Madonna
has hit back at claims that she was drunk on stage in Australia last week,
saying she was merely playing a character during a performance in which she
dressed as a clown and fell off a tricycle.

In an
Instagram posting, the 57 year-old pop star thanked fans for supporting her
after media reports and video clips posted by audience members showed her
behaving erratically at shows in Melbourne on March 10 and 12.

The much
talked-about performances came in the midst of a custody battle between Madonna
and her ex-husband, British film director Guy Ritchie, over their 15 year-old
son Rocco.

“Too
bad people don’t know the art of acting and playing a character. I could never
do any of my shows high or drunk,” Madonna wrote on Instagram.

“Underlying
all of this is sexism and mysongony which proves that not only do we not get
equal pay but we are still treated like heretics if we step out of line and
think outside the box!” she added.

Last week
Madonna donned a pink wig, top hat, striped stockings and a short yellow dress
to perform a special “Tears of a Clown” concert in Melbourne, outside
of her current “Rebel Heart” world tour. She later posted a photo of
herself drinking what her representatives said was one Cosmo cocktail – usually
made with vodka and cranberry juice – on stage.

Video
clips posted by some audience members showed her at times to be stumbling and
speaking erratically during the show – a contrast to her usual highly
choreographed tours. Two days later, her behaviour again caused a stir at
another Melbourne concert.

In the
“Tears of a Clown” show, Madonna showed a large photo of Rocco as a
young boy, telling the audience “I probably would have enjoyed myself a
bit more on this (‘Rebel Heart’) tour if he hadn’t disappeared so
suddenly.”

Rocco has
been living with his father in London since December after refusing to return
to his mother’s New York home. He had previously been working backstage on the
initial stages of Madonna’s “Rebel Heart” tour.

The
custody case is being determined by courts both in London and New York. A New
York judge earlier this month urged Madonna and Ritchie to resolve the dispute
between themselves in the best interests of their son. The couple divorced in
2008.

– Reuters