Nicole Kidman is taking the stage in Kenya in a bid to raise awareness of women affected by domestic violence.

Just last month, the star testified before lawmakers in Congress to talk about violence against woman across the world, admitting that Hollywood “probably” played a role in contributing to acts of aggression.

And now the Moulin Rouge! actress is raising the issue on a tour of the African country, as part of an initiative launched by the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM).

Kidman will visit the Kenyatta Hospital and a school on Friday as part of her role as a goodwill ambassador for the organization.

Encouraging the support of women in Africa, she says, “These champions need and deserve our support. Not with a box of band-aids, but with a comprehensive, well-funded approach that acknowledges that women’s rights are human rights. It is time for policies that intentionally involve society’s key communities - from health and education departments to the police and judiciary - to deliver on that commitment. To succeed, it requires political will at the highest levels.”

Source, Bauer-Griffin

She has always remained tight-lipped about her ten-year marriage to actor Tom Cruise and vows she will take all her secrets to the grave.

But in one of her most revealing-ever interviews, Nicole Kidman let slip how her experiences of love ranged from ‘mundane’ marriage to ‘strange sexual fetish stuff’.

The 42-year-old actress, currently married to country singer Keith Urban, said her life had been about exploring different types of love.

‘I’ve explored obsession. I’ve explored loss and love in terms of being in a grief-stricken place, I’ve explored strange sexual fetish stuff, I’ve explored the mundane aspect of marriage, and monogamy,’ she said.

But while she confessed she had previously experienced the ‘mundane’ side of relationships, she described her present marriage as ‘raw’ and ‘dangerous’.

‘You work on it,’ she said. ‘It’s a very extraordinary, adventurous place to be: incredibly raw, incredibly dangerous and you’re very much out at sea. You’re exposed. You could drown.

‘When you commit to someone like that, you live and die together by that decision.’

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Nicole Kidman, Kate Hudson, Penelope Cruz, and Marion Cotillard grace the cover of Vogue’s November issue in various shades of red to promote their highly anticipated Nine movie.

• Penelope on her tortured character in the film: “Luckily I don’t have to identify with my roles, because if I did I would be dead by now! I’ve been working since the age of seventeen, and I really haven’t stopped. I want to balance it a little more. Instead of making three or four movies a year, I will do one.”
• Nicole on coming back to work after Sunday Rose: “I had no desire to work after I had my daughter, but to lure me back, this movie was the only way. [But] I’m not playing Claudia Cardinale. Even when I played Virginia Woolf I didn’t take the real woman into account.”
• Kate on getting a role: “I spent most of my childhood singing and dancing and just never had the chance to do it professionally. So when I got the chance to work with Rob, I was so excited, I was out of my mind.”
• Marion on musicals: “It’s been my dream to do an American musical. When I was a child, Annie was my favorite. I just never thought I would get to do it.”
• Penelope on living with Kate and Fergie: “I’ve had some very long dinners with Kate, because she loves eating. I mean four-hour dinners. We are exercising so much we don’t feel guilty at all.”
• Nicole on Kate’s acting: “Kate should be on Broadway. She should be the lead.”

Check out her bling!

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“Rabbit Hole,” starring Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart, is an adaptation of David Lindsay-Abaire’s Pulitzer prize-winning drama about a fraying family.

The story traces the life of a happily married couple that is disrupted by an unexpected tragedy and the emotional journey they must undertake to regain happiness.

Kidman plays a suburban mother dealing with the loss of a child. Eckhart will play Kidman’s husband, who is trying to hold on to the memory of his dead son while dealing with his emotionally removed wife.

With a budget of less than $10 million, a brisk 28-day shoot “Rabbit Hole” is more like an indie than a Hollywood production.

“This is a passion project for Nicole,” Eckhart said, “The reason why I’m in the movie is Nicole. If she wants to work with somebody, then that’s what happens.”

“When I first responded to it, it was because I read it, and it was about grief, which fascinates me,” Kidman said. “Loss and love seem to be themes that run through my work.”

This film is about “a marriage and the way that people fuse through pain, that you can either be pulled apart or you can come together. In the same way that ‘Birth,’ a film that I did, was about loss of the loved one who’s your partner in life, this is the most profound loss, and it’s the worst place to tread. And so my nature tends to be to explore something that I’m terrified of.” [source: NYTimes.com]

The movie is directed by John Cameron Mitchell from the script which Lindsay-Abaire adapted from his own stage play. Sam Raimi was actually attached to direct, but dropped out to do “Spider-Man 4.”

“Rabbit Hole” also stars Dianne Wiest, Tammy Blanchard, Sandra Oh, Giancarlo Esposito and Jon Tenney.

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She’s graced many red carpets but can Nicole Kidman handle the catwalk? Or at least say “Make it work” as effectively as Tim Gunn? Mais oui! A rep for Lifetime confirms that the Australia actress will appear on the reality hit Project Runway.

Her appearance on the special, Project Runway: All-Star Challenge, will air before the sixth season premiere of Project Runway on Aug. 20. She’ll join returning designers such as Jeffrey Sebelia and Santino Rice on the special.

Kidman’s guest stint was first reported by Access Hollywood.

Source, Bauer-Griffin