Madonna has kicked off her Confessions world tour in Los Angeles, including a crucifixion scene in her stage routine.
The 47-year-old singer performed recent hits from her 'Confessions on a Dancefloor' album, as well as old hit singles such as 'Like A Virgin' and 'Lucky Star'.
During her performance of 'Live To Tell' Madonna wore a crown of thorns and suspended herself from a giant cross on the stage, while background videos showed images of Third World poverty.
The singer is due to tour North America for two months and then take in eight cities in Europe, before travelling to Japan.
