The architectural brains behind Madonna's new all-girl academy in Malawi won the pop star's trust by creating a boarding school blueprint which doesn't resemble a gloomy prison for kids.
German-born Markus Dochantschi was introduced to the star by her Raising Malawi charity director and he offered to create a plan for the perfect school for free.
He tells Architectural Digest magazine that Madonna was very specific about what she wanted her Raising Malawi Academy for Girls to look like.
He says, "We were asked to design a prototype boarding school replicable by others even in different countries, without repeating the typical British-style school that you see in former British colonies.
"The design is not just about aesthetics and materials but about helping to understand the society you're building for. For example, in Africa, you realise the importance of open space, of being outside and understanding nature. So we designed a very open pedestrian campus."
Dochantschi tells the publication the school will cater for 450 students from all over Malawi - the African nation where Madonna adopted two children - and he reveals the pop star is keen for all the children who start the academy to finish with honours.
He adds, "Traditionally, a lot of girls drop out in eighth grade, shortly before they get married... Madonna hopes that the school will instill pride in their homeland, and that educated young women will understand the importance of remaining in Malawi, supporting their own communities."
The architect also reveals Madonna broke ground on the school with a shovel which featured the inscription 'Dare to dream'.
A nice image of Madonna and Lola on the set of "W.E" in London the other night illustrate an article on today's Metro about the director mum giving her daughter a cameo role in her upcoming flick.
Click to zoom.
"I was about 9 years old. I got this job in a Pepsi commercial tied to Madonna's "Like a Prayer" video. The idea was that she was in this Pepsi studio, but she was thinking back to when she was a kid. I was in a birthday party scene. They had me wear this horrible tomboy outfit, while all the other kids got to wear dresses. I remember Madonna came in to see all the kids. I was really shy, but she singled me out and held my face and said, “Doesn’t she look like somebody?” It was super cool."
"That was the only contact we had with her. When the video came out and it was so controversial they canceled the commercial. I think it ran, like, once."
Actress Mandy Gonzales, who currently plays Elphaba in “Wicked” at the Gershwin Theater in NYC, speaking to the New York Times' Erik Piepenburg about how you never forget that star-struck encounter with your Idol.
With the upcoming release of Glee: The Complete First Season on DVD and Blu-Ray details of the bonus content of the set have been announced, and "Unleashing The Power Of Madonna - How the cast performed THAT episode" is listed as part of the Special Features section.
The title will be released on September 14, 2010 in the US and the day before in the UK from Fox Video.
Results are in from the Spin magazine poll with Madonna winning in two major categories, "Best Solo Artist" and "Best Sex Goddess".
Also, "Like a prayer" was voted second best song ever and even if Madonna not touring the U.S. in 2009 made her not eligible in the "Best Live Act" category, fans voted her in the "add other Artist not listed" one and she made third place in this category.
You've heard about it here on MadonnaTribe a few days ago, and it's now time to report: Say Cheese have struck again with a third flash mob in their internationally popular video series, this time inspired to Glee's rendition of Madonna's "Vogue".
Organised by DJ Dan Murphy and starring one of Australia's most famous drag queens Joyce Maynge, the mob featured almost 100 dancers surprising late-night shoppers last Thursday August 26th at Sydney's historic Queen Victoria Building, commonly known as The QVB.
The video was made to promote the brand new dance party Say Cheese, held this Saturday night September 4th at The Forum.
The Say Cheese crew have had enormous success with their previous videos, which have now clocked up over 800,000 views on YouTube in under nine months.
Madonna is so hands-on with the production of "W.E." she's delivering her own furniture to the set. Madge is directing the film, which tracks a young, married New Yorker (Abbie Cornish) who's obsessed with the story of King Edward VIII's abdication.
"W.E" started shooting in London in July, and sources said Madonna - who is reportedly financing the picture herself - saved cash by bringing her own furniture from her house across the pond to use on the set.
Her rep wouldn't confirm the furniture move but said she was involved in "all aspects" of the movie.
In June, Madonna acknowledged its high cost to Interview: "Once I started casting and planning and working with my production designer, I went, "Oh, [bleep], I wrote a script about a bunch of rich people. That's going to be great for the budget."
