Showgirl: The Homecoming Tour

Showgirl: Homecoming Tour was the ninth concert tour by Australian singer Kylie Minogue, in support of her second major greatest hits compilation, Ultimate Kylie (2004). The tour began on 11 November 2006 in Sydney, Australia at the Sydney Entertainment Centre and concluded on 23 January 2007 in London, England at Wembley Arena, consisting of 20 shows in Australia and 14 shows in England.

Showgirl: Homecoming Tour
Tour by Kylie Minogue
Promotional poster for the tour
Associated albumUltimate Kylie
Start date11 November 2006
End date23 January 2007
Legs2
No. of shows34
Box officeUS$40.34 million ($56.93 million in 2022 dollars)[1]
Kylie Minogue concert chronology

Minogue was originally scheduled to perform in Australia and Asia during Showgirl: The Greatest Hits Tour in 2005, but the dates were postponed due to her breast cancer diagnosis.[2] The tour resumed the following year, with a revised set list and new costumes. To accommodate Minogue's medical condition and conserve her strength, both alterations to the choreography and longer breaks between show sections were introduced.[3]

Background

For the Homecoming Tour, the show was re-vamped and re-structured into a new production. The tour initially started as an Australian-only tour, to compensate those shows cancelled from the previous tour; however, fourteen shows were scheduled in the United Kingdom due to popular demand, with the Asian shows from Showgirl being indefinitely cancelled.[4]

Concert synopsis

Minogue performing "Can't Get You Out of My Head"

The show was split into seven acts: Homecoming, Everything Taboo, Samsara, Athletica, Dreams, Pop Paradiso, Dance of the Cybermen, with the addition of an encore and an interval. The show opens with an instrumental introduction, featuring writing on the video screen introducing Minogue. She then rises out of the stage on a platform dressed in a pink showgirl outfit. She opens the show with "Better the Devil You Know", which is quickly followed by a performance of "In Your Eyes". After addressing the audience, Minogue introduced and sang new song "White Diamond", and then "On a Night Like This", which begins in the style of a ballad, before resuming with the original after the first chorus. The ending is in the same style as the beginning of the song, where Minogue is taken below the stage, closing the section. The second section begins with a dance interlude, that uses excerpts of "Shocked" and "Do You Dare?", before Minogue rises out of the centre of the stage as "Shocked" is heard. She sings up to the middle eight, before a short segue is played using excerpts of "It's No Secret", "Keep on Pumpin' It", "Give Me Just a Little More Time" and "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)", which leads into a one-verse-one-chorus performance of "What Do I Have to Do", which is followed by another segue using an excerpt of "Over Dreaming (Over You)" and then a performance of "Spinning Around", which is followed by a dance interlude after the middle eight using excerpts of "Step Back in Time" and "Such a Good Feeling".

Minogue performing "Cowboy Style"

The third section begins with a dance interlude, followed by a performance of "Confide in Me", where the dancers treat Minogue as if she were a puppet. This is quickly followed by a performance of "Cowboy Style", which is followed by a small interlude of "Finer Feelings", where the backing vocalists sing whilst Minogue performs a dance; this is then followed by a performance of "Too Far". The fourth act begins with a dance interlude of the Sandstorm Dub of "Butterfly", where acrobat Terry Kvasnik dances round the stage; after this, "Red Blooded Woman" is performed, using an excerpt of "Where the Wild Roses Grow"; Minogue this time is rising atop a pommel horse in a leopard onesie. Minogue then performed "Slow", which was followed by a performance of "Kids" before a short interval.

The fifth section begins with a cover of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" where Minogue rises from behind the stage on a sequined moon. This is then followed by a torch version of "Come into My World". Minogue then performed a shortened version "Chocolate" on the stage, which morphs at the end of the catwalk to form a "cake", from which she sings "I Believe in You". The act closes with a performance of "Dreams". The next act opens with an interlude of Minogue's song "Burning Up", mashed with Madonna's "Vogue". She then goes on to perform a jazz version of "The Locomotion" which is followed by a performance of "I Should Be So Lucky", which samples "The Only Way Is Up". Minogue closed the section with a remix of "Hand on Your Heart". The penultimate section opens with a remix of "Can't Get You Out of My Head", leading into the countdown of "Light Years"; this version of the song is mashed up with song "Turn It into Love". Minogue then performed a two-song encore, performing a sing-a-long version of "Especially for You", inviting the audience to sing Jason Donovan's part. Minogue then closed the show with a performance of "Love at First Sight". with a video montage of her career shown on the video screens behind her.

