From the "What Could have Been" files, Pussycat Dolls lead singer Nicole Scherzinger said she auditioned for "Mamma Mia!" when she was an out-of-work actress/singer a few years ago.

"They told me I needed to go on my own," Scherzinger said during a recent tour break in Europe. "They told me I was too good and I was like, 'What? Dude, I need a job! Hire me! I need to eat and pay my bills!' "

"Mamma Mia!" ends its Honolulu run May 31. The Pussycat Dolls play the Blaisdell Arena June 13 ...

An open letter to Shane Sparks:

Dear Shane, master of the dance universe,

Next time you're in town, please let us know earlier than just two days in advance of your visit.

Some of us love you, and would like to stalk you like a Danny Gokey fan in pink plaid pajama pants. But how can we track your every move when we don't even know you're coming?

Next time you make plans to be at Pipeline Café on a Saturday night (like last week), please let us (your most devoted fans in the whole world) know you're coming before we make other party plans.

If you're not to blame for showing up on such short notice, please pass this note on to your manager or promoter or whoever is responsible for keeping us in the dark about your visit.

XOXO,

— The unofficial Shane Sparks fan club ...

The Sheraton Waikiki's RumFire — the only rum-centric bar in the state — gets some page space in Food & Wine's "Cocktails '00," the magazine's annual guide to the country's best cocktails and bars. RumFire is the only Hawai'i bar to make the mag's list of 100 best bars. We say, "Yay, RumFire!" but we can't help wondering why Lewers Lounge didn't make the cut ...

The latest artist to be signed to Jack Johnson's Brushfire Records label is Zee Avi, and her music is exactly what you'd expect from a Johnson-affiliated artist: strummy, laid-back folk-pop with breezy vocals. References to nature included. Avi was discovered on YouTube, performing in self-made music videos under the moniker KokoKaina, which makes us think she might have Hawai'i ties.

We do know for sure (thanks, MySpace) she's from Malaysia. Her self-titled debut album dropped Tuesday ...

Ohmigod. There's going to be mud wrestling at the 50th State Fair courtesy of — ready for this? — "Chicago Knockers Ladies Mudwrestling." Can they hold that kind of, um, ... activity ... at the state fair? And who's going to be doing the wrestling at an event whose main audience is families? ("Uh, you go ahead and ride that new Dragon Coaster ride, honey. Mommy will be over there in the mud pit showing those other ladies how it's done.") ...

Braddoc DeCaires and Jim Tharp, the hunters in Manoa Valley Theatre's "Duck Hunter Shoots Angel," are turning in the most memorable performances of all the current theater runs. Great little set, perfect casting of those two.