After earning a Tony Award nomination for the music and lyrics he wrote for BEETLEJUICE, Eddie Perfect will star as the most mischievous corpse in the history of musicals when he takes on the title role in the Australian premiere playing exclusively in Melbourne from 7 May 2025 at the Regent Theatre.
“When we knew we were bringing BEETLEJUICE to Australia we knew it had to be Eddie in the title role. When you listen to the songs you just know he was born to play the world’s favourite spook – it’s almost as if he wrote these songs for himself! Australia is in for a real treat when Eddie takes on this role,” said BEETLEJUICE‘s Australian producer Michael Cassel.
It’s showtime, folks! BEETLEJUICE is more reckless, more irreverent and, frankly, more repellent than ever in this original musical based on Tim Burton’s wonderfully demented film. BEETLEJUICE tells the story of Lydia Deetz, a strange and unusual teenager obsessed with the whole “being dead thing.”
Lucky for Lydia, her new house is haunted by a recently deceased couple and a degenerate demon with a thing for stripes. When Lydia calls on this ghost-with-the-most to scare away her insufferable parents, Beetlejuice comes up with the perfect plan, which involves exorcism, an adorable girl scout who gets scared out of her wits and a whole (nether)world of pandemonium.
Perfect, who was a beloved stage star before shooting to acclaim in the hit series Offspring, said he was overjoyed to not only bring first Broadway smash-hit home, but to have the opportunity to play Beetlejuice himself and perform the songs he wrote for the show.
“I had the privilege of watching Alex Brightman create the role of Beetlejuice from the ground up. Alex wasn’t afraid of anything in rehearsal. I’m hoping to harness some of that fearlessness when I rehearse the role for myself,” said Perfect.
“Beetlejuice is a taboo-busting, shape-shifting, fourth-wall-smashing, free-lovin’ ball of neediness and I’m excited (and a healthy amount daunted) to play the role and represent the wonderful work of my collaborators – Scott Brown and Anthony King who wrote the hilarious book, and Alex Timbers our visionary director.”
“And I’m especially thrilled to be able to bring the world of BEETLEJUICE back to Melbourne, to share this strange and unusual tale with my home town,” said Perfect.
“Anyone who has seen Eddie perform will know that he is a consummate performer with a wildly mischievous sense of humour. For Australia to be the very first to see him play this role and perform the incredible music he created for BEETLEJUICE is a phenomenal opportunity,” said BEETLEJUICE Executive Producer and Executive Vice President and Managing Director of Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures, Mark Kaufman.
BEETLEJUICE is directed by two-time Tony Award-winner Alex Timbers (Moulin Rouge!, Peter and the Starcatcher), with an original score by Tony Award-nominee Eddie Perfect (King Kong), a book by Scott Brown & Emmy Award nominee Anthony King (Broad City), choreography by Connor Gallagher (The Robber Bridegroom), and music supervision, orchestrations and incidental music by Kris Kukul (Joan of Arc: Into the Fire).
BEETLEJUICE features scenic design by two-time Tony Award nominee David Korins (Hamilton), costume design by six-time Tony Award winner William Ivey Long (The Producers), lighting design by Tony Award winner Kenneth Posner (Kinky Boots), sound design by four-time Tony Award nominee Peter Hylenski (Frozen) and projection design by Drama Desk Award winner Peter Nigrini (Dear Evan Hansen).
Puppet design by Drama Desk Award winner Michael Curry (The Lion King), special effects design by Jeremy Chernick (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child), illusions by Michael Weber (Forrest Gump), hair and wig design by Charles G. LaPointe (Hamilton), make-up design by Joe Dulude II (Wicked), dance arrangements by David Dabbon and music producing by Matt Stine.
BEETLEJUICE is based on the 1988 Academy Award-winning Geffen Company motion picture with story by Michael McDowell and Larry Wilson. The smash hit comedy was directed by Tim Burton.
“We’re delighted to have secured this wonderful show exclusively in Melbourne. Having an iconic Victorian take the lead in the Australian premiere season of this Broadway blockbuster will attract thousands of visitors and be a major boost for the state’s economy,” said Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events, Steve Dimopoulos.
Tickets to BEETLEJUICE will be available to the general public from 6 November with fans urged to sign up to the waitlist at www.beetlejuicethemusical.com.au to jump the line and get the best seats in the house during the presale from 31 October 2024.
Image: Eddie Perfect as Beetlejuice – photo by Benny Capp