THE worldwide smash hit musical Rent is in Perth this November.

Starring Anthony Callea, Tim Campbell, Nikki Webster, Shane Jenek (Courtney Act) and Andrew Conaghan along with some of Perth’s finest musical theatre performers.

Directed by Chris Kabay with musical direction by Simon Holt, Rent provides a scorchingly hot modern take on Puccini’s La Boheme and is considered the greatest rock musical of modern times. This stirring musical centres on a group of impoverished young artists and musicians struggling to survive and create in New York City’s Bohemian East Village.

Rent has been the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, the Obie Award, the New York Drama Critics Circle Award, four Tony Awards and three Drama Desk Awards and is one of the longest running Broadway musicals of all time.

1-3 November 2007
Bunbury Regional Entertainment Centre, WA
Bunbury tickets are available from August 16 through BREC Ticketing on 1300 661 272 or bunburyentertainment.com

From 9 November 2007
Regal Theatre, Subiaco, WA
Perth tickets are available from August 16 through TICKETEK on 132 849 or ticketek.com

Source: Perth Now

Any doubts about Nikki Webster’s maturity were dispelled last night at the gay and lesbian Sleaze Ball.

Dressed as a glamorous wind-up doll, Webster, now 20, was to emerge from a carriage to sing a remix of her debut single Strawberry Kisses as scantily-clad dancers gyrated around her. She said the sultry performance was a far cry from the 13-year-old Hero Girl who flew eight storeys high and sang Under Southern Skies in front of a live audience of 110,000 and a worldwide television audience of 3.7 billion at the opening ceremony of the Sydney 2000 Olympics.

Sleaze Ball was also good preparation for her upcoming role as the militant lesbian Maureen in the musical Rent.

“I’m lucky to have a great gay following and it will certainly be fun,” she said.

The West Australian production of Rent will involve an element of nudity, she said, “but just my ass.”

Webster is no stranger to taking her clothes off after celebrating her 18th birthday by posing for FHM. “It was a great way, maybe not the right way, for people to see me developing and growing up four, five, six years on from the Olympics,” she said.

Webster said her love life was “pretty dull at the moment”. “Turning 20 is good landmark to put things in perspective and the boys will come I’m sure,” she said.

Source: Sydney Morning Herald

POPETTE Nikki Webster has signed on for a Perth production of hippie musical Hair, but is refusing to say whether she’ll be nude for the role.

Webster is playing Sheila, the show’s female lead who would normally appear in the mass-nudity scene.

“Everyone’s going to have to come and see the show to find out,” Webster said in true showbiz fashion before letting slip that she really should get back into the gym.

The musical is also something of an Australian Idol reunion, with Rob “Millsy” Mills, Cle Wootten and Cosima De Vito all starring. De Vito is the only one of the three who’ll stay clothed. If Hair‘s run in the west does well, the production could go to Melbourne.

Hair will be directed by Chris Kabay with musical direction by Simon Holt of yellow glass theatre inc.

Hair follows “The Tribe”, a group of politically active, long-haired Hippies of the “Age of Aquarius” fighting against conscription to the Vietnam War.

Take a journey with buddies Claude and Berger, as they battle against draft notice, and the love of Sheila, who’s politically active lifestyle prevents her from pursuing either love interest. The hippie days of the late Sixties are epitomized by them and their friends Jeanie, Woof, Crissy and Dionne – and with songs like Aquarius, Hair, I Got Life, Good Morning Starshine, Hair and Let The Sunshine In.

10-20 May 2007
Regal Theatre, Subiaco
Tickets available now through BOCS Ticketing on 9484 1133, 1800 193 300 or www.bocsticketing.com.au

Source: PerthNow

Strawberry Kissed pop star Nikki Webster has signed on for a Perth production of sexed-up musical Hair, but is refusing to comment on whether she will appear nude.

Nikki is playing the musical’s female lead of Sheila who would normally appear in the mass-nudity scene.

Now 19, Ms Webster first came to prominence for her starring role in the Sydney Olympics opening ceremony at age 13.

However, she caused quite a commotion when she posed for a shoot with men’s mag FHM and later did another shoot with Zoo Weekly .

Although we should point out that appearing in corset, hot pants and boots in an air-brushed mag article is a long way from the full-frontal nudity for which Hair is known.

“Everyone’s going to have to come and see the show to find out,” she laughs, of the gear-on/gear-off question.

The musical’s producer Adam Bick, of Eventainment, is also refusing to confirm or deny whether the popette will appear nude. “The cast members will be getting their kit off, this is not a sanitised version,” he says.

“But as for Nikki, well, people will just have to come along and find out for themselves.”

Hmm, sounds like a deliberate marketing ploy to us.

Nikki did let slip to (Confidential) that she really should get back into the gym – perhaps to tone a few body parts that will be on show?

The musical is something of an Australian Idol reunion. Rob Mills will play the lead male role of Claude (and will be stripping). Cle Wootten, who plays Dionne, will be also be getting her gear off while nodule-girl Cosima De Vito will sing but will not act – read that she’ll stay clothed.

Source: Adelaide Now