Cabfest '23 Program

VENTURE IN to Cabfest ’23!

Leave your comfort zone and step into a cabaret inspired world of live music, storytelling and inspiration…

Cabfest ’23 asks you to take one step beyond – into the intimate sphere of the brilliant, the bright, the beautiful, and bewildering…

Check out full details inside and on our website

Cabaret is the original metaverse – where theatre and music collide... a playful, shared space where individuality and uniqueness are celebrated through story and song.

So venture out of your door and into the wondrous world of Cabaret...

It's out there waiting for you at Cabfest ’23!

So, Venture In...

To a World Of...

Live Music

Proudly supported by

Storytelling and Inspiration

Venue Info

24-25 MARCH

"The Judy" Judith Wright Arts Centre 420 Brunswick Street (Cnr Berwick Street) Fortitude Valley

30 MARCH - 1 APRIL

Metro Arts 97 Boundary St West End

14-16 APRIL

The Old Museum 480 Gregory Terrace Bowen Hills

Sex & Other Philosophies

Nothing But The Ruth

Sex & Other Philosophies is a contemporary trash cabaret that light-heartedly deconstructs ideas around the concept of what relationships and mindset are all about.

Award winning radio announcer, comedian and musician Ruth Gardner is on a zero f*cks deep dive mission through the realms of tRuth, exaggeration and fantasy fuelled by an un-diagnosed midlife peri-menopausal power surge.

This show will have you rolling in the aisles and instil in you a fun filled freedom for looking at the esoteric and witty approach to ecstasy. Audiences will be enriched, enlivened and possibly quite ready to slip between the sheets. Satin of course.

Culminating in a rare as hen’s teeth solo show combining stand-up comedy, music and the appearance of some select alter-egos, this is the one night only joyride to a destination unknown for thrill seeking adults who like to laugh with love from a funny guitar player who likes to cry.

If you loved Karen Lee Roberts in Chameleon, don’t miss her latest fun and quirky cabaret. Karen received the 2021 Access Arts Achievement Award, which has supported the development of Sex & Other Philosophies, a new collaboration with Lucinda Shaw and James Halloran.

Just like life itself, this show is unlikely to be repeated unless of course you’ve befriended the correct god and we all reincarnate. A show that promises you the Whole Ruth and Nothing but the Ruth!

The Judy

The Judy

Friday March 24

7:00PM

Friday March 24

9:00PM

I'm Just Wild About Harry

Choose Your Own Adventure with Queenie van de Zandt

Renowned Australian tenor Jonathon Welch AM, also best known for his award-winning Choir of Hard Knocks, brings to life the music and life of one of the most popular Welsh tenors and comedian, Sir Harry Secombe.

One of our most formidable musical theatre talents and queen of comedic cabaret, Queenie van de Zandt, is taking to the stage in a brand-new show like you’ve never seen before.

Regarded as one of the finest tenors of his generation, Jonathon will thrill your audience with his stunning renditions of Secombe’s greatest hits including Love, This is My Song, Vienna City of My Dreams, Bless this House, Love is a Many Splendored Thing, I Believe and his most popular signature song – If I Ruled the World!

In her new show, Choose Your Own Adventure, Queenie serves up a banquet of entertainment. On the menu will be music with lashings of comedy and cabaret. You might want to add a ‘game of trivia’ chaser and a ‘bowl of chicken soup for the soul’ on the side. Whatever your tastes, you get to choose the night’s entertainment menu.

The show includes footage of The Goons, great stories and is bursting with beautiful music. Jonathon weaves this show with stories from his incredible 40 years in entertainment.

Art will imitate life with all its uncertainty as this incomparable performer lets the audience decide what happens next. Take your seat, get out your smartphone, and take control of how the night unfolds.

The Judy

The Judy

Saturday March 25

1:00PM

Saturday March 25

7:00PM

PRESENTED BY CABFEST ’23 AND METRO ARTS

Brisbaret

May Contain Traces Of Nuts

Your favourite local variety night Brisbaret is back for another month – this time bringing their comic stylings to the sensual world of the Queensland Cabaret Festival.

Tickets? Check.

Phone off? Check.

Existential crisis popped on hold whilst I take a wild ride on a gilded unicorn? Check!

Created and hosted by musical comedian Sophie Banister and prince of keys, Thien Pham, Brisbaret is a curated variety night bringing you a smorgasbord of local talent.

Brisbane has spawned some truly talented people, and Daryl Murphy definitely lives in Brisbane.

From singer-songwriters to stand up comedians, dance, drag, sketch comedy and burlesque, you will be bestowed with the finest short instalments of art, frivolity and entertainment by the best bris-lebrities in town (like celebrities, but better).

May Contain Traces of Nuts, is irreverent, dada-esque, silly as a bum full of smarties, and as one reviewer described it, ”mercifully short”. Come and sing along, or stare confusingly, at alt egos April Mae-June and Nurse Quartez.

