Madonna responds to lawsuit over late concert, will 'vigorously' defend herself

Madonna doesn't seem to be feeling true blue over a recent lawsuit filed by two New York City men who weren't happy after one of the shows for her Celebration tour began roughly two hours after the start time listed on their tickets.

"The shows opened in North America at Barclays in Brooklyn as planned, with the exception of a technical issue Dec. 13 during soundcheck," tour company Live Nation and Madonna's management said in a statement. "This caused a delay that was well documented in press reports at the time. We intend to defend this case vigorously."

In December, a source told PEOPLE that the Dec. 13 performance suffered delays due to "issues during soundcheck that caused the schedule to get delayed by an hour."

EW has reached out to Madonna's representatives for further comment, as the Dec. 14 performance also began late — roughly after 10:00 p.m. local time — though the show's announced start time was 8:30 p.m.

Both shows occurred two months after the Celebration Tour kicked off in Europe, with fans on the second London date in October also indicating that Madonna went on late and ended the show early as a result.

In early January, Michael Fellows and Jonathan Hadden accused Madonna, Live Nation, and the arena venue of "unconscionable, unfair, and/or deceptive trade practices" by listing 8:30 p.m. as the start time. The pair also took issue with the show reportedly ending around 1 a.m., which allegedly posed a greater problem for them, as they "had to get up early to go to work and/or take care of their family responsibilities the next day."

Madonna was criticized on social media — and by other celebrities — following news of the lawsuit, with the ladies of The View taking aim at the singer-songwriter amid the legal development.

"I personally wouldn't wait two hours to get a hot oil massage from George Clooney, much less a concert by anybody," panelist Joy Behar said, while Sara Haines added that it was "disrespectful" to Madonna's fans.

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