Brisbane Entertainment Centre
April 08, 2005
Kicking off with the title song “Kiss My Brass,” Midler set not only the tone for the whole night, but also a benchmark for all Entertainment Center acts to follow by proving the art of entertainment is well and truly alive. The “We love you Bettes,” regularly screamed out from the audience came from a cross-section of age groups- but not from the usual teeny-boppers who fill concert halls. At 59 the legendary entertainer looks at least 20 years younger than she is and appears to have all the enthusiasm and energy of a teenager, combined with the ability to laugh both at herself and others. Backed by a 12-piece band and dancing/singing trio the Harlettes, only Midler can seamlessly blend crass with class and relentless energy, creating a winning formula that is uniquely Bette. It may have taken 14 semi-trailers to move the lavish Broadway-style show set to town, but it was solely the Divine Miss M who guided the audience through their entire emotional spectrum of laughter through to tears. The set was not, as she carefully explained, a recreation of the Russian Kremlin (as some fans had believed), but a representation of 19th Century Coney Island complete with all the lights and fanfare of the famous theme park. Of course no Midler performance could be deemed complete without an upbeat rendition of the “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” or a heartbreaking version of the Beaches classic “Wind Beneath My Wings” and later of “The Rose.” While all three brought the crowd to their feet in a spontaneous ovation, the latter two left barely a dry eye in the house. After Brisbane, Midler’s performance dates are April 13, 15, 29 in Sydney, April 21, 23 in Melbourne and April 26 in Adelaide.
Pure, Divine Love I went to the opening night of "Kiss My Brass"
concert in Brisbane on Friday. I got a wonderful seat right in the
middle of the 3rd row. I write this mail to thank you for all the information you provided, that gives me the most enjoyable and memorable night of my life. Thank you! Cheng, Taiwan Bette's Performance Beyond Divine BRISBANE, April 9 AAP - The pint-sized powder keg that is Bette
Midler exploded onto Sailing onto the stage on a merry-go-round horse, which descended
from the ceiling, Kicking off with the title song Kiss My Brass, Midler set not only
the tone for the The "We love you Bettes," regularly screamed out from
the audience came from a cross-section "Last time I was here the audience was on drugs. Now they're
on medication," Midler At 59 the legendary entertainer looks at least 20 years younger
than she is and appears to have all the enthusiasm and energy of
a teenager, combined with the ability to laugh No-one remained immune from her witty jabs. Not John Hopoate, not Britney Spears, Camilla Parker Bowles, George Bush or John Howard and especially not Anna Nicole Smith. It may be Midler's first Australian tour since 1979, but the feisty
one-time pineapple A number of well-turned Aussie jokes struck their mark. "I shouldn't be too hard on George Bush - he's having surgery
next week," Midler said "He's having John Howard removed from his ass!" But, just in case she managed to offend her Brissie audience, Bette
had one comeback Backed by a 12-piece band and dancing/singing trio the Harlettes,
only Midler can seamlessly It may have taken 14 semi-trailers to move the lavish Broadway-style
show set to town, The set was not, as she carefully explained, a recreation of the
Russian Kremlin (as Of course no Midler performance could be deemed complete without
an upbeat rendition While all three brought the crowd to their feet in a spontaneous
ovation, the latter "I am tireless, ageless, and relentless," Midler had
at one stage crowed to audience There were many who'd say: "Thank God for that". Midler will perform once more at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre
on Sunday before Unforgettable Night
A Bequiling Bette Bewitches Brisbane
On my flt from BKK to Sydney there was a special on Bette on the audio channel and on my connecting flt to Brisbane they had this 'What's On' with a preview for the show,so the trip started on an excellent note. Brisbane is a small town, semi-tropical climate,parts of it fifties-like and with a great production of pineapples, it must remind Bette somehow of her youth in Hawaii, the people are very laidback and friendly. To get to Brisbane Entertainment Centre you walk through a small wooded area while you smell the refreshing eucalyptus trees and wake up a few cockatoo. In the centre it was hot dogs, beer and candy galore, there were merchandise stands with a few special Australia Tour t shirts and totebags, the program book was the same as KMB US. There were long lines for everything. The show started 15' late because of technical difficulties, which
was nothing really, but here they announce everything loud and clear.
