Save articles for later

Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time.

Back in 2008, with Shane Warne The Musical – which he wrote and starred in – playing at the Athenaeum, Eddie Perfect used to gaze across Collins Street and imagine one day having his work performed in Australia’s grandest old theatre.

“Wicked was playing at the Regent, and every night people would pull up in the old horse and carriages,” he recalls. “They’re banned now, but it was a real showbiz lesson – some shows are horse and carriage productions, and some aren’t.” Finally, Perfect will have his way, though with more of a hearse-and-carriage offering: the hit Broadway musical Beetlejuice, for which he wrote the music and lyrics, is coming to Australia.

Eddie Perfect’s Broadway stage production of Beetlejuice.Credit: Internet

The stage show, based on Tim Burton’s 1988 movie of the same name, will open at the Regent in Melbourne in 2025, with powerhouse producer Michael Cassel mounting the local production. And Perfect could not be prouder.

“I mean, it’s pretty magical, when you think about it. But I’ve been trying not to think about it because it’s really nerve-wracking,” he says. “I’m excited for something I’ve [written] to be opening and exclusive to my hometown in the nicest, biggest, plushest, loveliest musical theatre there is. It’s amazing.”

Though it was nominated for eight Tony awards and played for more than two years, Beetlejuice had a mixed response from critics when it opened on Broadway in early 2019. But it resonated with audiences, many of whom turned up to the theatre in costume and sent fan art inspired by the show to the cast and creators.

The backstage area was adorned with pictures and handwritten lyrics – and with reams of material delivered every day, Perfect says, they soon ran out of wall space. It’s that level of devotion that makes him feel the show hit the spot.

“It’s really great that something I’ve written, that I really feel like has my sensibilities and hands all over it, has somehow been welcomed into the big legit commercial theatre space.”

More to come

Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees. Get The Watchlist delivered every Thursday.

Most Viewed in Culture

Source: Read Full Article