Live Performances
Madonna first performed the song during the Girlie Show World Tour in 1993. It was the fourth song of the concert, after the performance of "Vogue", Madonna and her back up singers Niki Haris and Donna De Lory appeared on the stage wearing long black see through robes on top of the bead incrusted outfits they wore for the "Vogue" performance. This performance included, during the bridge of the song, a fragment of Motown group The Temptations' 1971 hit "Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)". Jon Pareles of the New York Times in his review of the concert stated that "On stage, the music isn't so resolutely contemporary. With a live band, directed by Jai Winding on keyboards, the music looks back to Motown (quoting "Just My Imagination" in "Rain"), girl groups and James Brown". After the performance of the song was finished, while Madonna and her back up singers left the stage for a costume change, an interlude featuring a pierrot and several dancers in black outfits and with umbrellas started. This interlude featured a choreography partially inspired in the classic Gene Kelly musical Singin' in the Rain and an instrumental version of the song. Madonna, herself called Kelly asking for advice regarding the dancing for that particular part of the show.
"Rain" was not included on any of Madonna's concert tours until 15 years later. During the 2008-2009 Sticky & Sweet Tour the song was remixed using elements of The Eurythmics' 1984 hit Here Comes the Rain Again. After the energetic performance of "Music", Madonna and her dancers disappeared from the stage behind two video screens that closed as if they were train doors. This gave way to the gypsy segment of the show, which started with the "Rain" interlude, which featured the Japanese dancing duo Hamutsun Serve. It also included a lowering round-shaped video screen on the catwalk. The screen was used to simulate the rain as blue lights flashed across the stage, creating lightning. The interlude featured the screens showing a CG animation of a rainy day and a fairy taking shelter from the rain under a leaf and witnessing the transformation of a caterpillar to a butterfly. The interlude was praised by critics, some of them called it "spell-binding". At the end of the interlude, the screen raised to reveal a robe-clad Madonna perched on top of a grand piano and she proceeded to sing the next song "Devil Wouldn't Recognize You".
Read more about this topic: Rain (Madonna Song)
Famous quotes containing the words live and/or performances:
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