Filming has now moved to New York, particularly around Sotheby's, where Cornish's character works.
It’s not too late to get into the Groove with Material Girl! Between now and September 3, 2010 12am EST, you can enter for a chance to dance for Madonna!
Enter for a chance to be choreographed by Madonna’s lead dancers and perform live for Madonna at the launch party for her the new junior brand, Material Girl. The event will take place at Macy’s Herald Square on September 22nd.
Twenty of the best dancers will become finalists and ten will be chosen by Madonna herself to dance at the Material Girl party.
Material Girl is a newly created, fast-fashion juniors collection that was inspired and designed in collaboration with Madonna and her daughter, Lola. The “Material Girl” collection is sold exclusively at Macy’s.
Visit www.materialgirlcollection.com for additional information, to enter and for full rules. (Audition time 1 minute, anything over will not be accepted). Material Girl will will be providing you with music selections to choose from for your audition. Use of any non-approved music will automatically result is disqualification. Must be between the ages of 18 to 27 years old to audition.
Nice family moments on the set of "W.E" in London the other week were published in the latest issue of German magazine "Echo der Frau".
Click the image below to enlarge the scan courtesy of MadonnaTribe friend and contributor Susanne.
These images of the MDG sunglasses collection were taken by MadonnaTribe reader Peter in one of the fashion stores in Morro Jable, Fuerteventura, Canary Islands, this week.
Madonna sent out a personal message via the Raising Malawi mailout to thank all those who made her birthday so special:
"My birthday last week was such a blessing for me. I was surrounded by dear friends, my loving family, and by you.
The notes I received from the Raising Malawi family were simply beautiful -- both in their kindness and their concern for the children of Malawi. Thank you for making my birthday so special.
The note from Sylvia in Great Britain is a message for all of us:
May Malawi, and its beautiful people, be raised through the generosity of those who share your dreams. Thank you for the work you do and the joy you give to your fans worldwide. We are all better people for being connected.
I love how Sylvia echoed the African philosophy ubuntu -- I am because we are. We do share a common fate. And we must continue to dream of a better future.
That's why it's so important that we stay connected with each other. I hope you will help us raise awareness about Malawi by joining our Facebook community:
http://www.raisingmalawi.org/connect-on-facebook
Along with the birthday wishes, many of you took the opportunity to make a donation to our work in Malawi. Again, thank you all!
From Alvaro in Mexico City to Esther in Istanbul, your generous donations totaling over $18,000 touched my heart and will change the lives of so many children. I truly cannot think of a better birthday gift.
Thank you again for being a part of this community and the work most dear to my heart."
Gratefully yours,
P.S. If you would like to donate to Raising Malawi today, I will match your donation - doubling its impact on the lives of the Malawi children.
Madonna caught out an actress on the set of her new movie 'W.E.' who couldn't speak a foreign language despite claiming she knew four.
British actress Annabelle Wallis - who plays a role in the movie about the relationship between King Edward VIII and his wife Wallis Simpson - claimed to be fluent in four languages, but was caught out on the set of the movie by Madonna, who is directing the project.
Annabelle told the Daily Telegraph newspaper: "Madonna asked me to read in the foreign parts in rehearsals, before those parts had been cast.
"I was stumbling over every word and it soon became clear that I may have been exaggerating slightly when I wrote that I was fluent on my CV."
"When you are being directed by your idol, it is not the best time to be caught out but she was actually really great about it."
In The Press: West Wycombe Park will feature in Madonna's new film
Madonna was directing scenes in West Wycombe for her new film which looks at the story of Kind Edward VIII and his love for Wallis Simpson.
The singer is making her debut as a director of W.E, which was written by the 52-year-old and Alek Keshishian.
She was at West Wycombe estate shooting scenes for the film last week which tells two parallel love stories of a woman from 1998 with a complicated love life and the story of King Edward VIII's 1936 abdication.
James Fox and Laurence Fox will play King George V and his son, Bertie.
The film has been shot in locations in London, the Home Counties, New York and France.
The estate has been used as a location for many films, including The Importance of Being Ernest and Bridget Jones' Diary.
