Lady Gaga complete operatic mayhem takes over Barcelona in first of three concerts

Thousands dancing in unison. Five acts. Three concerts. One artist. Lady Gaga captivated her fans at the first of three concerts in Barcelona, part of her The Mayhem Ball tour, on Tuesday night.

As if spectators were at an opera, but this one with dozens of Arias, Lady Gaga took over Palau Sant Jordi.

Little Monsters, as Gaga's fans are known, had been queuing for hours before doors opened at 7:00 pm, some of them had even traveled from far away. 

At 8:45 pm, the lights went off, the large screen showing a picture of the artist, dressed in red and writing with a large red feather, while Carmen and other major opera Arias played, also switched off.

Act I—Of Velvet and Vice—, as unlike to the opera where everyone is in silence, little monsters did not hold their breath to welcome the artist to Barcelona.

The stage resembled an old theater with large gargoyles and angels that reminded one of a mix of hell and an opera stage with fire cannons. As the first notes started to play, a combination of striking red and white lights took over to the rhythm of Bloody Mary, Mother Monster's 2011 hit from the Born This Way album.

Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, Gaga's original name, appeared on top of a large infrastructure covered in fabric that looked like she was wearing a massive dress. Mid-song, the curtains opened with dozens of dancers emerging from what looked like a prison.

Bloody Mary was followed by Abracadabra in an unnoticeable track change. She mixed both melodies to unveil to her fans the main hit of her latest and sixth album, 'Mayhem.'

In Barcelona, Gaga replicated some of her movements seen in previous shows of the tour as she transformed Abracadabra into Judas, from her 2011 'Born This Way' album, and later on in Aura and Scheiße. This was the time for the artist's second outfit change, of countless, after getting out of a large red coat during Abracadabra. Wearing a black cabaret-style dress, she sang Scheiße that ended with a mix of Judas and a big bang.

The night's first act ended with the song Garden of Eden transforming the venue into a sea of green as spectators were given an LED bracelet at the start of the show. Surrounded by dozens of male dancers in black and playing a guitar, Gaga kept encouraging the audience to enjoy one of her latest songs as she walked down to the end of the stage extension.

A moment of silence, and she said, "Welcome to the Opera House, Barcelona."

And just before the act ended, Poker Face, with an orchestral intro and outro representing a chess competition extended throughout the whole stage. The song ended as soon as Gaga killed the White Queen and the dancers carried her body to the rhythm of Off With Her Head.

A full-on outfit change for Gaga for the second act: And She Fell Into A Gothic Dream. As the lights switched on, she appeared dressed in white inside a box full of sand surrounded by skeletons. As if inside a coffin, Gaga sang Perfect Celebrity while lying on the ground.

Suddenly, all the skeletons started moving with the first notes of Disease, and they turned out to be female dancers. Following the start inside the coffin, came anthems such as Paparazzi, LoveGame, Alejandro, and The Beast, with her playing the guitar. The Palau Sant Jordi, as full as only major artists achieve, kept dancing and singing with the American artist.

And as if spectators were at the opera, curtains down and an instrumental pause before the start of the third act: The Beautiful Nightmare That Knows Her Name. And out of the blue, a large skull appeared on stage with the artist and several dancers dancing around it.

Every opera has its Arias, and The Mayhem Ball tour could be the Arias of Arias. Lady Gaga did not leave any hits outside of her repertoire. Through the other acts missing, she performed anthems such as Applause, Just Dance, or Zombie Boy during the third act. 

As with all operas, the tragic moment awaited close to the end. The sublime ending was getting closer with the fourth act of the night: Every Chessboard Has Two Queens. This was the most emotional act of the show.

For starters, Born This Way, an anthem for many present at the venue, as members of the LGBTQ+ community felt a strong connection with the song. 

The singer used the opportunity to address the audience, saying, "This show is for you, for your art, your freedom, and we love you."

Followed by Million Reasons. After this, Gaga moved from a pop-large-macro show to an intimate setting. On board a boat, as if she were traveling with the Greek god of the underworld, Hades, Gaga performed Shallow from her movie with Bradley Cooper, 'A Star Is Born.' 

And if there was no more room for excitement during the night, she closed the long-awaited concert, her last one in the city was over seven years ago, with the Finale: Eternal Aria Of The Monster Heart, in which she sang Bad Romance.

Lady Gaga is scheduled to perform two more concerts in Barcelona on Wednesday and Friday before she continues her 'The Mayhem Ball tour' in Berlin, Amsterdam, or Paris.

'A Goddess, an icon'

Lady Gaga fans had been queuing for days outside Palau Sant Jordi before the first of three concerts. Many of them had traveled from several parts of Spain, such as Argentinian-born and Mallorca-resident Inés. 

Dressed in an all-white outfit resembling Gaga's Abracadabra video clip outfit, she praised being in Barcelona as the singer gives "a home, represents us, our identity. And we value her and thank her for it, but most importantly, we have so much fun," she told Catalan News hours before the concert.

Ursula and Irina, two Catalans sat a little bit closer to the gate than Inés. They had been queuing since 1 pm, six hours before the gates opened. They really like Lady Gaga, and despite trying to get tickets when they went on sale, they "did not succeed." However, the father of one of them had a contact and they were able to get access to the concert.

"She is an icon, she is a mother of all the LGBTQ+ community, she has given us many things, a lot of music, a lot of icons, a lot of memes, and plenty of culture," they both told this media outlet.

Luxon is an Argentinian Lady Gaga fan who currently lives in Madrid. They were "bullied in high school for being gay, and Lady Gaga's message was very important" at the time. For them, the singer is their "goddess." They were dressed all-black, following what they called 'The Mayhem Ball era,' how the singer attended the Grammy Awards ceremony earlier this year. For them, the outfit is a mix of "gothic-pop."

Yannis, a Greek visiting Barcelona for two days, mainly because of the concerts, told Catalan News, "She is gorgeous, she is inspiring, my idol, she is a superstar." It is the second time he has been to a Gaga concert, the first one was in his home country. 

Photojournalists were not allowed to take pictures of the concert