The first tease of next year’s Adelaide Cabaret Festival has been revealed today – with six shows announced including the world premiere of Alan Cumming’s brand-new show, Alan Cumming Is Not Acting His Age.
The Adelaide Cabaret Festival Artistic Director’s own show will be a thrilling evening of story and song, celebrating and exploring Cumming’s puckish, eclectic spirit and joie de vivre. The one night only performance is set to close the festival at Adelaide Festival Centre’s Festival Theatre on Saturday 26 June.
Bringing a touch of New York to Adelaide, audiences can experience Alan Cumming’s famous bar, Club Cumming, each weekend of the festival, as it takes its place as the late-night hub in The Famous Spiegeltent. New York’s iconic venue will overflow with hedonistic delights, live performances and raucous Cumming DJ sets until 2.00am between 11 – 26 June.
Back with a bang, and a glittering host, the 21st anniversary Adelaide Cabaret Festival Variety Gala will light up the Festival Theatre stage with international award-winning Hans hosting this festival favourite event. Cabaret lovers can re-emerge dressed in their best, with the red-carpet rolling out on opening night, Friday 11 June 2021.
In an Australian premiere, Adelaide Festival Centre will produce and present L’Hôtel – an immersive and delectable main event that will run throughout the first two weeks of the festival. Space Theatre will be transformed into a French hotel brimming with bohemian verve.
Audience members can savor champagne and graze on a French cheese board while becoming voyeurs to entertaining characters in the hotel lobby and behind closed doors. Included in the lineup of cabaret artists, sensual burlesque and circus performers are Brendan Maclean, Bri Emrich and Lexi Strumolo.
Betty Blokk Buster is back and reimagined in a new show inspired by the original 1975 production that reshaped Australian theatre created by entertainment legend Reg Livermore.
In this 21st century production Josh Quong Tart (Disney’s The Lion King and television’s All Saints, Underbelly and Home And Away) takes on the iconic role and invites audiences back into the theatre, where Betty’s coterie of reinvented has-beens, battlers, freaks and survivors will wow a new generation.
Award-winning cabaret artist Selina Jenkins will present her show, BOOBS in Adelaide for the first time. The ground-breaking tale of mammary proportions follows one woman and her two boobs through a life changing decision, a million opinions, a natural disaster and an ‘Australian first’.
The first international Artistic Director in Adelaide Cabaret Festival history, Alan Cumming said he was excited to announce the early line-up for 2021: “Every weekend at the festival I will be bringing a version of my New York cabaret bar, Club Cumming, to The Famous Spiegeltent,” he said.
“It will be a bacchanalian celebration dance party with performances, games, and surprises! Anything could happen, and hopefully it will. But the spirit of Club Cumming – all colours, all genders, all sexualities, and kindness, provocation and fun above all – I hope will infuse the entire festival.”
“The restrictions COVID-19 has placed on our plans has actually been a positive in terms of my desire for the focus of Adelaide Cabaret Festival ‘21: the spotlight is firmly on Australian cabaret and talent.”
“Like L’Hôtel, the immersive performance experience and Betty Blokk Buster Reimagined, the homage to Reg Livermore’s iconic 1975 creation. Also, Selina Jenkins’ BOOBS pushes the boundaries of what cabaret can be – looking at a devastating life happening with humour and insight.”
““I’ll be closing the festival with the premiere of my new show, Alan Cumming is Not Acting His Age, and will be upholding tradition with an opening night variety show with the very best Australian cabaret talent hosted by the glittering whirlwind that is Hans,” said Mr Cumming.
The 2021 Adelaide Cabaret Festival runs 11 – 26 June. The Program Launch will take place in March 2021. Tickets for early release shows are now on sale. Tickets to Club Cumming are only available as part of our first release when purchasing to another performance. Single tickets to Club Cumming will go on sale when the full program launches in March 2021. For more information, visit: www.adelaidecabaretfestival.com.au for details.
Image: Alan Cumming – photo by Christopher Boudewyns
Note: All Adelaide Cabaret Festival events are currently being sold in non-checkerboard seating (i.e. no empty seats between patrons) in the hopes that all venues will be able to operate at full capacity. However, we will continue to adhere to SA Health’s advice which may require tickets to be re-issued closer to the performance dates.