BRUNSWICK BALLROOM
OPENING GALA

A cabaret love-letter to Melbourne

Celebrating our beloved arts industry reopening its doors post-pandemic in this reimagined iconic venue, the Brunswick Ballroom. The Gala is a celebration of Melbourne, in the heart of one of its iconic neighbourhoods, Brunswick. Revelling in the diversity, spirit and anarchy of the people who populate Melbourne, the Gala has a sampling of our finest artists, giving a taste of the feast to come in this everything-old-is-new-again venue.

Director – Dean Bryant
Hosts – Eddie Perfect and Margot Tanjutco
Music Director – Isaac Hayward
With performances from Mama Alto, Bert LaBonté, Jessica Hitchcock, Ash Flanders, Vidya Makan & Jude Perl

Eddie Perfect

Eddie Perfect is one of Australia’s most diverse, respected and prolific writer/ composer/ performers. His most recent work as Composer of Beetlejuice The Musical on Broadway won him a nomination for Best Original Score at the 2019 Tony Awards.
He has already made his mark in the fields of comedy, music theatre composition and book writing, playwrighting, screenwriting, classical music, jazz and acting for stage and screen. He has won multiple awards for his work both as a performer and writer, and has worked with top creatives from Baz Luhrmann and Global Creatures (Strictly Ballroom the Musical, King Kong on Broadway), Simon Phillips and Neil Armfield (Shane Warne The Musical, Keating! The Musical), Richard Maltby and David Shire, Jason Robert Brown, Andrew Lippa (Adelaide Cabaret Festival) to the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO Town Hall Proms), Victorian Opera (The Threepenny Opera), Opera Australia (South Pacific), the West Australian Symphony Orchestra (Symphony Under The Stars), Malthouse Theatre (Babes In The Wood, Drink Pepsi Bitch, The Big Con) the Australian National Academy Of Music, Iain Grandage and UK’s Brodsky Quartet (Songs From The Middle).
Eddie’s theatre performance credits include Shane Warne The Musical (Token), Misanthropology (Sydney Festival), Songs From The Middle (Adelaide Cabaret Festival), The Threepenny Opera (Malthouse), Bat Boy (Loudmouth/MTC), A Poor Student (The Storeroom), Take Flight, Babes in the Wood (Malthouse), The Big Con (Malthouse), and Keating! The Musical (Belvoir). His television credits include the series regular role of Mick in Ten’s Offspring, FOX8’s Ultimate School Musical, It’s A Date, Play School, Kath and Kim, Stingers, MDA, Spicks and Specks and as a judge on Australia’s Got Talent. He can currently be seen starring in Gristmill’s isolation rom-com web series Love In Lockdown, available to watch on YouTube.
Eddie has been a regular fixture on the Australian comedy circuit, including as the host of the 2014 Melbourne Comedy Festival Oxfam Gala. His solo music comedy shows (Angry Eddie, Drink Pepsi Bitch, Misanthropology, Songs From The Middle) have received Helpmann and Green Room Awards, touring Australia, New Zealand, Edinburgh and London. In 2013, Eddie wrote his first play for Melbourne Theatre Company, the black, satirical comedy The Beast, breaking box office records and garnering critical acclaim, including an Australian tour of the show in 2016.

Margot Tanjutco

Margot Tanjutco is a writer, performer, and comedian. She was the Associate Director for Torch The Place (MTC) and also developed a short play for First Stage (MTC/Emerging Writers’ Festival). Her solo show Vanity Fair Enough played at The Coopers Malthouse for Melbourne International Comedy Festival and was nominated for the Golden Gibbo. She performed in Eddie Perfect’s Perfect End To 2020 with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and toured with comedy showcase Spice Night (Milstead Company) for Mardi Gras. She also performed in critically-acclaimed Romeo is Not the Only Fruit at The Coopers Malthouse, Brisbane Festival, and HotHouse Theatre. Other shows include Polygamy, Polygyou: A new musical (Melbourne Fringe) and Citizen Theatre's Forgotten Places (Chapel Off Chapel).

