MONICA NARANJO MADAME NOIR

The other night I went to see Monica Naranjo's new show Madame Noir in Madrid. I have to say it was a rare occasion indeed. Incredibly experimental, Monica has always pushed the envelope when it comes to her pop concerts. She's done the pop arena spectacle of the kind many of her fellow superstars present to their fans. Now it seems Monica has the habit of always attempting to do something not seen previously. I don't merely mean changing the name of the tour and adding male dancers as the "extra" element or building huge sets in a phallic beating of the chest (see Take That's amazing yet ridiculous new show currently sweeping the UK). Monica instead deconstructs herself as a performer and the notion of a pop concert each and every time she sits down with her creative team to embark on a new set of shows. This is why I marvel at Monica Naranjo. She is truly one of a kind and you'll never see the same show twice with her. Each tour, each night and each show is utterly different to the previous. When Monica reinvents, it is an absolute and utter reinvention not solely of her music but also of her profile, tour and reconceptualisation of the genres that define and delineate pop, cabaret, theatre and concert too. Exhilarating and incredibly brave.