McKechnie, Schwartz, Callaway, Cole & More Headline Australia's Adelaide Cabaret Festival

A decade of cabaret and there's more to come as the Adelaide Festival Centre and Artistic Director for the Adelaide Cabaret Festival, David Campbell, announce the 2010 Adelaide Cabaret Festival program, 11 - 26 June, proudly supported by Principal Partner FOXTEL.

The 2010 program features 41 artists from the United States of America, United Kingdom, Italy, Japan and France and the best from Australia with 220 Australian artists, 117 of those South Australian performers. There will be 12 international shows, 12 Adelaide premieres, including 9 Australian premieres and 7 world premieres.

Adelaide Cabaret Festival Artistic Director David Campbell says, "I hope everyone enjoys this year's program as much as I did putting it together. Last year's Festival was a lot of fun, so this year I wanted to put together a program for our wonderful audiences, who make Cabaret what it is and look forward to seeing some new faces in the crowd. Ten years of the Cabaret Festival is a tremendous achievement and I'm thrilled to be part of bringing the cabaret genre to a wider audience".

Opening this year's Cabaret Festival is the popular Variety Gala Performance on Friday 11 June at 7.30pm in the Festival Theatre. Once again patrons will be walking the red carpet and witnessing a star-studded line-up of talented cabaret artists in this year's Festival. Last year's inaugural event was so popular this year's has completely sold out.

Headlining this year's Cabaret Festival and appearing in her only Australian performances will be nine-time-Grammy award winner Natalie Cole, performing in the Festival Theatre on 12 and 13 June. As a world renowned live performer, Natalie Cole will sing some of the great lyrics and melodies of the American songwriters, accompanied by the Adelaide Art Orchestra in an evening that is sure to be ‘unforgettable'.

Opening on the Queen's Birthday long weekend, this year's Cabaret Festival includes over 124 performances of some 46 different shows across sixteen nights, with something sure to tantalise everyone's tastes. ..........so organise the babysitter, nominate your date night, get your friends together or go solo and meet some new people as you plan your cabaret calendar..........

From the U.S. one of the most prolific and successful musical theatre writers of all time, Stephen Schwartz, will be bringing Broadway to Adelaide in ‘An Evening with Stephen Schwartz & Friends'. Stephen is best known for writing the musicals Godspell, Pippin, Children of Eden and Wicked. Join Stephen for an evening that spans a career teeming with hits, sung by some of the finest voices in Australia and abroad.

Our leading ladies Liz Callaway (Miss Saigon), Caroline O'Connor (Chicago) and Donna McKechnie (Chorus Line), will spellbind you with their showstopping numbers. Having all performed on Broadway, this is a golden opportunity to see these legendary performers in their one-woman shows. Each will captivate you with their extraordinary vocals and bewitching tales.

After his success at the 2009 Adelaide Cabaret Festival, Hugh Sheridan is back by popular demand for his encore performance of Newley Discovered and armed with his trademark wit and charm Australia's best loved tenor David Hobson will be premiering his new show "Am I Really Here" at the Festival. Giving cabaret a laid back charm, David Harris can be seen in intimate mode in Til the Night is Gone and Mitchell Butel will bring the smooth sounds of jazz and blues with the Australian premiere of Killing Time. Described as ‘charming....and as warm as honey' Alex Rathgeber is not to be missed as he sings through the iconic songbook of Cole Porter and performing the songs of Belgian Chanson singer-songwriter, Jacques Brel, John Waters will perform a night of French Cabaret in BREL.

Let some Adelaide artists take you to places that will make your heart sing....back by popular demand is unusualist Raymond Crowe as he transports you to a wonderful world of shadow puppetry, one for all the family! After last year's tribute to French cabaret, Robyn Archer returns to cross the border with German Cabaret Berlin Between The Wars and get playful with circus and carnival songs as Darley, Day and Tin Can Alley lift your spirits and delight with A Night with the Flying Horses.

Vaudeville fantasy will provoke, entertain and take you on a journey as you are introduced to some dangerously charismatic strangers, led by the extraordinary talents of iOTA in Smoke & Mirrors. Australian cabaret star Kim Smith brings European cabaret fresh from New York in Morphium with musical artistry, while school is in with Frisky & Mannish from the UK who are in a class all of their own with their Adelaide premiere of School of Pop. After seeing a show finish the night off with retro-chic with Gallic charm and join French group Nouvelle Vague in the Late Night Banquet Room.

