KATE HUDSON SHOULD CONSIDER BROADWAY MUSICAL, SAYS NICOLE KIDMAN

Kate Hudson should consider a leading role in a Broadway musical after putting in a stunning performance in Nine, according to co-star Nicole Kidman and director Rob Marshall.

The actress' Cinema Italiano number is among the high points of the much-anticipated new film - and it might help garner her an Oscar nomination in February (09).

Kidman and Marshall think the time is now right for Hudson to take her musical skills to the New York stage.

The Aussie Oscar winner says, "I came into the rehearsal and I saw Kate dancing up a storm. That was my first day and I was very jet-lagged but I wen t, 'Wow, that was amazing.' I can't wait for people to see that part of her.

"Maybe she'll do a Broadway show out of this because she so deserves the lead in a show."

And her director, Marshall, agrees: "She (Hudson) has this hidden talent that nobody knows about. She opened her mouth to sing and there was this incredible singer and then when she moved I saw this proper dancer.

"She was a knock-out and it was thrilling to discover. I'm so proud of what she did in this film."