to be named, told TNP: "Usually, the announcement from the promoter and the artist will go out at the same time, so this is a little strange.
"But by the looks of it, if it is already announced on her website with ticketing details, then it looks more or less confirmed.
"However, it is a bit questionable that Madonna hasn't said anything on her social media pages."
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The controversial US star was banned from performing here in 1993 as part of her provocative Girlie Show World Tour, reported The Straits Times.
The police had rejected the application for the permit for her show on grounds that her performances "border on the obscene" and "are known to be objectionable to many on moral and religious grounds".
Fans whom TNP spoke to were excited to find out that their idol will be in town, but many have already bought tickets to her show in Bangkok on Feb 9 and 10.
Mr Hans Ibrahim, 38, a Shanghai-based creative director at an advertising agency, said: "I think I will also buy tickets to watch her in Singapore.
"I've been waiting to see her for a while now, especially after her show didn't happen in 1993."
ONE FM radio DJ Cheryl Miles will also be watching Madonna in Bangkok.
The 40-year-old, who considers Madonna a must-see on her bucket list, said: "I might not like her as much now, but it's all for nostalgia's sake.
"There was no one like Madonna who challenged and pushed boundaries for other women."
Madonna's Rebel Heart Tour supports her album of the same name. Released this year, it is her 13th album.
The tour, which kicked off in North America in September, is approaching the end of its run in Europe.
As with her previous tours, this tour is full of controversial elements, such as Madonna being tied up on a table in her own take on Leonardo da Vinci's famous The Last Supper painting, straddling a priest and gyrating alongside pole-dancing nuns.
Mr Hans, who has been a fan for the past 25 years, does not think the pop star will tone down the risque factor of her show here.
"She will go all out or not perform at all," he said.
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