 

Get ready to connect with some ladies sure to ignite your senses. Divinely quirky, six string songstress Lanie Lane will sing the golden era of music of the 30s, 40s and 50s and direct from New York Marika Aubrey will take you through a repertoire of songs from some of the world's most iconic flaming dames in the Australian premiere of Redhead. Queenie Van De Zandt will present her no-holds-barred self expose in a brand new show and the lovely Joy Yates will perform the extraordinary story of Billie Holiday in Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill.

Well known cabaret starlet Meow Meow will be bringing her feline performance art back to the Festival with the Adelaide premiere of her new show Feline Intimate and direct from a sell-out season at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival comes the princess of plucking and preening Marney McQueen who will be stripping her audiences bare (figuratively speaking) with Rosa Waxes Lyrical. Whilst on the subject of pruning, Trevor Ashley will perform ‘Liza (on an E)', with his cheeky channelling of one of cabaret's superstars, dishing the dirt and singing the songs in true diva style and Sarah-Louise Young transforms between three comic creations in the Australian premiere of Cabaret Whore. The transformation continues with Italian performer Ennio Marchetto, the one-man-living-cartoon, who will be making his Australian debut transforming himself using paper costumes into well-known artists within split seconds.

Join one outrageous family jam as Dick & Christa Hughes come together in 21st Century Blues, father and daughter like you've never seen before and enjoy some homegrown cabaret with the Australian Premiere of The Divine Cabaret, written and performed by Geraldine Quinn, Mark Jones and Karlis Zaid. The Sydney Theatre Company ‘s Wharf Review return for some shameless satire and political parody in Pennies from Kevin and have some hilarious fun with Mic Conway's National Junk Band.

Spend a night with Broadway's hottest songwriters Pasek & Paul the musical theatre writing team on the meteoric rise or sit back and swoon as musical genius and sex symbol Earl Okin works his charms, then have a drink in the Piano Bar and enjoy a free performance by Mark Nadler in Broadway Hootenanny, known as New York cabaret's wild man, Mark will entertain, with song, stories, laughs and dance, while playing the piano!

This year a number of household names dip their toe into the cabaret genre with two Australian premieres by well known artists Diesel and Tim Rogers. Diesel will be performing Singled Out with Strings and Tim Rogers Saligia, two charismatic artists not to be missed in unique cabaret mode. John Paul Young and the Allstar Band will have their Adelaide premiere of I Hate The Music and Damien Leith brings the jewels from the Emerald Isle for a traditional Irish session in quartet mode in An Irish Journey.

A new initiative for this year, introduced by Artistic Director David Campbell, is High School Cabaret. This project is proudly supported by the Adelaide Festival Centre's Education Program (centrED) and aims to help cultivate and encourage the next generation of cabaret artists. David Campbell has been mentoring a select group of creative arts students from Seaview and Norwood Morialta High Schools to produce a series of cabaret performances to be showcased in this year's Adelaide Cabaret Festival. Sing, dance, laugh and cry with South Australia's exciting young stars as they shine in Australia's first ever High School Cabaret!

Continuing on from another initiative launched in 2009 to support the next generation of young cabaret performers, the Adelaide Cabaret Festival is pleased to include in this year's program the winners of the 7th Annual Cabaret Showcase in Sydney in December. Out of 50 performers, Sydney residents Tom Sharah and Elizabeth Cousemacker both won the opportunity to perform at the 2010 Adelaide Cabaret Festival.

Catch a glimpse of the creative process at work at of this year's Masterclasses with Queenie Van De Zandt and Pasek & Paul.

The ever popular Sing Your Own Musical is back with Michael Morley and friends for another sing-along around the piano.

This year we have extended our Bring a Friend Free offer, thanks to Minter Ellison, will now be extended to selected shows across the Festival, ensuring the Festival is as accessible to as many people as possible.

Book to see four or more shows in the same transaction and you'll enjoy great savings, plus you will secure the best seats in the house. Simply choose the Season Pass price when booking at BASS.

If you book to four or more shows before 12 May 2010 you will automatically go into the draw to WIN one of two prizes.

1st Prize: 2 return flights to Sydney flying Qantas and staying at the InterContinental plus tickets to a 2010 Sydney Theatre Company Season performance.

Runner-Up Prize: two tickets travelling on the Indian Pacific from Adelaide to Sydney and return, plus two tickets to a 2010 Sydney Theatre Company Season performance.

Full program details available in the Adelaide Cabaret Festival brochure. Get one free by calling the Adelaide Cabaret Hotline on (08) 8216 8901 or go to www.adelaidecabaretfestival.com

Tickets on sale now around the country through BASS Dial n Charge 131 246 or online www.bass.net.au Interstate guests call BASS Special Events on (08) 8400 2222 for details of accommodation packages.