Photos: Tony-Nominee Eddie Perfect And More Honored At Australian Theatre Festival NYC 2024 Gala

Eddie Perfect, Josh Pugh (America Josh) and Zjantelle Cammisa Markel were honored at the Australian Theatre Festival NYC 2024 Fundraising Gala, held at The Players NYC. The Festival, run by Founding Co-Artistic Directors & Executive Producers Mark Barford, Connor Delves & Jillian Geurts, celebrates 5 years in 2024.

The BEETLEJUICE! THE MUSICAL THE MUSICAL THE MUSICAL composer and lyricist was honored as the Artist Honoree of the Australian Theatre Festival NYC 2024 Gala on September 15. 

The Australian Theatre Festival NYC is an annual celebration of Australian stories & artists in New York City. The 2024 Gala saw Eddie Perfect perform a medley of “Dead Mom” (Beetlejuice) and a yet-to-be-released song about his experience leaving New York during the pandemic. 

Fellow Australian performers Kristen Plati, Marika Aubrey & Isaac Hayward entertained the sold-out audience as funds were raised for the 2024 Season, which runs November 18-24 in NYC.

Supporter Honorees Josh Pugh (America Josh) & Zjantelle Cammisa Markel were celebrated for their outstanding support of the festival and Australian in New York community.

Eddie Perfect is one of Australia’s most diverse, respected and prolific writer/composer/ performers. His most recent work as composer/lyricist of Beetlejuice: The Musical! The Musical! The Musical! on Broadway earned him a 2019 Tony Award nomination for Best Original Score.

Eddie Perfect wrote the music, lyrics and book for the multi-award winning Shane Warne The Musical, as well as the musical scores for Angry Eddie, Drink Pepsi Bitch, Misanthropology, Songs From The Middle, Strictly Ballroom and King Kong Alive On Broadway. Eddie also wrote the hit plays The Beast and Vivid White for Melbourne Theatre Company. In 2020 Eddie wrote the music and lyrics to “Matesong”, a collaboration with Tourism Australia and Kylie Minogue, which won a Graphite Pencil at the A&AD Awards for best use of music in advertising.

His stage and screen credits include Offspring (Ten), Gold Diggers (ABC), The Future Is Expensive (ABC), Play School (ABC), Macheath in STC/Malthouse/Vic Opera’s The Threepenny Opera, Lieutenant Billis in Opera Australia/Lincoln Centre Theatre’s South Pacific, Voltaire/Pangloss in Vic Opera’s Candide, and Alexander Downer in Keating The Musical (written by Casey Bennetto) for Belvoir St. Theatre. 

Eddie is currently developing three new music theatre works, including a new Australian dance musical, Tivoli Lovely, a commission from the West Australian Academy Of Performing Arts, to be premiered in 2025. 

Photo Credit: Matt Davies Photography