“Gaga Chromatica Ball” (2024) features Lady Gaga’s seventh headlining concert tour and first all-stadium tour filmed on September 10, 2022 at LA’s Dodgers Stadium with 52,344 Little Monsters attending. HBO aired the special. Chromatica refers to the title of her sixth album, which was released in 2020 and returns to her roots as a dance music artist. The tour was rescheduled twice because of COVID.
Due to popular demand, constant attention and flattery, “Gaga Chromatica Ball” got on my radar, but I watched it because I genuinely enjoy her work, and it was a bright spot in a rather gloomy week. Who does not need a little Gaga affirmation to get through some rough times. I still have not gotten around to “Joanne.” Y’all, I even have her Tony Bennett collaborations. I’m sorry. I don’t know why. My condolences. I still need to see her season of “American Horror Story” because I’ve seen the clips of her with Denis O’Hare, and I am so obviously going to love it. What am I waiting for?!? I’m even here for her “Nurtec ODT Commercial” (2023). It is ridiculous, but I kept thinking of it as I was watching “Gaga Chromatica Ball” because it is the first time that I saw her in a (simulated?) concert setting.
Let’s do the intellectual analysis. Is it a concert film and/or a television special? It did not get a theatrical release, but nowadays plenty of movies go straight to streaming. Let’s say it is both, but for whatever reason, some refuse to classify it as the prior possibly because it is more structured and stylized than a simple recording from a concert goer’s point of view, but the latter is the predominant standpoint. If it is a television special, then it is the seventh that she produced. Gaga defying categorization is not new, and a definitive fit is not necessary to enjoy the show. Also concert film is not a genre that I often consume, and I’ll leave room for the experts and seasoned fans of the genre to argue over it. I still need to see “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” (2023) and “Renaissance: A Film by Beyonce” (2023), which are unquestionably, very successful concert films that currently occupy the first and sixth spot respectively for highest grossing concert film. Otherwise it is not a genre that I’m interested in other than the classic, “Madonna: Truth or Dare” (1991), which had an early reality television vibe with its glimpses backstage, which you should not expect to glimpse in Gaga’s movie.
No matter how great a concert film is, it is not the same as being there in person and getting that rush of energy a group of people exchange with a performer executing unimaginable zenith of artistic prowess in the wild. The undeniable adulation of the crowd is palpable in “Gaga Chromatica Ball.” Seeing a bunch of guys lip-synching, “I’m a Free Woman,” is not necessarily something that you would notice in the flesh because you would be so wrapped up in your own experience. So cute! Yes, you are. One man clad in neon green with a deep tan just looked so awe struck, and I’m so happy that he and many others got to have such a transcendent, blissful experience.
The closing credits state that Gaga directed “Gaga Chromatica Ball,” but IMDb gives the lead co-director title to Kerry Asmussen. Either way, it is Gaga’s feature directorial premiere, which means that Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta can add another accomplishment to her already voluminous list of accomplishments: singer, songwriter, and actor. She is not just phoning it in just to say that she did it. You don’t need to be a concert film expert to recognize that Gaga has a creative vision and is not just making a commercial product to promote her latest album—not that there is anything wrong with doing that. Get money. Ransom for kidnapped fluffy babies does not just grow on trees.
Like everything that Gaga does, “Gaga Chromatica Ball” is very theatrical. It has a prelude, four acts and a finale, but the prelude is the only section that starts without the benefit of a title card. Each section begins with a short, prerecorded video interlude of Gaga, and they are so abstract, atmospheric and brief that it is hard to think of their significance within the overall narrative. The interludes are just accepted as experimental, artsy fartsy shorts. There are two stages: the main rectangular stage that traditionally gets used in a live performance then a walkway from the main stage to a smaller, circular stage in the center of the stadium where her appearance becomes more intimate and stripped down except for her piano which resembles a cross between a petrified tree or the Nostromo from “Alien” (1979). It also recalled the large bas-relief on the wall of “The Devil’s Advocate” (1997) because the structure of the piano seemed as if it could turn into a moving, living being or some creature could crawl out from inside of it. Side note: sculptor Frederick Hart sued Warner Brothers because he said that the film’s art resembled “Ex Nihilo,” and the matter was settled. Further side note: “Chromatica” cover art evokes “Barberalla” (1968), which was not a noticeable element in the concert so while the title and many of the songs come from an album, it does not dominate the concert’s theme.
“Gaga Chromatica Ball” is all about dynamic movement. The camera is often moving as if it is one of the dancers. The editing style is generally rapid with a deliberate glitch instead of creating a smooth transition, which is reminiscent of “American Horror Story” or other horror media which creates an unsettling mood. There is not a lot of opportunity to create the illusion of being there, sitting in one spot and enjoying the show. Gaga and Asmussen are transparent in forcing the viewer to look at where they want unless you are very deft with the remote control’s pause button. If movement is one of the primary tools used to tell the narrative, then it starts with Gaga far away and restricted in terms of stage direction, clothing and literal distance from the dancers, musicians and audience. Then as the concert unfolds, she removes more layers, moves closer to her supporting performers and the audience. That center, circular stage is where she is closest to being herself, but never to the point of seeming natural as she did in “Joanne” or “A Star is Born” (2018) where she is not obviously wearing a costume or a lot of makeup. She is still performing a role, not creating the illusion of being herself even as she delivers an amazing, comedic and inspirational tone as she says, “I feel a lot of people that know exactly who they are. And you know what, if you don’t know who you are yet, that’s all right, cause someday, you’re gonna find out.” (Think a dramatic pause at the last word before uttering the next line.) It is almost worth seeing the concert for that moment alone. If there is a cohesive message, Gaga stands a little bit apart from us and struggles to get close, but it is not fully possible.