Mama Alto

Mama Alto is a jazz singer, cabaret artiste and gender transcendent diva. She is a transgender and queer person of colour who works with the radical potential of storytelling, strength in softness and power in vulnerability. Best known for her velvet vocals, triumphant cabaret performances and illuminating writing, she is also the co-creator of the highly acclaimed variety cabaret “Gender Euphoria.”
She has worked with luminaries such as burlesque production house Finucane & Smith, playwright Declan Greene, visual artist Brook Andrew, and performance artist Taylor Mac.
Mama has received the 2019 Australian LGBTI Awards Music Artist of the Year, the 2018 City of Yarra Contributions to the Arts Award, the 2017 GLOBE LGBTI Awards Artist of the Year, the 2016 Outstanding Access & Inclusion Award at Melbourne Fringe, and the 2014 Best Cabaret Weekly Award at Adelaide Fringe. She is the recipient of a 2019 Creative Victoria Creators Fund fellowship, and a 2020 Wheeler Centre Hot Desk Fellowship.
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Ash Flanders

Ash Flanders is a multi award-winning writer and performer. Alongside Declan Greene, he co-runs queer independent theatre company Sisters Grimm, co-writing all shows and also performing in Little Mercy (STC), The Sovereign Wife (MTC Neon), Calpurnia Descending (Malthouse Theatre/STC), Lilith: The Jungle Girl (MTC), and an adaptation of Verdi’s La Traviata (Belvoir).
His solo work includes the critically acclaimed End Of, Playing to Win, Ash Flanders is Nothing, Special Victim, Meme Girls and Negative Energy Inc. As an actor he has been seen in the solo show Buyer & Cellar (MTC), Blackie Blackie Brown (Malthouse / STC), Adena Jacobs’ Hedda (Belvoir), The Golden Dragon (MTC) and Psycho Beach Party (Little Ones Theatre).

Bert LaBonté

One of Australia’s leading men, Bert’s Melbourne Theatre Company credits include: Kiss of the Spider Woman, Lungs, Rupert, Birdland, The Mountaintop, Elling, A Behanding in Spokane, Clybourne Park, Richard III and others. For Sydney Theatre Company, he has performed in All My Sons, The Grenade and Spelling Bee, and for Malthouse Theatre credits include: Cloudstreet, I am A Miracle, Time Share.
Musical theatre include: The Book of Mormon (Watchtower Productions), An Officer and a Gentleman (Gordon Frost Organisation), Chess (The Production Company), Grey Gardens (The Production Company), Pippin (Kookaburra Theatre), Full Monty (IMG / David Atkins), Jesus Christ Superstar (Really Useful Group), Showboat (Livent/Marriner Productions), Guys and Dolls (Ambassador Group).
Screen credits include The Newsreader (ABC), Neighbours (10Peach), Wentworth (Foxtel), Playing for Keeps (Network Ten), Upper Middle Bogan (ABC), Tomorrow When The War Began (ABC), Lowdown (ABC), Wilfred (ABC), The Let Down (ABC/Netflix), Squinters (SBS). Film credits including Animal Kingdom (Porchlight Films) and The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee (Kathy Morgan International).

