08 March 2024 , 16:26
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Sophie Ellis-Bextor defended her choice to perform her chart smash Murder on the Dancefloor while taking to the stage at the site of a massacre.
The 44-year-old singer is in the midst of her Europe Kitchen Disco Tour which has seen her perform across the continent - with dates yet to come in Germany, Denmark, Scandinavia and more. On Tuesday night, the star was in Paris where she performed at the iconic Bataclan Theatre on Boulevard Voltaire, Paris in the 11th arrondissement of the French capital.
In November 2015, the theatre was the target of a terrorist attack orchestrated by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) terrorist organisation - and saw 130 innocent people killed and at least 416 more injured. Sophie’s repertoire included a rendition of her 2001 hit, Murder on the Dancefloor - which has come back into the public consciousness in recent months after it was featured on the soundtrack to the film Saltburn.
According to Sky News, Sophie noted the potential controversy over her song choice as she prepared to sing the pop tune at the French venue. They quote her stating: "It didn't feel right to me to just waltz into a song called Murder On The Dancefloor without noting and paying tribute to the history."
Sophie addressed the song while on stage at the Bataclan in Paris (Twitter/X)
The singer recently performed the his song at the 2024 BAFTAs (Matt Baron/BEI/REX/Shutterstock)A clip of the star addressing the song has since gone viral. She is seen on stage wearing a shimmering outfit and telling concertgoers: “Murder on the Dancefloor is not a song with any evil in its heart. The whole intention of that song, like this venue, is to bring joy, and music… so intricate to that spirit, and in tribute to anyone who has ever danced right here at the Bataclan, this is Murder on the Dancefloor.”
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Earlier this year, Sophie explained that she was humbled to see her decades-old song return to the charts. She told Variety in January: “I’m just so glad I’m still on such good terms with the song… It’s been communal, it’s been owned by other people for so long already. I’m really happy to keep sharing it. It’s given me a real adventure.”
Last month, she performed the hit song while attending the 2024 BAFTAs in London - but film fans were disappointed that Irish actor Barry Keoghan didn’t join her on stage. The actor stripped off in the film Saltburn to dance naked through a mansion to the song.
Many took to social media to complain that he hadn’t collaborated with her for the performance. One wrote on X at the time: “Thoroughly disappointed that the #BAFTAs didn’t have Barry Keoghan dance around naked during Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s performance," whilst a second added: "Not a single cut to Barry Keoghan dancing? Outrageous #BAFTAs." A third shared: "Hoping @barrykeoghan gets on stage to dance with Sophie #BAFTAs," with a fourth writing: "If Barry Keoghan doesn’t dance naked on the stage what’s the point of even performing this #BAFTAs."