Super Bowl 2012 halftime show presents Madonna opportunity to reconnect

While the in-game entertainment at Super Bowl 2012 will be a rematch, the half-time show will be all new.

Madonna, the 53-year-old singer and superstar will headline her first Super Bowl halftime show, along with expected appearances be Cee Lo Green, LMFAO, Nikki Minaj and others.

But for Madonna, the Super Bowl performance will mark a bit of a comeback — and a marketing opportunity. Madonna makes her directorial debut with W.E., out this week, looking at the romance between King Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson.

Music Critic Tim Riley, who wrote a book about Madonna, said her performance has grown stale for some fans, so the halftime show will be her chance to make her case that she’s as relevant as ever, thanks to the NBC executives who booked her for what is expected to be among the most-watched moments of television this year.

“That’s mad, mad, made exposure,” he said. “You can imagine Madonna’s younger rivals, Lady Gaga, Rihanna, even yesterday’s girl, Britney Spears, taking that stage to make a thoroughly contemporary statements.”

Riley said Madonna will use her appearance to push her music, including her new single, Give Me All Your Luvin, performed with Minaj and coming from her upcoming new album.

Riley said she’s also rumored to be including favorites Vogue and Holiday on her set list.

“With the right tough, she could just upstage her own puzzle of a persona,” Riley said. “Much like Elvis in his 1968 Christmas special, the material girl maintains enough charisma to make everybody else seem like a footnote to her royal curls.”