Lady Gaga fought to bring her full stage show to Australia after local promoters warned the star it would be too expensive to ship her whole set Down Under.
The Poker Face hitmaker kicked off the Aussie leg of her artRAVE: The ARTPOP Ball world tour in Perth on Wednesday night (20Aug14), and she told the audience about her fight to save her extravagant production.
Gaga revealed her Australian promoters ordered her to change the show and bring just "30 per cent" of the original design in a bid to cut down the spiralling costs, but the singer stood her ground and demanded the entire set be shipped over.
She added to the crowd, "I think my Australian fans deserve the whole show."
The star received a slew of lukewarm reviews for her production, with many critics accusing Gaga of filling the gig with songs from her latest album ARTPOP and reducing her biggest hits to just a mid-show medley.
Gaga appeared to address the lacklustre reaction from the crowd and the empty seats at the Perth Arena by making a reference to her flop record, urging any fans who didn't like the album to get up and leave, saying, "For those who didn't come for ARTPOP or didn't like the album, grab a drink or a glow stick or get... out."