Adelaide Cabaret Festival Unveils Epic 2017 Program

The jaw-dropping 2017 Adelaide Cabaret Festival program has landed, with the likes of Aussie legend Paul Kelly, jazz icon Dianne Reeves and US comic Bridget Everett among the 430 artists on the bill.

The 16-day celebration kicks off June 9, with its 147 performances curated by artistic directors Ali McGregor and Eddie Perfect, who have delivered a number of premieres and five original shows commissioned by the festival.

Kelly will team up with Irish-French chanteuse Camille O’Sullivan for Ancient Rain, a compelling take on the works of poet WB Yeats, while cabaret staple Alan Cumming Sings Sappy Songs and comedy comes from every direction with Simon Hall (Tripod’s Yon), Effie The Virgin Bride, Inside Amy Schumer/Trainwreck star Everett and more.

Hello Dillie featuring Dillie Keane and Songs For Lovers (And Other Idiots) with Sarah-Louise Young and Michael Roulston will get Australian premieres and with Matilda the Musical hitting the Adelaide Festival Centre in May, it’s fitting that Elise McCann - 2016’s Helpmann Award-winning Miss Honey – brings Roald Dahl’s Dahlesque to town.

“It is my biased opinion that cabaret has a rich and strong tradition as one of the first art forms to react to the world around us,” said Perfect.

“The 2017 program represents unique and varied artists doing just that: speaking to power, questioning tradition, upholding tolerance, love and respect, and uniting us together as an audience, a city or just one single room, to laugh at naked emperors and to feel embraced, accepted and alive.”

Tickets go on sale this Wednesday, April 5, via the Adelaide Cabaret Festival website, where you can also find the full program.