Concertgoers Who Sued Madonna Over Late Start Times Dismiss Lawsuit

Michael Fellows and Jason Alvarez, two concertgoers who sued Madonna over a late start time at her Brooklyn show earlier this year, have dismissed their lawsuit.

Rolling Stone reports that Fellows and Alvarez voluntarily dismissed their case against the singer. Jeff Warshafsky, the attorney representing Madonna and Live Nation, stated that the dismissal “was not the result of any settlement” between the two parties.

Fellows and Alvarez also dropped their case with prejudice, meaning it can’t be tried again.

Warshafsky said: “Plaintiffs have now abandoned this lawsuit when it became clear that this approach would not result in a settlement payment and that they would need to oppose defendants’ motion to dismiss the Amended Complaint.”

In January, the punters sued the Like A Virgin singer, Live Nation and Brooklyn venue Barclays Centre for alleged “false advertising”. They claimed legal harm as they “had to get up early to go to work” after attending a Madonna concert that started after 10:30 pm.

Due to the late finishing times – the show didn’t finish until after 1 am – the pair claimed that they and other concertgoers were “stranded” and “confronted with limited public transportation” options, with rideshare vehicle drivers charging surged prices at that time of night.

The concert occurred on a Wednesday night in mid-December 2023, so the lawsuit notes that they “had to get up early to go to work and/or take care of their family responsibilities the next day.”

In April, Madonna’s lawyers issued a statement claiming that having to “wake up early” isn’t an injury that should result in legal action (via Billboard).

The statement continued, “Plaintiffs speculate that ticketholders who left the venue after 1 a.m. might have had trouble getting a ride home or might have needed to wake up early the next day for work. That is not a cognizable injury.”

Her lawyers added that “no reasonable concertgoer—and certainly no Madonna fan” would expect her to perform at the ticketed event time and that reasonable ticketholders “would understand that the venue’s doors will open at or before the ticketed time, one or more opening acts may perform while attendees arrive and make their way to their seats and before the headline act takes the stage, and the headline act will take the stage later in the evening.”