Kylie explored darker, more avant-garde themes in the imagery for her album X, which was released in 2007. This helped define the look and feel of the Kylie X2008 tour and Kylie worked closely with French designer Jean Paul Gaultier to adapt hand-picked designs from his current haute couture collections to fit the mood of each act. One costume Gaultier created specifically for the tour drew on Kylie’s long-held fascination with the Japanese geisha, which has been revisited in different ways throughout her career.
When the album Aphrodite was released in 2010, it was clear that a tour of epic proportions was required. Featuring ten dancers, eight aerialists, a four-piece band, two backing vocalists and a crew of over 100, the Kylie Aphrodite Les Folies tour was Kylie’s biggest and most ambitious. The image of ‘Aphrodite, the goddess of love emerging from the sea’ inspired an elaborate and highly technical set that used water to dramatic effect. Dolce & Gabbana once again designed her costumes, fully embracing the heavenly charms of Aphrodite using floaty lengths of pale chiffon, strings of pearls and an array of sparkling accessories.
Kylie’s most recent album, Kiss Me Once, was released in March 2014. The striking image of her red lips used to promote the album inspired the theme of the opening act for the Kylie Kiss Me Once tour. With an award-winning laser show and hightech use of multimedia, the Kiss Me Once tour demonstrated Kylie’s commitment to exploring new forms of staging. She still made sure there was a nod to her past, however, by dedicating an entire act to a medley of her ’80s classics delivered from a pink doll’s house set.