Perth Festival has released its full 2027 program, with 24 days of music, theatre, dance and art running from Friday 5 February to Sunday 28 February. The 74th festival includes seven festival commissions, two world premieres and eight Australian premieres or exclusives, according to X-Press Magazine.
The East Perth Power Station is again the hub for live music and late nights, and Australian sample pioneers The Avalanches will close the festival there.
The music line-up
Main Stage highlights at the Power Station include We Will Always Love Her, a tribute to Dolly Parton; Grammy-winning Icelandic composer Ólafur Arnalds; The Avalanches; US electronic artist DJ Shadow; Kaytetye producer and DJ RONA from Mparntwe/Alice Springs; and Perth's own Methyl Ethel.
Community radio station RTRFM marks its 50th anniversary with A Live WA Mixtape, three supergroups led by Maatakitj, Abbe May and Paul Francis Wood playing WA classics. Listed guests include Nicholas Allbrook, Jake Webb, Vanessa Thornton of Jebediah and Drew Goddard of Karnivool.
The Embassy moves back into Perth Town Hall for three weeks, with Ali Bodycoat, Stella Donnelly, Vikki Thorn's ThornBird project, Ursula Yovich singing Nina Simone, bassist Endea Owens and New Delhi's Peter Cat Recording Co. The Sanctum Series grows from St Mary's Cathedral to the Government House Ballroom.
Photo: Samuel Wiki via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0). File photo from Perth Festival 2017.
Theatre, art and free events
The festival opens with An Inheritance at PICA, an exhibition of advice, jokes, memories and objects collected from almost 500 WA primary school children. When the festival ends the collection goes to the WA Museum, sealed until 2127.
Other picks include witches.exe, a world premiere from WA company The Last Great Hunt about the early internet; ROHTKO, a Latvian/Polish theatre-and-film work about an art forgery scandal; Operation: Orfeo from Denmark's Hotel Pro Forma; and Michael Keegan-Dolan's dance piece 1975.
West Australian Ballet starts its 75th anniversary with Ballet at the Quarry: Kira, and Gina Williams-Ghouse performs with WASO in Warangka (Sing). Karla Bidi, the light and sound trail, returns and runs along the coast for the first time. The free Kite Choir installation on the South Perth Foreshore closes the program.
"In February, our city will pulse with mischief, surprise and moments of euphoria." - Anna Reece, Perth Festival Artistic Director
Photo: SeanMack via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0). File photo from the 2010 festival.
What Perth Reddit thinks
On r/perth, the user who shared the program said it "feels a bit pared back" but has interesting artists, and The Avalanches were the likely pick. Several commenters agreed the music side is thinner than recent years. One said they went to about eight music events last year and only The Avalanches stood out this time. Another compared it unfavourably with next year's WOMADelaide line-up.
Others were more upbeat. DJ Shadow got a nod, and the Astral Weeks Sessions in Chinatown, where acts stay secret until they walk on stage, drew interest, though one user found $60 a lot for a lucky dip. A local band who played a Perth Festival show this year called it their best gig ever, but said the festival leans on performance art more than music in its promotion.
The Lotterywest Films season starts sooner, opening at UWA Somerville on Monday 23 November with the Australian premiere of Jesse Eisenberg's The Debut. Tickets and the full program are at perthfestival.com.au.
Sources: X-Press Magazine; Perth Festival; Rolling Stone Australia; r/perth.
Hero photo: East Perth Power Station by Moondyne via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0). File photo.
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