Madonna: Take a Bow Meaning

Song Released: 1994

Take a Bow Lyrics

Take a bow, the night is over
This masquerade is getting older
Lights are low, the curtains are down
There's no one here
(There's no one here, there's no one in the crowd)

Say your lines but do you feel them
Do you mean what you say
When...

1. 1TOP RATED

   #1 top rated interpretation:
   bella dea

   • 1
   • 2
   • 3
   • 4
   • 5

   click a star to vote

   Sep 6th 2005 !⃝

   This song is about personal heartache brought on by someone you love betraying you. It's about someone acting one way with you alone and one way with others present.
   
   "Take a bow, the night is over
   This masquerade is getting older
   Lights are low, the curtains are down
   There's no one here
   (There's no one here, there's no one in the crowd)"
   
   She's saying your games are getting old. This pretending is getting old. No one is watching you now, so be real.
   
   "Say your lines but do you feel them
   Do you mean what you say
   When there's no one around (no one around)
   Watching you, watching me
   One lonely star
   (One lonely star you don't know who you are)"
   
   You tell people you love me but do you really? You tell people that we are happy but are we? This is the quintessential couple to everyone on the outside. However, happy they are in public, they are miserable in private.
   
   
   "I've always been in love with you
   I guess you've always known it's true
   You took my love for granted
   Why oh why
   The show is over say good-bye
   say good-bye, say good-bye"
   
   I still love you and I always will but you hurt me and we can't live like this. This relationship is over. You don't love me.
   
   "Make them laugh, it comes so easy
   When you get to the part
   Where you're breaking my heart
   Hide behind your smile
   All the world loves a clown
   (Just make 'em smile
   the whole world loves a clown)
   Wish you well, I cannot stay
   You deserve an award
   For the role that you played
   No more masquerade
   You're one lonely star
   (One lonely star you dont who you are) "
   
   Again, he acts like he is happy and that they are in love but once they are alone, things change. She realizes that he doesn't love her and maybe never did. She has to leave.
   
   "All the world is a stage
   And everyone has their part
   How was I to know
   Which way the story goes
   How was I to know you'd break
   You'd break, you'd break, you'd break
   You'd break my heart"
   
   The story of any relationship. You don't know how anything is going to end. She didn't know he'd hurt her and she took that chance but it's over because he broke her heart.
2. anonymous

   • 1
   • 2
   • 3
   • 4
   • 5

   click a star to vote

   Aug 13th 2016 !⃝

   This perfectly depicts waking away from a relationship with a psychopath. I recently had a relationship with (unknowingly to me at the time) a psychopath. He was funny, a clown, and hid behind a completely convincing, humble, sweet, funny guy facade. A complete and utter masquerade. You walk away thinking, Wow this guy deserves an award. Oscar caliber performance of sweet-funny guy whom everyone loves, until such time that he's ready to take off the mask, then you get arrogant, cold, callous, sadistic guy. You're still confused, did he mean anything he said? But you know you have to walk away because someone that cold is freaking scary. You got a glimpse of the real him! A master manipulator, he made you fall in love with him (knew just what to say, in a low key, sincere manner) just so he could pull the rug out from under you, to derive some sort of momentary jollies. He was charismatic, like a star on his own personal stage, funny, entertaining, charming as all get out, but with no real friends and never experiencing love or being close to anyone. They can't be alone because they need people to manipulate, so in a sense a 'lonely star' on that stage, because they're always alone and those of us with feelings would see that as a very lonely existence.
3. anonymous

   • 1
   • 2
   • 3
   • 4
   • 5

   click a star to vote

   May 19th 2013 !⃝

   to me the song means love hurts and it's better to be away from that person
4. randyh

   • 1
   • 2
   • 3
   • 4
   • 5

   click a star to vote

   Aug 4th 2005 !⃝

   Madonna is referring to herself. Being a star you show off in front of the camera, your ego is swelling and you think you're so important. In reality you're lying to yourself and lonely because people want to hang around a star because they're a star- not because they really love you.

   This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
5. username

   • 1
   • 2
   • 3
   • 4
   • 5

   click a star to vote

   Jul 10th 2005 !⃝

   This song was rumored to be about Warren Beatty. Madonna took a cue from Alanis Morissette and Carly Simon and never revealed just who the song was about, but my money's on Sean Penn. In the movie "Truth Or Dare" (1991) she is quoted saying that she'd always been in love with Sean Penn and he knew that. ("I've always been in love with youuuuu... i guess you've always known its truuuuuueeee...")

Latest Articles

• 
  A new era for Millennial favorite, Linkin Park
• 
  Anime to watch for the soundtracks… and other reasons you’re undateable
• 
  Dolly, we need you
• 
  The Stranger Things Effect: How new media is drawing Gen Z and Alpha's attention to aging media
• 
  The most underrated soundtrack of the early 2000s
• 
  Buy the Soundtrack, Skip the Movie: Brainscan (1994)