Come For The Art And Stay For The Fabulous At Perth Festival
When: 6 February to 1 March 2026
Where: The Embassy at Perth Town Hall, plus venues across Perth
Website: Perth Festival
Perth Festival swings open the doors of Perth Town Hall, transforms it into a 1970s-style cabaret venue called The Embassy, and hands you a cocktail while drag royalty takes to the stage.
Now in its 73rd year, Perth Festival is Australia’s longest-running arts festival. For 23 days each summer, the city becomes a playground of music, theatre, dance, and film. And while the program casts a wide net, the queer programming at The Embassy is where things truly shine.
Le Gateau Chocolat headlines with Raw Cacao. If you haven’t seen this British drag diva perform, you’re in for something special. Big voice, big presence, big heart. The show promises to be as rich and layered as the name suggests. Meow Meow, the anarchic cabaret queen, brings an intimate evening of music with former Perth Festival Artistic Director Iain Grandage on keys. And for fans of a good tribute act with flair, What’s Tina Got To Do With It! brings the spirit of Tina Turner roaring back to life through a lineup of guest performers.
The Embassy itself is part of the experience. Perth Town Hall has been reimagined as a nostalgic ballroom where jazz, blues, soul, and cabaret fill the room. Think big band swing, smoky vocals, cocktails in hand, and that kind of dressed-up energy that makes a night out feel like an event. Perth chanteuse Ali Bodycoat returns with The Embassy Big Band. Emily Lubitz brings her velvet alt-country vocals. The programming is unapologetically theatrical, romantic, and queer-friendly.
Beyond The Embassy, Perth Festival 2026 has more for LGBTQIA+ audiences. The Lotterywest Films program, which runs under the pines at UWA Somerville from late November through to late March, includes the Australian premiere of Pillion, a queer love story that’s already generating buzz from international festival circuits.
The festival’s broader lineup is just as ambitious. Artistic Director Anna Reece, in her second year at the helm, has put together 108 events across 23 days, including 20 world premieres and 33 free experiences. The East Perth Power Station returns as a major venue, hosting live music from UK electronic artist Max Cooper, ARIA-winner Baker Boy, and British trip-hop veterans Morcheeba.
First Nations storytelling runs through the program too. Karla Bidi, inspired by the Noongar tradition of lighting fires to welcome visitors, transforms the Swan River into an illuminated pathway. The BhuMeJha Project offers an immersive evening of ceremony, song, and reflection in the Perth Hills.
Perth in February is warm, the festival rivals anything Melbourne or Sydney puts on, and the queer programming is programmed with actual queer audiences in mind. The Embassy alone is reason enough to book a ticket.
Reece puts it simply: “Perth Festival is our city at its best. Curious, connected, creative and completely alive.”
The tagline this year is “Truth Telling and Mischief Making.” For queer audiences, that balance feels familiar. The festival offers both: space to see ourselves reflected, and permission to have a very good time.
For full details and tickets, visit perthfestival.com.au.