Sophie and Thien expertly weave together the silly, the topical, and the ridiculous with tunes and interactive games to keep you smiling between acts. Join us as Brisbaret trades the pub for the theatre in this spectacular, (subtropical) Winter Wonderland Extravaganza.

Daryl brings to life his take on popular music, mashing and smashing songs into pulp in its truest meaning. You will have so many earworms you will need an earworm specialist to remove all the earworms you get from listening to this show. ...Live Laugh Leave...

Metro Arts

Metro Arts

Thursday March 30

7:00PM

Friday March 31

7:00PM

Sarah Stockholm After Dark

The Story So Far

Meanjin/Brisbane based maker of dark and danceable electro pop and rock music Sarah Stockholm invites you to descend into her mad world, After Dark...

Kristy Apps has been gracing stages in Australia and abroad for over 25 years.

Stockholm’s sound unleashes a love of 70s/80s post-punk, synth-pop and atmospheric electronics, reminiscent of New Order, The Cure, PJ Harvey and Blondie.

Starting off in a punk/folk band at 18, Kristy went on to release 5 studio albums, 2 EP’s and has appeared on countless compilations.

The sharp angles and cool lushness of these elements intertwine with Stockholm’s arresting vocals and deeply personal lyrics.

Join Kristy as she takes you on her journey of ‘ The Story So Far’ playing songs off every album, sharing stories, unreleased works and even some of her favourite covers.

Stockholm has assembled some of Brisbane’s finest musicians for this moody and striking presentation of her work including James Halloran, Terry Dixon, Mark Angel and Chris Dixon.

Together with her full band of Ruth Gardner, Brendan Watterson and Geoff Green, Kristy is telling her story as only she can...

Metro Arts

Metro Arts

Friday March 31

9:00PM

Saturday April 1

5:00PM

Loco Love Songs

My Funny Valentine

If music be the food of love…

After popular demand, JDProCo & Cabfest are coming back to Metro Arts in 2023 with a remount of “My Funny Valentine” by Josh Daveta & The Sequins.

Music is not only the food, but the script, the school of love, and its penance. Join electro-acoustic troubadour Sanfeliu in this cabaret exploring erotic lyrical discourses during the last 2000 years -from Provençal troubadours to Presets and trip-hop, and from Courtly Love to Courtney Love-, as they embark on a musical journey deconstructing Romantic love (the ecstasy, the misery, the glory, the pain, the bliss), so you can choose and walk your own path – your own way!

Sanfeliu is an electro-acoustic troubadour of Catalan descent, currently based in Meanjin (Brisbane). Sanfeliu writes, teaches and performs delving into different musical traditions (pop, classical, Hispanic, electronica) and exploring their place in collective and affective memory.

The show takes on the sound of old Hollywood & Jazz and applies it today’s music. The show takes on the sound of old Hollywood & Jazz and applies it today’s music. Featuring the hits of Billie Eilish, Ariana Grande, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga and more, this 70 minute show will provide a vintage experience through the lens of the pop music world.

“I can’t really describe this music, but somewhere, here, lays genius”. – Muschiosauro

"My Funny Valentine’ certainly achieved what it set out to do: modern pop songs with a jazz spin. Daveta managed to keep the integrity of the songs while giving them a whole new meaning as jazz numbers with soul and purpose. A wonderful performance for fans of pop and jazz alike, Daveta excelled in a show that was one of a kind.” – Theatre Haus.

Metro Arts

Metro Arts

Saturday April 1

7:00PM

Saturday April 1

9:00PM

What Would Dolly Do?

What’s Going On

Megan Cooper returns to Cabfest to ask once again “What Would Dolly Do?”

ARIA Award-winning artist and Queensland Rock Royalty, Tyrone Noonan pays homage to the enduring legacy of American singer/songwriter Marvin Gaye.

With a whistle on her lips and a shimmy in her soul, singer songwriter Megan Cooper shares stories from her life, via the stories and songs of her song writing hero, Dolly Parton – with just a drop of polite, sweet, sass.

A country singer with three albums to her name and plenty of performances from Norman Park to Nashville, Cooper’s natural affinity with everything that is good in twang is rounded out by her band The Polished Flaws.

“What Would Dolly Do” features new interpretations of Parton’s hidden gems and classics – and Cooper’s own songs that have taken her from her suburban Brisbane kitchen to the Outback… and back.

This album holds the coveted Number 1 spot in Rolling Stone “500 Greatest Albums of All Time” and is quite simply an incredible musical and social statement made by an artist at the peak of his career.

Performing all the songs from Marvin’s musical masterpiece, What’s Going On, along with select choices from throughout his hugely successful career, Tyrone brings his 7-piece jazz/Latin/soul band, Palimpsest, along for this smooth and soulful ride.

Expect hip shaking, sweet harmony, a good dose of Dolly… and a gosh darn good time!

