Drummer Billy Cobham, singer Ali Campbell from UB40, gospel and jazz vocalist Janice Harrington, the Glen Miller orchestra, Trinidadian singer Haddaway, French singer Silvie Vartan (of Bulgarian descent), Portuguese fadista Ana Moura, Cape Verdean "barefoot diva" Cesaria Evora and Finnish rocker Tarja Turunen were among the international stars to grace the Bulgarian stage. Oh, and someone called Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone managed to sell a few tickets as well.

Still controversial
There was no escape from the hype. No one could ignore the inescapable fact that Madonna's August 29 concert at Vassil Levski stadium was THE event of the year.

Controversy dogged the superstar's Sticky 'n Sweet tour from the moment it hit eastern Europe. During her Bucharest concert, Madonna had issued an unexpected plea for tolerance for oppressed minorities. And this in the country that has Europe's highest number of Roma. "We believe in freedom and equal rights for everyone, right? Gypsies, homosexuals, people who are different, everyone is equal and should be treated with respect, ok?"

Apparently, not everyone thought this was "ok" because some in the audience booed her.  

Meanwhile, Bulgaria's orthodox church urged Bulgarians to boycott her Sofia concert, accusing the controversial singer of disrespecting the church by violating Christian symbols. In particular, the church was annoyed that Madonna's gig coincided with another religious holy day, in which the region recognises the beheading of Saint John the Baptist.

A church statement before her concert even refused to refer to her by name. "Louise Ciccone, with almost every concert in a Christian country, displays a disrespectful and intolerant attitude to the religious feelings of the Christians there," it read.

Despite, or because of, the controversy, 60 000 Bulgarians paid 100 leva each and most seemed to think it was money well spent.

Controversy refused to die down, however. Following a boating tragedy on Macedonia's Lake Ohrid on September 5, in which 15 people died, a senior church leader blamed the Bulgarians who attended the Madonna concert. Nikolay, the metropolitan of Plovdiv, directly linked the two events.

"The catastrophe in Macedonia was a sign from heaven," he said at a special memorial mass for the victims.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Boiko Borissov blamed the organisers of the Madonna concert for allegedly "ruining" the pitch of the Vassil Levski stadium.

Still rebellious
Classical violinist and now 50-something enfant terrible Nigel Kennedy had already performed in Bulgaria on several occasions. But his June 15 gig at NDK raised a few eyebrows from those expecting a more orthodox performance. Still, the iconoclastic musician has always revelled in flouting convention. His concert, peppered with the usual swearwords and characterised by his trademark dishevelled appearance, sent about a fifth of the audience heading to the exit before its end.

Kennedy opened his concert with various jazz numbers including a particularly memorable number entitled A Bottle of French Wine but then veered towards hard rock. Some people loved the show. Others, usually - it must be said - over 60 and frequently lone concertgoers, seemed to find the three-hour onslaught on the senses a bit too much.

One thing seems for sure - Kennedy will continue to surprise. And if you were riled by Kennedy's occasional loudmouth antics and deliberately blokeish demeanour then no doubt you're just the kind of stuck-up old fuddy duddy he loves to offend.

Still furious
Mr Angry, Steven Berkoff, another entertainer famous for defying convention and ruffling the feathers of sensitive observers and even thespian colleagues, came to Bulgaria to give a one-man show on Shakespeare. Although some of the material was a little dated - referring to Clinton's escapades with Monica Lewinsky for example - it was a tour de force that seemed to impress the audience at the Aleko Konstantinov Satirical Theatre on June 3 2009.  

Particularly entertaining was his interpretation of Lady Macbeth coaxing her husband into murdering Duncan. Berkoff also performed other sketches from Hamlet, Macbeth and Richard III, all delivered with his trademark menace, furtiveness and humour. An egomaniac and a bit of a ham? Perhaps, but it seems that audiences in Sofia and Varna (at the Stoyan Bachvarov Drama Theatre) enjoyed the ride.