The ultimate pop queen and style icon, Lady Gaga, kicked off her four-night show at Radio City Music Hall on Wednesday night. Dressed in sequins, shades and massive shoulderpads, she not only sang but performed for the packed, sold-out music hall full of devoted fans.
"The show is worth every dollar, even at a scalper rate," said R. Couri Hay, publicist and society columnist for Gotham, LA Confidential, Avenue and Hamptons Magazine. "To miss it would be to miss pop culture now."
Although the starlet's show referenced dozens of pop stars and blonde style icons from decades past, Gaga has paved an entirely new path for the American idol.
"She's doing what Madonna always dreamed of doing, but couldn't: sing and act," said Hay. "She referenced Madonna in songs and sometimes even looked like her, but she is a new creation. That's what's made her this tremendous success."
Gaga's iconic presence attracted fans of all ages to her Wednesday night show, as well as dozens of celebrities including Sting, Donald Trump, Barbara Walters and Keri Hilson.
The show was estimated to have cost $1.5 million; however, Gaga only made $1.3 in profits, additionally donating money made from one whole night of merchandizing to relief efforts in Haiti. The pop star stated that the thing she hated most in the world was money, proving that the spacey-seeming Gaga is, ironically, more down to earth than most.
Outside the venue, fans crowded the streets around Radio City in hopes of getting a glimpse of the star, who was singing and go-go dancing in a small Lower East Side bar just one year ago.
