| Concert Tour Name: | Showgirl: Homecoming Tour |
| Artist: | Kylie Minogue |
| Location: | Oceania • Europe |
| Album: | Ultimate Kylie |
| Start Date: | 11 November 2006 |
| End Date: | 23 January 2007 |
| Number Of Legs: | 2 |
| Number Of Shows: | 34 |
| Gross: | US$40.34 million ($ million in dollars) |
| Last Tour: | (2005) |
| This Tour: | Showgirl: Homecoming Tour (2006–07) |
| Next Tour: | KylieX2008 (2008) |
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.
Minogue was originally scheduled to perform in Australia and Asia during in 2005, but the dates were postponed due to her breast cancer diagnosis.[1] 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.[2]
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.[3]
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, before Minogue 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 performed "White Diamond", and closed the section with "On a Night Like This", which begins as a ballad.
The second section begins with a dance interlude, using excerpts of "Do You Dare?", before Minogue rises out of the centre of the stage to perform a medley of "Shocked" "What Do I Have to Do" and "Spinning Around". Several songs were sampled and interpolated during the medley, including:"It's No Secret", "Keep on Pumpin' It", "Give Me Just a Little More Time", "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)", "I'm Over Dreaming (Over You)", "Finally", "Step Back in Time" and "Such a Good Feeling".
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 followed by performances of "Cowboy Style" and "Finer Feelings", the latter of which is sung by the backing vocalists as Minogue dances. Samsara ends with a performance of "Too Far".
The fourth act begins with a dance interlude of the Sandstorm Dub of "Butterfly", featuring acrobat Terry Kvasnik. Minogue then performed "Red Blooded Woman", featuring an excerpt of "Where the Wild Roses Grow". This was followed with performances of "Slow" and "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" and a shortened version "Chocolate". The stage then 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".
Pop Paradiso opens with an interlude of Minogue's song "Burning Up", mashed up 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", featuring an excerpt of "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". For the encore, Minogue performed a sing-a-long version of "Especially for You", before closing the show with a performance of "Love at First Sight", as a video montage of her career shown on the video screens behind her.
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".[2] The Ages 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".[4] 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".[5]
See main article: White Diamond: A Personal Portrait of Kylie Minogue and Showgirl Homecoming Live. 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.[6] On 4 March 2007, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation broadcast the performance without commercial interruptions.[7] The concert was released to DVD on 10 December 2007 as a double disc set with Minogue's documentary film White Diamond.[8]
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.[9] [10]
Act 1: Homecoming
Act 2: Everything Taboo
Act 3: Samsara
Act 4: Athletica
Act 5: Dreams
Act 6: Pop Paradiso
Act 7: Dance of the Cybermen
Encore
| Date | City | Country | Venue | Attendance | Revenue | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oceania | ||||||
| 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 | ||||
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.[11] Two additional scheduled performances at the Manchester Evening News Arena were postponed and all were rescheduled to the end of January 2007.[12]