MADONNA LEADS CELEBRITY CHARGE TO RIO FOR CARNIVAL

RIO DE JANEIRO - Madonna on Tuesday led a charge of celebrities descending on Rio de Janeiro for the city's famously sexy Carnival starting this weekend.

The US entertainer triggered screams from fans as she checked into an upmarket hotel on Ipanema beach with her children in tow, Brazil's Globo news websites reported.

The frenzy added to a crowd already gathered in front of the hotel because of another singing guest lodged there: Beyonce, who was wrapping up a series of pre-Carnival Brazilian concerts as part of a Latin American tour.

Rio's attraction this year for the rich and famous owes much to the city's rising profile as host of the 2016 Olympic Games and as a beachside showcase of the economic bonanza Brazil is currently enjoying.

The fact that much of the US and European jet set are fleeing freezing temperatures at home might also have something to do with the influx.

Other celebrities expected to show up for Carnival, which runs from Saturday to next Tuesday, include Alicia Keys and Paris Hilton, according to star-gazing website O fuxico.

Hollywood heart-throbs Leonardo DiCaprio and Lindsay Lohan, however, cancelled their plans to visit, the daily O Dia said.

Madonna reportedly was to mix in a bit of work for her children's charity Success for Kids, heading to Sao Paulo on Wednesday to rustle up donations.

On Friday, she was to return to Rio to accompany Brazilian politicians on visits to slums before throwing herself into the festivities of Carnival.

That swirl of street partying, balls and parades hits its climax Sunday and Monday night when Brazil's top samba schools file past packed stands in a glitzy display of fantasy and bare-breasted dancing queens.

Madonna and the other celebrities will be in exclusive VIP boxes along the parade route.

Source: AFP