Jess Hitchcock

Award-winning opera singer and songwriter Jess Hitchcock is an Indigenous performer, composer and singer-songwriter with family origins from Saibai in the Torres Straits and Papua New Guinea. Over the last 3 years Jess has been touring with Kate Miller-Heidke as her backing vocalist around Australia and last year was with Kate at the Eurovision song contest in Israel. The end of 2019 saw Jess tour with Paul Kelly and Kate Miller-Hiedke on Paul’s Making Gravy Tour. Jess was a featured artist in Paul Kelly’s set, leading to the release of the track they sung together, ‘Everyday My Mother’s Voice’, and their collaboration on Channel 9 and Frontier Touring’s Music From The Home Front. Last year Jess had the honour of performing alongside Archie Roach for ABC’s series The Sound and again during Archie’s emotional performance of Took the Children Away at his induction to the Aria Hall of Fame. Jess finished off 2020 singing at Carols by Candlelight on Channel 9 and alongside Paul Kelly and his band at ABC’s NYE celebration. For the last 10 years Jess has worked as a teacher, composer and artist with Australia’s only Indigenous music company Short Black Opera. The role of ‘Alice’ created in Short Black Opera’s Pecan Summer was Jess’s debut professional opera production. She received a Broadway World award for best supporting actress in an opera for her creation of this role at the Sydney Opera House, 2016. This role led to the opportunity to work on Opera Australia’s production of The Rabbits, for which she was awarded a prestigious Green Room Award for Best Female in a supporting role also in 2016.
Jess was the 2019 recipient of the Smuggler of Light, Indigenous Music and Media Award presented at the APRA Professional Development awards. Jess’s first album ‘Bloodline’ was released July 4th, 2019.

Vidya Makan

Vidya Makan is a critically acclaimed actor, singer and composer/lyricist, perhaps most well known for her performance as Catherine Parr in the original Australian cast of Six. Most recently Vidya directed, produced and wrote the viral sensation I NEED YOU TO SEE ME; a call to action to the entertainment industry for visibility and inclusion, featuring 101 BIPoC and CALD performers aged 18-25. Vidya has been commissioned by likes of NGV and Chips & Gravy and is currently working with Hayes Theatre Co Ltd on a development of her song cycle, The Lucky Country.
Vidya’s performance credits include: Dot/Marie in Sunday In The Park With George (Watch This) earning her a Green Room nomination for Best Performance In A Leading Role, Lady Capulet in Romeo and Juliet (Australian Shakespeare Company), the Australian tour of Green Day’s American Idiot (Shake & Stir). Vidya is a proud graduate of the Queensland Conservatorium’s Bachelor of Musical Theatre and holds minority storytelling at the heart of all her work. She is proudly represented by Ian White Management.

Jude Perl

Jude Perl is a multi-award winning singer, songwriter and comedian based in Melbourne. In her home-town, she has created a name for herself by writing and performing hilarious, yet brutally honest, stream-of-consciousness style lyrics, set to undeniably catchy and wellcrafted songs. “These songs are not only funny, but also infinitely better composed than many of the songs on commercial radio” (AU Review) In 2013, Jude released her debut EP ‘3am’ which featured her first single ‘Girls & Boys’. Her single received regular airplay on commercial radio all over Australia (including Fox FM and 2Day FM). Jude was interviewed by Ella Hooper and Ben Wasley on Aus Top 20 where she performed her track live. Her music video for ‘Girls & Boys’ featured on ABC’s Rage and was also shortlisted for the 2014 SoundKilda Film Festival.
In 2015 Jude performed her first solo comedy show at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, which won her first of 3 Green Room Awards for Best Original Songs. Her 2016 album ‘Modern Times’ was produced in LA with Grammy Award winning Engineer Brian Paturalski (Outkast ‘Speakerboxxx/The Love Below’). Whilst in LA, Jude also worked with Colin Hay (Men At Work) recording her album track ‘Canyon’ with him at his studio and singing backing vocals on his album ‘Next Year People’. In the same year, several of Jude’s songs were featured in the internationally acclaimed documentary ‘Embrace’ from activist and Body Image Movement founder Taryn Brumfitt, including a track that was written specifically for the film.
In 2018 Jude performed her 5th solo show 'I Have A Face' at Melbourne Fringe, and won Best Cabaret. The show also won Jude her 4th Green Room Award for Best Cabaret Artiste. In 2019 Jude released an EP of the same name and toured the show all over Australia including Darwin Festival and Junction Arts Festival in Launceston. In 2020 Jude is performing her new show 'Puffy Jacket' at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, and continuing to tour 'I Have A Face' around the country and overseas.