West Wycombe Park was gifted to the National Trust in 1943 by Sir John Dashwood. The Palladian Villa is still the Dashwood family home.
The house and grounds are open in June, July and August and there are guided tours of the house from Monday to Thursday and on Sunday visitors can look around in their own time.
MaterialGirl, Macy's and Madonna are offering ten lucky winners the chance to attend the September 22, 2010 Madonna dance party held at Macy's Herald Square.
There are two ways to enter the Material Girl Get Into the Groove Contest:
Live, by visiting the Broadway Dance Studio at 322 West 45th Street, New York, New York tomorrow Thursday, August 26, 2010.
Online, by visiting materialgirlcollection.com from 12:01:00 on August 26, 2010 through 11:59:59 on September 3, 2010, downloading your dance music, and submiting your entry form.
Check out more, including the contest official rules, at www.materialgirlcollection.com by clicking the image below.
Discover a shot not yet revealed of Madonna from the Dolce & Gabbana womenswear winter 2011 campaign by Steven Klein on the designers' own web magazine Swide.
"You thought you saw and read the full Madonna for Dolce&Gabbana fall-winter story, thanks to Swide check out a very special episode.
Beautifully dressed and following the Italian family theme of the campaign, la Donna is giving her lowdown on how to wear unique tailored clothing at all occasions even the most unexpected ones.
Indeed, you never know who will ring at the door while you are tidying up the house. Always prepared, always glamorous, as shown by Madonna, femininity and sensuality do not belong to specific time slots: it is a permanent state of dressing."
View the full winter 2011 campaign by Steven Klein on Swide.
Photo credit: Steven Klein for Dolce&Gabbana.
Madonna is the secret director of Miu Miu's a/w 2010 campaign film, Elle UK reports.
The campaign film for Miu Miu's autumn/winter 2010 collection has been doing the rounds for a couple of months now and we fell for it as soon as we saw it. It stars models Lindsey Wixson, Siri Tollerřd, Ginta Lapina, and Daphne Groeneveld, all decked out in the lust-have embellished dresses that have caused such a stir paired with kitten heels, patent bags and matching eye shadow.
The girls laugh, play and throw shapes to some bass-heavy dance music backed by strobe lights. And it's just emerged where they got their moves from - Madonna was on set giving them tips.
Apparently Madonna rocked up onto the set of the Miu Miu campaign shoot to meet photographers Mert Atlas and Marcus Pigott and take them for dinner. But she got distracted and ended up directing the video instead.
Ginta Lapina told Love magazine, 'We were supposed to shoot a video, so Madonna said she wanted to direct it. They said she could do it but they weren't going to pay her and she started laughing. She put on her iPod and taught us moves and we shot the video for two hours.'
Take a look at the resulting film below and see how many signature Madonna moves you can spot:
Taylor Momsen says Madonna was just a ''normal person'' when she met her after agreeing to be the face of her new fashion line.
The actress-and-singer is the face of the pop superstar's clothing label Material Girl and she insists when she first met Madonna she was nothing like the difficult diva she is often portrayed as.
Referring to the 'Celebration' singer's 13-year-old daughter Lourdes - who Madonna worked on the range with - by her pet name, Taylor said: "Lola had been all day working with me and then Madonna came in. She shook my hand and was just so normal.
"People forget that, she's just a normal person and she was very polite and nice."
In The Media: New Madonna song on next David Guetta cd?
It seems French producer David Guetta has got permission to use the track he produced with Madonna last year on his own album.
According to the Daily Star the song will feature on a repackaged version of his One Love album, out on October 2nd 2010 for which Guetta is still recording tracks.
About meeting Madonna in the studio David admitted it he was starstruck: "It was the first time I was properly starstruck", he says.
Advertising from both the MDg collection and the "regular" sunglasses line by Dolce & Gabbana from last season were spotted and photographed by MadonnaTribe reader Piotr in the streets of the Polish city of Krakow.
Click to enlarge.
M-Scrapbook: Madonna clippings from the German press
Recent images of Madonna directing "W.E" in London and arriving at her 52nd birthday party at the Shoreditch House appeared on this week's issues of German magazines "In Touch", "Grazia", "OK" and "Die Aktuelle" (although sometimes the choice of pictures is not that fair and the accompanying stories quite random).
