Puke on Gaga is the name of an interlude featured in both versions of the Monster Ball (Theater and Arena). Unofficial names used by fans include Vomit Interlude, Exorcism, and Puke & Blood, but the name used to refer to the segment was Puke Film on the official set list for the first Monster Ball.
Background
The film was shot in 2009. One of the scenes feature Gaga being dressed like a mannequin in stop motion by her then creative director, Matthew Williams, which was inspired by "The Bridegroom Stripped Bare", a performance in the Transformers series by Nick Knight in 2002. The film featured Alexander McQueen with Sarah Burton as they transforms a bridegroom into a bride in a frenzy of cutting, ripping, painting and gaffer-taping. McQueen was famous for his cutting and draping skills, often working directly on a garment while a model was wearing it. This film offers a rare glimpse of the designer at work, in what is usually an unseen, intense and private act. The parts in which Gaga consumes the Bovine heart was created by Nick Knight to help Gaga confront her fears about her father's open heart surgery. In an interview with Nick Knight for ShowStudio, Nicola Formichetti's then-assistant, Anna Trevelyan recalled that during the filming of the heart eating scene, she and Gaga were crying while Nicola played the music of Ryuichi Sakamoto on blast.
Release
The film was put for sale on SHOWstudio shop as Puke On Gaga for £ 4,000 and the film was shown during their exhibition called Inside/Out in 2010. On the same website, the dress Lady Gaga wears at the beginning has been put on sale for £ 15,000. On October 11 2011, ShowStudio uploaded the film on their YouTube channel along with the other films used in the Monster Ball.
Synopsis
This interlude had three versions of it which one was shown at the Monster Ball: Theater and two during the Monster Ball: Arena.
On the Monster Ball: Theater, the film was first shown on the main screen. But in later shows, it was shown on back screen of the stage with a closeup of the middle of the film on each of the two side screen. Dancers crawled on the floor with fog around them. The song used was shortened edit of "Tears In The Rain" by Zomby. The lyrics are from Blade Runner, the dying replicant, Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer), introspectively says the phrase, during a rain downpour, regarding his own death:
- I've seen things, you people wouldn't believe, hmm
Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion
I've watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser Gate
All those moments, will be lost in time like tears in the rain
On the Monster Ball: Arena, the stage was covered by a giant screen projecting the film. The song was a reworked version of "Dance in the Dark" by Fernando Garibay.
- (Make it stop!)
- I'm a free bitch
- I'm a free bitch
- (Make it stop!)
- I'm a free bitch
- I'm a free bitch
- (Make it stop!)
- Marilyn, Judy, S-Sylvia, Tell 'em how you feel girls
- Work your JonBenét Ramsey/We'll haunt like Liberace/Find your freedom in the music/Find your Jesus, find your Kubrick/You will never fall apart Diana, you're still in our hearts/Never let you fall apart
- Want Together (repeated ten times)
- I'm a free bitch
- I'm a free bitch
- (Make it stop!)
Scenes and versions
All the cut of the video began with Gaga standing on a white cube wearing a pleated white dress [A]. Later, she is shown sitting while performance artist Millie Brown pukes some bright green vomit on her.
On the Monster Ball: Theater there were two versions played at the shows. In the early dates it was displayed on the stage screen curtain in full size and on later dates it was displayed in the three screens. The first scene of the early version starts with a very slow white fade-in transition and then Gaga is shown wearing the pleated white dress while it moves in slow motion. Seconds later there's an abrupt cut and the dress starts to move faster. After this scene another white fade-in happens while Millie can be seen retching. Right after short shots of Millie puking on Gaga are shown in slow motion. In the last scenes is the stop motion mannequin scene with Matthew Williams [D]. (* On the second version of the Desert film the start white fade-in was made 10 seconds shorter and a glitch in the first scene was fixed.)
On the Monster Ball: Arena, the next scene was Gaga eating a bovine heart [B]. At this point, two versions was shown:
- From February 18 to July 4, 2010, they completed the film with Gaga as a mannequin [D].
- From July 6, 2010 to May 6, 2011, they completed the film with two scenes: Gaga holding the heart on her laps, blood dropping from her mouth [C] and footage from the Bone Tattoo Film [E].
![[A] [1]](/wiki/File:Puke-Inversed.png "Puke-Inversed.png (105 KB)")
![[B]](/wiki/File:Puke-heart1.png "Puke-heart1.png (231 KB)")
![[C]](/wiki/File:Vlcsnap-2010-07-16-15h17m30s48.png "Vlcsnap-2010-07-16-15h17m30s48.png (298 KB)")
![[D]](/wiki/File:Puke-Dada1.png "Puke-Dada1.png (96 KB)")
![[E] [2]](/wiki/File:SHOWstudio-Tattoo-02.png "SHOWstudio-Tattoo-02.png (809 KB)")
- Skirt styled as dress by Marko Mitanovski.
- Custom headpiece and armpiece by Gary Card.
Videos
Credits
- Concept and Direction – Nick Knight and Ruth Hogben (SHOWstudio)
- Creative Direction – Matthew Williams and the Haus of Gaga
- Styling – Nicola Formichetti and the Haus of Gaga
- Hair – Sam McKnight
- Make-up – Val Garland
- Nails – Marian Newman
- Edit – Ruth Hogben
- Production – Sarah Podesta (Gainsbury & Whiting)
- 3D animation – Kevin Stenning (Rapido3D), BURSTvisual
- Video Programmer – Matt Shimamoto
- Location - Park Royal Studios in West London
Trivia
- In 2014, Millie Brown appeared on stage and re-enacted the film during Lady Gaga's performance of Swine during SXSW.
References
| Musical interludes | |
| As Opening act | |
| The Fame Ball Tour |
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| The Monster Ball Tour |
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| Joanne World Tour |
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| The Chromatica Ball | |