Thursday, March 26, 2009


BRITNEY Spears' Australian fans may have to pay up to $150 to watch the star mime on stage.

Local promoters are still negotiating to lure Britney Spears down under before the end of the year.

Spears is reportedly requesting $1 million per show for her first Australian tour.

That means promoters need Spears to perform at least 15 shows across Australia and New Zealand to break even.

Spears' high fee and expensive production costs, coupled with the poor exchange rate, means tickets could start at around $120 for the basic seats, and up to $200 for premium seats.

Music industry insiders say Spears' miming may backfire with Australian audiences not used to singers who don't actually sing.

Footage from American shows posted on YouTube shows Spears' pristine vocals sound remarkably similar to those heard on her album, with no signs of being out of breath as she embarks on dance routines.

"Australians don't like paying to watch people mime," a music industry source said.

"It's meant to be a spectacular show with lots of dancing and choreography, but Justin Timberlake and Pink manage to dance and also sing live. Australian audiences have never really embraced acts who can't cut it live."

Britain's Sun newspaper claimed Spears mimes all but one song -- the ballad Everytime.

Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton, who appears in a video introduction in the show, states she mimed the entire concert.

"There is no live singing. None!," Hilton wrote. "She recorded vocals to 'sound like' live, but they were all canned, pre-taped.

However, it's a Britney Spears show. You expect that! Even though you expect it, though, it would be nice if at least a handful of the almost 20-song set were live. But that's not gonna happen."

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,25248914-5006024,00.html

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