To check out the full size scans, brought to you by MadonnaTribe's friend and contributor Susanne, please click the images below.
"My agent told me 'Don't act nervous when you work with her, just be yourself.' We totally hit it off and I've been with [Madonna] for eight years."
Make-up artist Gina Brooke talking to the Los Angeles Times about how a challenging move from NYC to LA in year 2001 ended up with her teaming up with the Icon who was her #1 dream to work with.
"In vogue? Madonna, wearing what looks like a pair of pyjama bottoms, takes a late-night stroll in London’s Mayfair with boyfriend Jesus Luz.
She’ll have to dress up if she goes to Vegas..."
Madonna sued for naming her Macy's line ''Material Girl''
And here's New York Magazine's smart take on the news of the "Material Girl" lawsuit:
Maybe there's no point in being the Material Girl if the material you create for girls 25 years after you become the Material Girl can't bear that label. L.A. Triumph Inc. is suing Madonna for trademark infringement, claiming they have been marketing and making millions off their own Material Girl clothing line since 1997.
The company wants authorities to officially decide that Madonna's new Macy's juniors' Material Girl line is deceiving, and that Madonna must give them all profits from the Macy's line.
This sounds like creative legalese that Madonna can probably buy her way out of since she is the Material Girl.
But if she has to change the name of the Macy's line, "Like a Virgin" is equally iconic and, the clothes being targeted to 14-year-olds, much funnier.
Madonna has been hit with a lawsuit over her new "Material Girl" fashion line for teenagers by a California clothing company that says it has been using the name since 1997, Reuters reports.
L.A. Triumph filed a lawsuit against the pop superstar in the California Central District court on Thursday, just two weeks after the Madonna line went on sale in U.S. department store chain Macy's.
The company said in its suit that it has been "continually selling similar clothes in similar retail outlets at similar price points under their Material Girl brand since at least 1997, and Madonna and her newfound company do not have the right to trade in the same space under this brand."
Madonna teamed up with her 13 year-old daughter Lourdes to design the 1980s inspired clothing line, which borrows from the pop star's punk-girl style when she rose to fame in the 1980s and earned the moniker, material girl.
"Gossip Girl" star Taylor Momsen is the face of the brand.
L.A. Triumph wants the judge to rule that Madonna's use of "Material Girl" creates "deception" in the marketplace. It is also asking for Madonna and her company to turn over all the profits from their line.
Macy's on Friday declined to comment on the litigation.
Madonna's spokeswoman could not immediately be reached.
''All my Gleekers in the crowd, grab a partner take it down''
News is just in that not only Britney Spears herself will be starring in the dedicated "Glee" episode that has just been filmed, but also that one of the videos that will be re-created in the show is "Me Against The Music".
Moreover, a cheecky surprise is that this time Britney will not play herself but Madonna's role in the videoclip.
Britney herself shared the news with her fans via Twitter, first saying "Getting ready for my second day of GLEE. Shooting a really cool scene today that I know you guys will love", and then adding "All my GLEEKERS in the crowd, Grab a partner take it down", while posting a few cool behind the scenes pictures from the upcoming episode.
Called "Britney/Brittany" - as the show creator Ryan Murphy himself revealed, the episode will air in the second series of Glee.
Inspired by the Madonna performance at the 1991 Oscar ceremony, performing "Sooner or Later" in a Bob Mackie design, MadonnaTribe friends Mario and Gianni from Magia 2000 have a new Madonna doll in their OOAK series.
"At the 2006 Barbie Convention in Los Angeles we had the incredible chance to view the original dress with jewels and fur shawl and this is a special and tribute doll, from our hearts for that incredible performance and that incredible night where Madonna was together with Michael Jackson", our friends write commenting their latest creation.
"She wears a full beaded fabric dress, fully lined and hand embroidered with tiny silver beads and real Swarovski crystals for the bra part. White stretch gloves and fake soft fur shawl with crystal pendants. The doll received a professional full facial repaint with acrylic color. All accessories are handcrafted by Magia2000.
