Clark monologue rejection becomes Hobbs' choice

By MATHEW DEARNALEY

Broadcasting Minister Marian Hobbs has accepted a role that was too hot for her boss, a one-night stand in the Wellington sessions of The Vagina Monologues.

Ms Hobbs said she jumped at the chance to take part in the controversial play, which is based on American playwright Eve Ensler's interviews with hundreds of women about their sexuality.

She was of a generation that had encouraged women to talk more openly about their experiences and saw it as a warm, funny, endearing and sometimes sad play which was not particularly revolutionary.

Prime Minister Helen Clark refused an invitation to appear in the production, which opens at Downstage Theatre in a fortnight, saying she did not intend giving the media "that little headline".

Former Prime Minister Sir Robert Muldoon was a parliamentary backbencher by the time he strutted the stage in the 1980s as master of ceremonies for The Rocky Horror Show.

Despite the demands of her ministerial office, Ms Hobbs remains active in the theatre, putting in regular stints with the stand-up comedy troupe Hens Teeth.

Downstage marketing manager Nicky Nicolaou said last night that the minister's opening night guest appearance did not require much rehearsal, as it was simply a matter of reciting other women's stories and could be done with the assistance of cue cards if necessary.

But she was confident that Ms Hobbs, who had opened Downstage's season of plays at the beginning of the year, would leave her mark on the production.

"She's wonderful on stage - she has a real warmth."

Prominent actors Lucy Lawless, Danielle Cormack and Madeleine Sami have played starring roles in the production in Auckland.

Versions of the production overseas have starred actors such as Glenn Close, Winona Ryder, Whoopi Goldberg, Calista Flockhart and Cate Blanchett.