Often characterized as one of the hardest-working people in show business, Madonna worried fans in June when a serious bacterial infection sent the 64-year-old icon to the hospital just weeks before her Celebration World Tour was set to begin. The seven-month, 45-city tour was put on hold as the star recovered, but now it appears she’s ready to return to the road, as Madonna promised Friday that new dates for the concert series would be announced in coming days.
According to longtime friend and collaborator Guy Oseary, Madonna was rushed to a New York hospital on June 24 with “a serious bacterial infection which led to a several-day stay in the ICU.”
“We need to pause all commitments, which includes the tour,” Oseary announced on Instagram on June 28. “We will share more details with you as soon as we have them, including a new start date for the tour and for rescheduled shows.”
The next day, Madonna was discharged from the hospital and returned home, CNN reported at the time. It wasn’t until July 10 that fans heard from the singer, when she said via Instagram that though “I did not want to disappoint anyone who bought tickets for my tour,” she needed to focus on “my health and getting stronger.”
“The current plan is to reschedule the North American leg of the tour and to begin in October in Europe,” she said then, news that was reiterated by promoter Live Nation in a press release the same day, with rescheduled dates to “be announced as soon as possible.”
It appears that announcement is almost at hand, as via Instagram stories and X (formerly Twitter), Madonna announced Friday that “the re-routed tour schedule will be coming in the next few days.”
Twitter content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
According to People, the new dates “will be available soon in a post on her Instagram Story.” It’s expected that under the new schedule, the first performance of the show, a live 40-year retrospective, will be on October 14 at London’s O2 Arena, with dates throughout Europe scheduled until mid-December. As of publication time, Madonna’s already-scheduled North American tour dates begin on December 13 at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, with shows still planned in the U.S. and Mexico through the end of January.
Given that, it’s likely that the new dates will fall later in 2024, but current ticketholders need not worry. According to Live Nation, “fans are encouraged to hold onto their tickets as they will be valid for the new dates once announced,” or, as Madonna put it, she will “see you soon for a well-deserved Celebration!!”