For more info about these and many more exclusive OOAK dolls from Magia2000 please visit magia2000.com. Please note that this doll is not available for sale.
MadonnaTribe reader DJ Dan Murphy is organising a dancing flash mob in Sydney, Australia next week to Glee's version of Madonna's "Vogue".
Rehearsal is next Tuesday evening at Fitness First in Darlinghurst while the performance is next Thursday evening in the Sydney, CBD.
If you're interested, please check all the details on this Facebook event link.
"Our previous flash mobs were Tweeted about by Kylie & Dannii Mingoue when we included their songs..." - Dan writes - "so fingers crossed we could get the Queen Of Pop's attention too!"
Check out their other flash mob videos which combined have had over 800,000 hits on YouTube:
Digital Media: Madonna - 2nd most downloaded female artist at Ovi Music
Ovi - Nokia's internet and music download service - released the results of a research based on downloads made by users of their Unlimited Music download service from launch to 10 August 2010.
According to their ranks, Madonna is the second most popular female solo recording artist, beaten only by Lady Gaga.
Also the stats show how Brazil, Finland and Mexico are the biggest Madonna hotspots based on global Ovi Music downloads, a service available in 36 countries around the world.
Madonna has 487 tracks available from the store - which makes 80 hours of music. Customers can access this all from www.store.ovi.com and download it for free if they have a Comes with Music Subscription.
The complete list of the Top 20 Most Downloaded Artists World Wide goes as follows:
1. Lady Gaga
2. Michael Jackson
3. Jay Chou
4. The Black Eyed Peas
5. Madonna
6. Rihanna
7. Beyoncé
8. David Guetta
9. Eminem
10. U2
As you can see on the video below, The Queen and The Princess of Pop will have a whole weekend dedicated to them on VH1 Europe on August 21 and 22: "Madonna vs Kylie". They will take over VH1 on saturday at 1pm and on sunday at 1pm & 7pm CET:
"Our ''Like a Virgin'' Queen of Pop goes body to body with Down Under''s All the Lover''s Singer."
In The Media: Liz Smith on possible Madonna and Gaga duet
"What the hell kind of name is Lady Gaga, anyway?!"
That was Madonna, squaring off with Lady G. on "Saturday Night Live" last year, in a segment that should have been much funnier than it was. Both stars did the best they could with the material, but the real sport was simply seeing the two of them together – The Empress of Pop and the current Queen.
The media is constantly comparing M and G. And naturally placing Madonna in the "envious older star" category and Gaga as the "image-snatching copycat." But even so, fans of both are dying for the singers to collaborate on something.
"Sources" say there could be a video pairing, like the one Madonna did with Britney Spears and Gaga did with Beyoncé. (Although it might be best if Gaga didn’t kiss Madonna at any point. It’s sort of a pop music urban legend that Madonna and Britney’s kiss at the MTV Awards was the beginning of Britney’s downfall. It was supposed to be Madonna "passing the torch," but the joke is "she sucked the life from her!")
Now, a video or a song is always possible between M and G, but the next bit of gossip? Don’t dress and let’s consider the saltshaker. There’s a rumor that Madonna is planning her own biopic and that she’s chosen Gaga to interpret her life.
Ahhhh … first of all, Madonna is one of those always- looking-ahead kind of people. She just turned a youthful 52, and I doubt she’s thinking in terms of biopics or autobiographies. (When she turned 50, I asked her if she’d ever retire. She said, "I will when you do, Liz!" So we agreed to be the last gals standing at the rodeo.)
Second, she’s deep into her directing project – the movie about the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, "W.E." This has consumed her more totally than anything she has ever attempted. Music, videos, her past life, her "rivals" are the last thing on her mind.
Third? Gaga has already been so closely associated with lifting many aspects of Madonna’s image, I don’t think she’d play into that by playing M onscreen.
But stranger things have happened in showbiz (Sly Stallone’s big comeback in "The Expendables!) so we never say never.
Source: Liz Smith column from www.wowowow.com
Thanks to Cam
Tue, August 17
Live, by visiting the Broadway Dance Studio at 322 West 45th Street, New York, New York tomorrow Thursday, August 26, 2010.
