The Sydney Premiere of Bootmen, Oct 4th 2000

The following account by Michael Idato, featured in the Metro section of the Sydney Morning Herald, 13 Oct 2000

Tip top tap

I abandoned my Gucci loafers for a ground-stomping dirty great pair of Dirk Bikkenberg's for the premiere of Bootmen, the film based on the Newcastle toe-tapping squad Tap Dogs.

After all, if you're going off to see a high-kicking tale of tap-dancing - an artform which is, as the film laboriously reminded us from start to finish, not for poofs - then you ought to dress appropriately.

Steve Worland's script is frothy but fun, and plays comfortably in the hands of its three leads: Hollywood-bound heartthrob Adam Garcia, former Muriel's Wedding guest Sophie Lee and the fantastically underrated Sam Worthington.

After the film, the crowd stampeded into cityLive for an after-party which proved to be the week's "ticket". (One thought: Madonna and The Buggles may well have been unavailable; the former wallowing in her fame, and the latter in relative obscurity, but a covers band doesn't exactly light anyone's fire.)

Beverly Hills 90210's Ian Ziering brushed shoulders with locals on the night, graciously smiling even when one media identity, not so savvy with trashy TV, chatted to him, convinced his name was Brian, not Eye-an, as he pronounces it.

After the party, Ziering held court for a late, last drink at The International with a coterie which included his Fox minder Mark McGowan, writer Julietta Jameson, whose debut book The Tree Of Knowledge is due out next March, and actor Arthur Angel.

Marcia and Deni Hines were there, as well as Pia Miranda, who hovered conspicuously near the 90210 posse (memo: audacious is fabulous but obvious is unforgivable) and Wheel of Fortune's Sophie Faulkner, who, as it turned out, was Adam Garcia's date for their Year 10 Formal.Talk about a small world.