NEW YORK – Two Madonna fans are suing the megastar for damages over concerts in New York that started two hours late, accusing her of “flippant difficulty”, court documents show.

Mr Michael Fellows and Mr Jonathan Hadden are suing Madonna, 65, as well as touring giant LiveNation and New York venue the Barclays Center for an unspecified amount over late starts of her Celebration Tour gigs in December 2023.

Both fans had attended the show on Dec 13, but the legal documents note that other nights at the same venue – on Dec 14 and 16 – also reportedly started more than two hours late.

“The concerts at the Barclays Center were advertised to start at 8.30pm, but Madonna did not take the stage until after 10.30pm on all three nights, with most concert attendees leaving the Barclays Center after 1am,” read the court documents obtained on Jan 19.

“Madonna had demonstrated flippant difficulty in ensuring a timely or complete performance that resulted in the ticket holders waiting for hours for the concerts to begin.

“Others were left stranded in the middle of the night because they missed their arranged ride home or public transportation.”

The complaint, filed in a Brooklyn federal court, alleges that “Madonna has a long history of arriving and starting her concerts late, sometimes several hours late”.

The Barclays Center, LiveNation and a representative for Madonna did not respond to requests for comment.

Madonna was admitted to hospital in June 2023 with a bacterial infection that saw her treated in an intensive care unit.

The illness required her to postpone her near-sell-out, 84-date Celebration tour that was due to start on July 15, forcing the delay of the New York dates at the centre of the litigation to December.

The tour finally kicked off in London on Oct 14, and it was a greatest hits show that included more than 40 songs from her career, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of her breakout single, Holiday (1983).

Concert venues included the United States, Canada and Europe. The tour is scheduled to conclude in April.

The Grammy-winning icon, behind classics such as her 1984 hits Like A Virgin and Material Girl, has asserted incalculable influence as one of music’s top stars.

In 2020, she underwent hip replacement surgery following an injury sustained on her Madame X tour. AFP