Critical reception

Minogue performing Too Far

Showgirl: The Homecoming Tour received positive reviews from critics. Christine Sams in a review for The Sydney Morning Herald described the show as an "extravaganza" and wrote that it was "nothing less than a triumph".[3] The Age's Patrick Donovan wrote that Minogue "looked fit and healthy and was in good voice". He also wrote that she was "at her best prowling the stage in a catsuit, playing up to the crowd".[5] CBBC Newsround described the tour as the "perfect comeback" due to its "range of songs, excellent dancers, stage lighting and Kylie's love of performing".[6]

Broadcasts and recordings

Minogue's performance in Melbourne, Australia on 11 December 2006 was filmed for television and DVD release. The concert premiered on 13 January 2007 in the United Kingdom on Channel 4.[7] On 4 March 2007, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation broadcast the performance without commercial interruptions.[8] The concert was released to DVD on 10 December 2007 as a double disc set with Minogue's documentary film White Diamond.[9]

Minogue's second Australian concert in Sydney on 12 November 2006 was recorded and released as a live album in January 2007. Showgirl Homecoming Live featured a guest appearance by U2 lead singer Bono on the song "Kids". The album reached number seven on the UK Albums Chart and was certified silver.[10][11]

Set list

Act 1: Homecoming

  1. "Showgirl Theme" (Instrumental Introduction)
  2. "Better the Devil You Know"
  3. "In Your Eyes"
  4. "White Diamond"
  5. "On a Night Like This"

Act 2: Everything Taboo

  1. "Shocked" (contains excerpts from "Do You Dare?", "It's No Secret", "Give Me Just A Little More Time", "Keep on Pumpin' It" and "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)")
  2. "What Do I Have to Do?" (contains excerpt from "I'm Over Dreaming (Over You)")
  3. "Spinning Around" (contains excerpts from "Step Back in Time" along with elements of "Finally" and "Such a Good Feeling")

Act 3: Samsara

  1. "Temple Prequel" (Interlude)
  2. "Confide in Me"
  3. "Cowboy Style"
  4. "Finer Feelings" (Performed by backing vocalists)
  5. "Too Far"

Act 4: Athletica

  1. "Butterfly" (Sandstorm Dub) (Dance Interlude)
  2. "Red Blooded Woman" (contains excerpts from "Where the Wild Roses Grow")
  3. "Slow"
  4. "Kids"

Act 5: Dreams

  1. "Rainbow Prequel" (Interlude)
  2. "Over the Rainbow"
  3. "Come into My World"
  4. "Chocolate"
  5. "I Believe in You"
  6. "Dreams" (contains excerpts from "When You Wish upon a Star")

Act 6: Pop Paradiso

  1. "Burning Up" / "Vogue (Tribute to Madonna)
  2. "The Locomotion"
  3. "I Should Be So Lucky" (contains excerpts from "The Only Way Is Up")
  4. "Hand on Your Heart"

Act 7: Dance of the Cybermen

  1. "Space Prequel" (Interlude)
  2. "Can't Get You Out of My Head" (contains excerpts from "Rise of the Cybermen" along with elements of the "Doctor Who Theme")
  3. "Light Years" / "Turn It into Love" (contains elements of the TARDIS dematerializing)

Encore

  1. "Especially for You" (Intro contains an excerpt of "Love's in Need of Love Today")
  2. "Love at First Sight"
Notes
  • On 31 December 2006, Kylie performed "Celebration" before "Love at First Sight".
  • On 13 January 2007, Kylie had to end the show early due to illness. An acappella version of "Got to Be Certain" along with "Kids" were performed as an encore. The following two shows were postponed and all were rescheduled.[12][13]