I preferred the first half because of its cinematic quality. The prelude and first act are the most impactful and seemed to pay homage to movies. The positioning of the dancers reaching up for Gaga as she is encased seemed visually like “Metropolis” (1927), a Fritz Lang German expressionist silent science fiction film in which a rigid class structure is enforced by swapping out a working-class woman activist in the City of Workers with a robot. Her thick visor while encased felt like an allusion to “RoboCop” (1987) meets “Bride of Frankenstein” (1935). The first act’s dance choreography and costumes felt like an allusion to Luca Guadagnino’s remake, “Suspiria” (2018). The makeup also makes Gaga seem more intense than usual. The “Babylon” performance combined the Bangles “Walk Like an Egyptian” ancient civilization reference, the golden aesthetic of the Sovereign in “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2” (2017) and Madonna’s “Vogue.”
It is impossible not to think of Madonna when watching Gaga, but not because Gaga is derivative. Gaga uses Madonna’s style as a jumping off point then chooses to emphasize something completely different in her reimagining of the cultural reference. For instance, in 1990, Madonna and “Paris Is Burning” introduced voguing, a dance style that the LGBTQA community evolved from high fashion couture modeling poses struck in magazines and invented in the 1980s as part of 1960s Harlem ballroom culture, to the mainstream. Gaga’s use of the word “ball” in her work seems similarly inspired. While both Italian American women with roots in New York City are clearly connected to that community, Gaga explicitly references LGBTQA+, and it is impossible to consume her work and ignore her cultural roots.
Also Paul Gauthier’s iconic cone bra and black pin stripe suit with cut outs and garter straps seem to inspire some of Gaga’s looks, which change the location of the spikes. These spikes are no longer exaggerating sexualized zones, but shoulders and other body parts that carry less erogenous significance. It is like the eighties when women wore huge shoulder pads, severe or baggy clothes that hung on women—women aiming for male power without being in male drag by obscuring their curves or differences. By embracing a unisex style or emphasizing more neutral body parts, the impact is different. Gaga’s androgyny is somehow still sexy and unmistakably female but without the usual gimmicks. Gaga’s dancing style and costumes also allude to Michael Jackson’s “Bad” era complete with crotch grabs and the biker leather aesthetic. She also evoked Elton John, a past collaborator, by standing while playing the piano. One of the guitarists and the keyboardist pay homage to Dr. Dre and Snoop Dgg’s “Nuthin But a G Thing.”
As a viewer, not a listener, it is harder to stay engrossed once Gaga is at the center stage playing the piano and easy to find yourself ready to multitask because they are more power ballads, not spectacles. With an almost two-hour runtime, no one expects someone to sing and dance the entire time. Every time the choreography incorporated lying down or leaning, I was silently relieved that she could take a break. The second half is never monotonous, but it lacks the ebb and flow of the first half which slowly pulled us closer to the performance because there was something remote and more obviously mysterious in the display. In Gaga’s world, running through literal fire seems safe compared to a concert with the Mother of Sighs or a robotic woman emerging and whipping everyone into a frenzy whereas for other artists, flames would be the high point. Maybe the concert should have ended earlier because the return to the main stage is less emblematic of her avant-garde style and hues more to pop metal, which is still very vigorous and rousing.
Gaga’s stamina is astounding especially considering that she has fibromyalgia. If you want to stay focused, I recommend watching it in a dark room without any electronic devices connected to the internet, especially if you have a lot going on. If you do not, you may find yourself pausing and stopping for long periods of time even if your goal is to really enjoy watching “Gaga Chromatica Ball” by giving it your undivided attention. Once the pace picks up and returns to center stage, it will not be as hard to stay focused, but it will not be as engrossing as the beginning.
It is the one negative of watching any movie at home and not the theater. Multitasking is endemic. If you just think of it as a visual album and are not too attached to the idea of using the work as intended and just want to listen, it is seamless. If you are new to Gaga, “Gaga Chromatica Ball” may be a lot to absorb for people unfamiliar with her music, but if you are a fan, you will be more than satisfied although there are no selections from “Artpop” or her Tony Bennett collaborations. The latter is expected, but I am shocked to discover so late that “Artpop” was not a fan fave. WHAT!?! Maybe it is the controversy over having a certain jail bird appear on a track, and that guest appearance was later replaced with Christina Aguilera, but definitely check out “Artpop” if you have not.
Side note/genuine question: Does Kim Petras’ cover art for “Turn Off the Light” pay homage to Gaga’s Monster Claw or Monster Paw?