Gaga's costumes in the show included one with tentacles, one with bejeweled wings, a rave-inspired outfit and a necklace made of marijuana leaves.

[5] Gaga also held a one-off concert for ArtRave: The Artpop Ball inside a six-storey vending machine at Doritos' annual South by Southwest (SXSW) music festival at Austin, Texas.

The city's Music and Entertainment division had initially denied permission to Gaga for playing inside the venue citing that it was for "public safety concerns".

Randal Lane from Forbes reported that the concert would support Gaga's Born This Way Foundation and charity events, but nevertheless opined that "the way they're doling out the tickets is still crass".

[10] In response to the controversy, Brown told MTV News: "I can understand why people would make that association, but my performance is really not a statement about eating disorders themselves.

Gaga noted that the 110 feet (34 m) long runways would be made of lucite rendering them translucent, so that the crowd can dance underneath it while still being able to watch the show.

The main stage was described as a white cave, reminiscent of Atlantica from the 1989 Disney film The Little Mermaid, and featured a digital backdrop showing stars and the moon.

[14] The band was placed inside the white dome like structures on the stage, described by John Jurgenson from The Wall Street Journal as like the planet Tatooine in the Star Wars series.

At the end of one of the Lucite runways, a piano was hidden beneath enormous stalagmite-like structures reminiscent of Superman's Fortress of Solitude in the comics.

[20] Production manager Jason "JD" Danter explained that the whole set up started from 8:00 am, with lighting and sound checks taking six hours to complete.

Gaga accessorized the dress with a pair of feathered wings while wearing a blond bob wig reminiscent of her looks from The Fame era.

Before the final performance Gaga wore black latex pants and a top, with a green wig on her head and a necklace made of marijuana leaves.

The audience is every bit as much a set piece as they are a room of spectators, so we had to include them as part of Gaga's same party not just watching the spectacle from afar.

According to Live Nation, the first batch of tickets for the tour went on sale from December 9, 2013, and sell-out shows were reported from Toronto, Winnipeg, Calgary, Los Angeles and Edmonton within hours.

[30] The singer partnered with British mobile network O2, for a deal which would enable the company's customers to avail tickets for the tour three days prior to the general release.

The deal included Gaga being featured in a new advertisement, for promoting the UK leg of the tour and showed her wearing a dress with large, glittering shoulder pads while running towards a concert stage.

[32] In April and May 2014, she released more floor tickets for sale, after ensuring larger crowd capacity for all the UK venues and a total of eight new dates.

[35] She had one concert at Dubai's Meydan Racecourse on September 10, but newspaper Gulf News reported that the show would be censored for respecting cultural traditions in the UAE.

Lawrence concluded by saying that "Lady Gaga's pricing, seems to be taking a longer-term view and is focused on providing access to as many of her fans as possible as opposed to wringing out every last dollar on the current tour.

"[37] In April 2014, Lawrence reported that following Gaga's performance at Roseland Ballroom, the tour ticket prices in the secondary markets went up by 5.3%, with major increases being visible at Philips Arena in Atlanta.

Fogel also addressed concerns that Live Nation had lost $30 million from Gaga's tour, saying that if a similar situation really happened, then the company would have cancelled the concerts.

"I just don't know how this shit gets any traction without people doing their homework... Just a complete fool would say something like that and it could only come from somebody who has an agenda, because it makes absolutely no sense, on any level", Fogel concluded.

"[47] Walker further emphasized in another review for MTV that the tour expanded on Gaga's characteristic "fan-to-artist" connections and theatrics she had developed with the Born This Way Ball.

He complimented the choreography and the constant costume changes, explaining that "talking about [Gaga's] performances is more fun than listening to them, but don't take that as an insult.

"[50] Glenn Gamboa from Newsday was impressed with the performances, saying "Whether it was the goofiness of 'Venus', the playfulness of 'Donatella' or the throwback soul of 'Do What U Want', which she crowned with an a cappella bit of gospel, she filled the songs with an intensity that was infectious.

[52] Frank Scheck from The Hollywood Reporter commended the stage setup, the costumes and the overall entertainment aspect of the tour, saying that "Unlike Madonna, who engages in similar, but decidedly chillier, over-the-top theatrics, Gaga invests her spectacles with an undeniable sweetness and heart."

"[59] Jenny Valentish from Time Out awarded the show in Melbourne five stars, calling Gaga "a phenomenal singer with an immense voice (...) who could try her hand at any genre", also praising her live band and the costume changes.

[61] Writing about the subdued concert in Dubai due to religious sentiments, Mohammed Kadry from Khaleej Times noted that Gaga could still put on a "spectacle" and she "was determined to connect with her local audience as she attempted to piece together flattering colloquial phrases".

"[64] Daniel Dylan Wray from The Independent awarded the Birmingham concert with 4 out of 5 stars and described ArtRave as "loud, colourful and frequently emblematic of feel-good, throwaway party times".

[68][69] The concert started with a 30-minute video presentation of Gaga's portraits, as shot by Robert Wilson, and which were previously exhibited at the Louvre Museum in Paris.