A musical celebration that will leave you flying high.

The Old Museum

The Old Museum

Friday April 14

6:30PM

Friday April 14

8:30PM

Kraftwerk ReKrafted

Silver Sircus

A collective of Brisbane musos has banded together as The Craftworker Project to bring you an acoustic homage to the pioneers of electro pop. They’re putting aside the drum machines and synthesizers and picking up the violin, saxophone, drums, double bass, acoustic guitar and digging deep into the catalogue of these ground-breaking avant-gardists from Düsseldorf.

Silver Sircus bring their spine-tingling concoction of dark cabaret performance, post-rock and chamber folk to one of Brisbane’s best loved and most atmospheric spaces – The Old Museum.

While Kraftwerk are known as the pioneering godfathers of electronic pop music, Ralf and Florian actually began their long musical collaboration playing acoustic instruments.

Kraftwerk ReKrafted explores an alternative history of the German band’s classic songs like, The Model, Neon Lights, Showroom Dummies, Robots, Computer World and more.

Led by vocalist/songwriter Lucinda Shaw and drummer/ composer James Lees – Silver Sircus conjure a highly eclectic world of sound, songs and compelling performance combining Shaw’s poetic lyricism with their haunting, hypnotic and dramatic music textures. In varying formats, the band has been acclaimed for their performances at arts, music and LGTIQ+ festivals all over Australia and has released several singles/EPs and two albums.

With Nigel Kimber (Dustbin Hoffmans), Roland Adeney (Deep Blue), Michael Bouwman (Wondrous Fair), Simon Linke (Suicide Country Hour) and featuring Alison St Ledger on vocals, audiences are sure to have Fun Fun Fun on the Autobahn!

At The Old Museum, Silver Sircus will perform in full 7-piece ensemble mode, bringing together rich threads from their decade-plus of music-making, a wildly reinterpreted cover or two, and songs from their new album project currently being developed.

The Old Museum

The Old Museum

Saturday April 15

6:30PM

Saturday April 15

8:30PM

LEAH

MZAZA

POP

Why do we love pop music? That’s easy! It’s the sparkling lyrics, catchy tunes, pumping bands and great singers.

In this concert, Leah will sing her way through some of the best written and recorded songs in the history of pop, supported by a five piece band of the most versatile and talented musicians in town, with a few extra special guests.

Her set is drawn from the great flourishing of pop music in the 1960s, when Nashville was competing with Motown, the Brill Building and the English invasion. These are songs you had on vinyl and then CD, and they’re still on your playlist, songs by Creedence and Van Morrison, George Jones and Glen Campbell, Leonard Cohen and Buffy Sainte-Marie, Stephen Stills and Nina Simone, Martha Reeves, George Harrison and more.

Three-time Queensland Music Award winners MZAZA deliver Balkan-French inspired sounds to folk lovers internationally.

Led by enchanting French-Sephardic vocalist Pauline Maudy, this group of musicians from around the world has been mesmerising audiences with powerful and inspired performances.

The impressive musicianship of MZAZA – deftly realised with accordion, violin, percussion, double bass and Flamenco guitar – embraces diversity, the old and the new, the familiar and the foreign, through timeless melodies.

It is the timelessness of the music and stories that fuels an intense live show, an unforgettable musical journey, that has enraptured audiences at home and overseas.

ALL KILLER NO FILLER –Great Songs from the golden age of pop.

The Old Museum

Sunday April 16

2:00PM

The Old Museum

Saturday April 15

6:30PM

At A Glance

Note: all dates, times and details are correct at time of printing but may be subject to change

The Judy Judith Wright Arts Centre 24 - 25 MARCH

FRI 24 MAR The Judy

SAT 25 MAR The Judy

SAT 12 MAR The Judy

Metro Arts

9:00PM Sarah Stockholm After Dark

SAT 1 APR

9:00PM Nothing But The RUTH

Metro Arts

1:00PM I'm Just Wild About Harry Jonathon Welch 7:00PM Choose Your Own Adventure with Queenie Van De Zandt

30 MARCH - 1 APRIL

Metro Arts

7:00PM May Contain Traces Of Nuts

7:00PM Sex & Other Philosophies

Metro Arts

THURS 30 MAR

FRI 31 MAR

7:00PM

5:00PM The Story So Far 7:00PM Loco Love Songs 9:00PM My Funny Valentine The Old Museum 14 - 16 APRIL

FRI 14 APR Old Museum

SAT 15 APR Old Museum

BRISBARET

SUN 16 APR

Check website for final line-up

Old Museum

6:30PM What Would Dolly Do? 8:30PM What's Going On - Tyrone Noonan

6:30PM Kraftwerk ReKrafted 8:30PM Silver Sircus 2:00PM Leah

💙 Pop

6:30PM MZAZA

Proudly supported by

Queensland Cabaret Festival is supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland.

queenslandcabaretfestival.com.au