Tour dates

List of concerts, showing date, city, country, venue, tickets sold, number of available tickets and amount of gross revenue
Date City Country Venue Attendance Revenue
Australia
11 November 2006 Sydney Australia Sydney Entertainment Centre 34,774 / 34,774 $2,963,147
12 November 2006
14 November 2006
17 November 2006 Brisbane Brisbane Entertainment Centre 35,574 / 37,884 $3,354,548
18 November 2006
20 November 2006
23 November 2006 Sydney Acer Arena 51,852 / 51,852 $4,963,147
24 November 2006
26 November 2006
30 November 2006 Adelaide Adelaide Entertainment Centre 21,583 / 22,411 $2,369,124
1 December 2006
4 December 2006 Perth Burswood Dome 36,774 / 38,774 $3,554,147
5 December 2006
7 December 2006
10 December 2006 Melbourne Rod Laver Arena 76,526 / 76,526 $7,578,217
11 December 2006
13 December 2006
14 December 2006
16 December 2006
17 December 2006
Europe
31 December 2006 London England Wembley Arena 78,526 / 78,526 $7,578,217
2 January 2007
3 January 2007
5 January 2007
6 January 2007
8 January 2007
9 January 2007
12 January 2007 Manchester Manchester Evening News Arena 100,072 / 100,072 $7,976,089
13 January 2007
18 January 2007
19 January 2007
21 January 2007
22 January 2007
23 January 2007
Total 435,681 / 440,819 (99%) $40,336,636

Show cancellations

On 13 January 2007 at the Manchester Evening News Arena in Manchester, England, Minogue was forced to end her concert after performing for an hour due to illness. Minogue's spokesman later confirmed that she had been diagnosed with a respiratory tract infection.[14] Two additional scheduled performances at the Manchester Evening News Arena were postponed and all were rescheduled to the end of January 2007.[15]

Personnel

  • Kylie Minogue - executive producer
  • Terry Blamey - executive producer
  • William Baker - creative director and designer
  • Steve Anderson - musician production
  • Kevin Hopgood - production manager
  • Alan MacDonald - production design
  • John Galliano - costume design
  • Karl Lagerfeld - costume design
  • Dolce & Gabbana - costume design, shoes
  • Addae Gaskin - costume design
  • Gareth Pugh - costume design
  • Matthew Williamson for Emilio Pucci - costume design
  • Bvlgari - jewelry
  • Manolo Blahnik - shoes
  • Stephen Jones - millinery
  • Rafael Bonachela - choreographer
  • Akram Khan - choreographer
  • Michael Rooney - choreographer
  • Sean Fitzpatrick - tour manager
  • Andrew Small - drums
  • Steve Turner - keyboards
  • Chris Brown - bass
  • Mark Jaimes - guitar
  • Valerie Etienne - backing vocals
  • Hazel Fernandez - backing vocals
  • Janet Ramus - backing vocals
  • Dance Captain: Annoulka Yanminchev
  • Dancers: Jason Beitel - dancer
  • Marco Da Silva - dancer
  • Jamie Karitzis - dancer
  • Alan Lambie - dancer
  • Welly Locoh Donou - dancer
  • Claire Meehan - dancer
  • Jason Piper - dancer
  • Nikoletta Rafaelisova - dancer
  • Andile Sotiya - dancer
  • Nikki Trow - dancer
  • Rachel Yau - dancer
  • Terry Kvasnik - acrobat

References

  1. 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved 28 May 2023.
  2. Corder, Mike. "Kylie Minogue Has Breast Cancer". CBS. 17 May 2005. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  3. Sams, Christine. "Feathered Kylie's fans tickled pink". The Sydney Morning Herald. 12 November 2006. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  4. hkclubbing.. "Kylie Showgirl Tour for Hong Kong Postponed". CBS. 17 May 2005. Retrieved 26 December 2016.
  5. Donovan, Patrick. "Kylie – Showgirl Homecoming Tour". The Age. 11 December 2006. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  6. "Concert Review: Kylie". CBBC Newsround . 8 January 2007. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  7. Hooper, Mark (8 January 2007). "Kylie, 05/01/07, Wembley Arena". Channel 4. Archived from the original on 9 December 2008. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
  8. "ABC TV To Screen Kylie Showgirl Homecoming Tour". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 5 February 2007. Archived from the original on 5 February 2008. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
  9. "'White Diamond' in the Shops!" Archived 21 January 2008 at the Wayback Machine. Kylie.com. 10 December 2007. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
  10. Sexton, Paul. "Lewis, Winehouse Rule The Roost On U.K. Charts". Billboard.com. 15 January 2007. Retrieved 15 January 2007.
  11. "British sales certificate for Showgirl Homecoming Live". British Phonographic Industry. 16 February 2007. Retrieved 7 January 2008.
  12. "Kylie Minogue, Showgirl Homecoming Tour, MEN Arena, Jan 13 2007". setlist.fm.
  13. "Illness forces Kylie Minogue to cancel concerts".
  14. "Fans await Kylie health decision". BBC. 15 January 2007. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  15. "Kylie Minogue announces rescheduled Manchester date". NME. 17 January 2007. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
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