The audience was all dressed in pink, fuchsia , mauve and purple
with sparklers; it was nice to see that the color scheme of the
Rose-wardrobe had already reached Brisbane. There was even a gang
in fuchsia wings and another in sailor suits each with a letter
of B E T T E ! on their cap, a matron in an evening gown, Well at 8 they were all wildly (and I mean WILDLY) screaming for Bette and from her horse flight on , it was standing ovation after standing ovation and LOVE cries from deep down that 15 000 people strong crowd. They greeted her like a long lost trooper and soon it became very clear that Australia had waited for 26 years just to pick up it's love affair with Bette. There were a few differences with the American concerts. This was the opening concert of the tour and at one point she hinted at jet lag; her voice was superb, sometimes she stumbled in the monologues but the warm reaction of the Aussies swept her to some of the most emotional and beautiful live singing I heard her perform. Bette sang two songs of Rosemary Clooney's : 'Hey There' and 'Tenderly', she skipped the Mister.Rogers bit. During the "Going to the Chapel" sequence the Harlettes sang "we're all having little vegimites for breakfast" which sounded like the Australian commercial tune it probably is. At the end she did 'Keep on Rocking' and when the complete audience knew the lyrics to the Rose, the enthusiasm clearly impressed her, at one point she said " I m just gonna stand here for a while and enjoy it". She then picked up the song to conclude, I couldn t reach the stage because of the tight security, but a virile and friendly man who was in charge of the guards promised to give my gift to her, well I looked deep in his eyes and left the rest to fate. After the curtain fell she came back and sung this beautiful song "Tenterfield Saddler" by the late Australian Peter Allen. While pushing open the curtain there was the band this time also playing accoustic guitar and the mandoline. A seemingly heterosexual sturdy male discreetly wiped the tears out of his eyes at this point, I know; he was standing next to me and I saw it through my own tears. The Courier Mail That’s where the energy levels stayed. It is her first tour here since 1979. It’s been way too long, yelled one fan. “How the hell are you Australia?” says Midler, hands on sassy hips. “Last time I was here the audience was on drugs. Now they’re on medication.” It took 14 semi-trailers to move the lavish Broadway-style show set to town. The show was delayed by a 15-minute technical hitch. But it only needed one entertainer to transport the audience. So where’d she take us? To Coney Island in the 19th century complete with beach murals, cabanas, ferris wheels. And back again. With a lot of wild detours. Midler, her outstanding horns section and dancing/singing trio the Hartletts, opened with the show’s title song Kiss My Brass. Then the deliciously irreverent digs start to fly. No one is safe. Camilla. Hopoate. Yeast infections. Refugees centres. Shane Warne’s texting habits. In a world where often lavish and over-the-top musical stage shows mask diminishing or lazy stars, comes this former pineapple canner in her 60th (60th!) year to rip that theory out, roots and all. Her show’s generous two-hour, 40-song program is shamelessly entertaining. There are few entertainers who can merge crass and class like Midler. Midler seamlessly blended drama and comedy, backed by a 12-piece band, to deliver a big-swing Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, a lovely I Think It’s Gonna Rain Today and show-stopping When A Man Loves A Woman, later launching into classics like The Rose, From A Distance and Peter Allen’s evergreen Tenterfield Saddler. If Midler never sings another note she should be remembered not just as a great original entertainer. She is a true original great. Bette Midler performs again in Brisbane tomorrow night.
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The
Epoch Times
Bette
was more than amazing. I was really lucky to see her opening show
in Brisbane on Friday night - as I live in New Zealand, so I flew
in just for the occassion. I was sooo excited to see her, even though
I had seen KMB twice while in the states. 
G'day
Mate,