Fifty thousand fans came to see U.S. pop singer Madonna perform in her first concert in Russia Tuesday night in a show the Russian Orthodox Church called blasphemous.
About 7,000 Russian police surrounded , where some religious demonstrators had threatened to disrupt the show. Police say they arrested 10 Orthodox protesters.
Russian Orthodox Church officials had urged Madonna to drop part of her act during which she sings suspended from a huge cross wearing a crown of thorns. They accuse her of insulting Christians.
The show went on as scheduled with apparently no changes.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.