Fancy dress the Madonna and Guy way: A smoky sophisticated Edith Piaf and.... Asterix

The Queen of Pop chose to recreate the smoky look of tragic jazz singer Edith Piaf for a Kabbalah fancy dress party.

Dripping in diamonds and shrouded in a fur stole the 49 year-old singer's sophisticated look was in stark contrast to that chosen by her husband.

Scroll down for more...

Fancy, indeed: Madonna dressed up as tragic jazz singer Edith Piaf for a Kabbalah party over the weekend

Guy Ritchie, 39, opted to dress as cartoon character Asterix - donning a shapeless white tunic, platinum blonde plaits and a Viking helmet with horns.

The annual party to celebrate the Jewish festival of Purim has become a fixture in the Ritchie's calendar.

But while Madonna makes every effort to wear flattering sexy outfits - last year she wore a 1920s flapper outfit and in 2006 she dressed as a French maid - her husband appears to take the process of dressing up less seriously.

In 2007 he wore a 1970s Village People-style police officer ensemble complete with sunglasses and big moustache to a party at the Kabbalah centre in LA.

Scroll down for more...

Madonna has an affinity with Edith Piaf and in 2000 it was reported that she was considering an offer to play the performer on the West End stage.

Piaf's story came to renewed prominence this year due to the Oscar-winning French film of her life, La Vie en Rose.

Mr and Mrs Ritchie have toned down their outfits since their first Purim outing in 2005.

They raised eyebrows when they attended dressed as a nun - Madonna is a lapsed Catholic - and the Pope.

The festival of Purim celebrates the foiling of an ancient plot to kill Jews in Persia led by Queen Esther.

The tradition of fancy dress is symbolic of the reversal of fate and of Esther's concealed Jewish heritage.

Madonna's herself adopted the Hebrew name Esther in 2005.

She said at the time: "I wanted to attach myself to the energy of a new name."

The singer has become a devoted follower of the Kabbalah religion over the years.

Last year she donated £1.5million to set up a Kabbalah centre in Malawi, the country from where she adopted toddler David Banda in 2006.

Ritchie entered into the spirit of the festival on Thursday night despite reports that he resents his wife's devotion to the sect, which has been criticised for promising happiness to wealthy donors.

Madonna is the highest profile celebrity to follow Kabbalah which is an offshoot of Judaism.

Following her lead are celebrities such as Britney Spears, Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher and Melinda Messenger who have all become devotees of the Kabbalah faith.