Paula Varjack's NINE SIXTEENTHS - Janet Jackson Inspired Show to Launch UK Tour
The production will play at 19 venues, including Coventry, Cambridge, Oxford, Wolverhampton, Brighton Leicester, Leeds, Nottingham, and Salford.
Nine Sixteenths is an exciting and fun new show by Paula Varjack, looking at the consequences of the infamous Janet Jackson/Justin Timberlake 'nipplegate' incident at the 2004 Superbowl. It opens an extensive UK tour at Bristol Tobacco Theatres on 9 and 10 February and continues on to 19 venues, including Coventry, Cambridge, Oxford, Wolverhampton, Brighton Leicester, Leeds, Nottingham, and Salford (Greater Manchester), concluding with 2 weeks at London's Brixton House in late May.
Nine Sixteenths uses the incident in an entertainingly fun way to examine how the media treatment of middle-aged women has changed since the turn of the century. It is performed by four 40+ women.
Dubbed 'Nipplegate', and later described as a 'wardrobe malfunction', Justin Timberlake exposed Janet Jackson's breast and nipple to a huge live TV audience for nine sixteenths of a second. It had a widespread impact which continues to this day and helped to popularise YouTube then a struggling minority interest video-sharing site (millions used it to rewatch the incident).
It's a fast, fun and hugely entertaining show that doesn't just deal with how black women are treated by the media but also our need for icons and positive role models, Paula's hopes and fears as a performer, and her and the other actors feelings about the challenges they face as older female performers. It's set in a world of mainstream pop culture, stadium concerts, TV studios using light, sound, music and dance - and its host venue and audience - to tell the story. It will leave you in no doubt of the pivotal role Jackson played in modern popular culture, paving the way for Britney Spears, Beyoncé, and Rhianna amongst many others.
Nipplegate caused a furore that impacted heavily on Jackson and undoubtably damaged her career. Her music was blacklisted, her 2004 Grammy Awards invitation revoked and plans for Jackson to star in a Hollywood film were abandoned. Conversely Timberlake was welcomed at the Grammy's and suffered little negative backlash.
Paula says "Janet Jackson was a tremendous icon to me, at a time when I had relatively few black female artists to look to. She was a game changer in so many ways - and did it on her terms. After her 'wardrobe malfunction' the music industry let her down."
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