Perth Festival has revealed this morning the first events of the 2027 program.
The festival, running from Friday, February 5 to Sunday, February 28, holds the title of Australia’s longest-running arts festival, entering its 74th year next year. Headliners include theatrical thriller ROHTKO, hypnotic visual opera Operation:Orfeo, and internationally-lauded Australian electronic group The Avalanches.
Opening the festival is an Australian-exclusive season of ROHTKO, a work from trailblazing Polish director Łukasz Twarkowski that fuses theatre, tech and live cinema to explore art and authenticity. Centred on one of the art world’s biggest scandals, it follows a couple who purchase a Mark Rothko painting for $8.3 million, before finding out that the painting is a counterfeit.
Artists from Latvia, Poland and China collaborate with Twarkowski’s creative team, bringing to life the play from Friday, February 5, to Saturday, February 13 at His Majesty’s Theatre.
Another item announced this morning is Operation:Orfeo, created by Denmark’s acclaimed visual theatre and production house, Hotel Pro Forma. First debuting in Australia as part of the 1996 Adelaide Festival, the work returns almost three decades later as a landmark of contemporary performance.
Part opera, part visual artwork, the piece depicts the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice told through voice, light, architecture and illusion, running for four performances only from Thursday, February 25, to Saturday, February 27 at His Majesty’s Theatre.
On the live music front, renowned Australian band The Avalanches will close out the festival at East Perth Power Station on Sunday, February 28 with a set traversing career highlights and tracks from their forthcoming album No Bad Memories.
At the top of the program, Northern Irish singer-songwriter Foy Vance will be joined by Aussie indie-folk group The Paper Kites, kicking off the festivities on Sunday, February 7 at East Perth Power Station. Vance, a frequent collaborator of Ed Sheeran and an Emmy-winner, will celebrate his recent album The Wake, and upcoming release If, with both groups also set to delve into their celebrated catalogues.
The full program for Perth Festival 2027 will be announced on Thursday, October 29.
Tickets are on sale now for Foy Vance and The Paper Kites, and tickets go on sale for ROHTKO, Operation:Orfeo and The Avalanches on Friday, September 11 at perthfestival.com.au
