Herald and Weekly Times
Bette on a big night out
Divine Miss M, Bette Midler, will perform in Melbourne in April.
By JAMES WIGNEY
16jan05
BETTE Midler will perform in Australia for the first time in 26 years with her lavish Kiss My Brass! tour.
The Divine Miss M, who sold out 31 shows in Australia in 1979, will be at Rod Laver Arena on April 18.
Midler, 58, who starred opposite Nicole Kidman in last year’s The Stepford Wives, said the two-hour spectacular is a return to her love, the stage.
She calls the stage, as opposed to the screen, her “art”.
“I don’t really feel that I have the control on the screen that I have on the stage,” she said.
The show recreates New York’s Coney Island at the turn of the 19th century and features an amusement park and a freak show on stage.
Midler will be backed by a 12-piece band and a singing and dancing trio, The Harlettes, who will back her up on classics such as The Rose, Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy and The Wind Beneath My Wings.
The diva’s last tour helped establish Garry Van Egmond as a promoter and he is thrilled by the prospect of her return.
“I did her tour in 1979 and I have been trying to bring her back since,” he said.
Tickets priced $99 to $271.50 go on sale on January 27.
Phone 132 849.
Catch an exclusive interview with Bette Midler in next week’s Sunday Herald Sun.
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The Sunday Mail
Divine Miss M is on her way
16jan05
SINGER and actor Bette Midler has announced her first Australian tour in 26 years.
Brisbane Entertainment Centre on April 8
Midler will bring her smash-hit show, Kiss My Brass, to the Brisbane Entertainment Centre on April 8. The production promises Midler’s trademark mix of showstoppers, siren songs and stand-up comedy.
The show’s spectacular set recreates New York’s Coney Island at the end of the 19th century. Songs will include old hits as well as selections from Midler’s recent album, Bette Midler Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook.
Audiences should also expect to hear acerbic and topical witticisms, some of them aimed at younger pop stars.
Midler recently told a US audience: “I’ve seen Christina Aguilera – she was wearing pasties and garters. All these new girls are so trashy.
“And do I get a thank-you note? I opened the door to trash. I was trashy before any of these girls were born.”
