Two days of international performances start Tuesday night in Tel Aviv. Madonna will give her first of two appearances at the Yarkon Park (Ganei Yehoshua). Across the road at the Tel Aviv Fairgrounds, American bands Dinosaur Jr. and Faith No More will appear with the Israeli group Monotonix at the Heineken Music Conference, Harretz reported.
Wednesday, while Madonna is giving her second performance, the indy group MGMT, and James Murphy and Pat Mahoney of LCD Soundsystem will perform at the Heineken event.
Madonna arrived in Israel Sunday, after performing in Bulgaria as part of her Sticky & Sweet tour. She is staying at the David Intercontinental Hotel in Tel Aviv with her four children and her boyfriend Jesus Luz.
Her tour includes four acts with both new and old hits, including "Vogue," "Holiday" and "Music" among many others. She may change the order of the songs, as Israel is her last stop on this tour.
The producer of Madonna's tour, Chris Lamb, told a press conference yesterday that the performance is a theatrical show, not a rock concert, and that you do not need to be a fan of Madonna's music to enjoy the show. Lamb has been with Madonna for 23 years, and was here last time she performed in Israel, in 1993.
The stage was still not finished yesterday afternoon, but Lamb said preparations were running on schedule. Madonna brought 125 staff and crew members to Israel. Another 250 locals were hired to work on the show.
Last month, two members of the stage crew were killed while preparing for Madonna's performance in Marseilles.
When asked whether the safety rules were changed after the accident, Lamb said the matter was still under investigation and cut short the press conference.
Madonna will perform on one side of Rokach Boulevard, and the Heineken festival will be on the other side. The concerts are expected to attract 50,000 to 60,000 people each night.
The few people who want to see both shows apparently will be able to do so: Faith No More is expected to start playing only after midnight, after Madonna finishes.
Dinosaur Jr. and Monotonix will appear earlier, and both will play full sets. The 6,000 tickets for Tuesday night's Heineken festival have sold out, but another 1,000 are left for Wednesday night.
Police Superintendent Tzahi Cohen recommended concert-goers arrive by public transportation, on foot or by motorbike. There will be extra Dan buses and trains on routes that pass through the area, said Cohen.
The Ganei Yehoshua parking lot will be closed to the general public, and only those with special permits will be allowed in.
Shuttle buses will run from the other parking lots along Rokach.