Broadway World “Adelaide Cabaret Festival And DreamBIG Children’s Festival Shine At Helpmann Awards”
- July 18, 2019
Adelaide Festival Centre’s Adelaide Cabaret Festival and DreamBIG Children’s Festival are celebrating two wins at this year’s Helpmann Awards announced in Melbourne last night.
Former Adelaide Cabaret Festival Artistic Director Ali McGregor won Best Cabaret Performer for Yma Sumac – The Peruvian Songbird which premiered at Adelaide Cabaret Festival last year. The show – commissioned by the festival – explored the extraordinary voice and enigmatic life of an exotic legend, with McGregor bringing her acrobatic vocal theatrics to the controversial story of the 1950s Peruvian beauty.
In her acceptance speech, Ali McGregor paid tribute to Adelaide Cabaret Festival, which will celebrate its 20th Anniversary next year: “I don’t think there’s a festival in this country that supports Australian artists as much.”
Two more nominations for Best Cabaret Performer were presented at the 2018 Adelaide Cabaret Festival, including Michaela Burger’s A Migrant’s Son and Libby O’Donovan’s Kate Leigh – The Worst Woman in Sydney. The fourth nominee, Dickie Beau, also appeared at this year’s Adelaide Cabaret Festival with a new work, Dickie Beau – Unplugged.
Arena Theatre’s heart-warming production Robot Song, which made its Adelaide premiere at DreamBIG Children’s Festival in May, took home the award for Best Presentation for Children and Young People.
Adelaide Festival Centre CEO & Artistic Director Douglas Gautier AM: “Congratulations to Ali McGregor for this well-deserved accolade and congratulations to all the nominees and award winners at this year’s Helpmann Awards. Adelaide Festival Centre is proud to commission and present new work from Australia’s leading performers and artists in our year-long program of festivals. We look forward to presenting more award-winning shows at future festivals.”
The annual Helpmann Awards recognise distinguished artistic achievement and excellence in Australia’s vibrant live performance industry. The Helpmann Awards were established in 2001 by Live Performance Australia (LPA).