Saturday, 9 November saw the long-awaited return of ART BALL to Perth’s social calendar, this time in a special collaboration with PrideFEST.
Hosted of course at the Art Gallery of Western Australia (AGWA), it was a glamorous celebration of queer art, culture, and community, with Matt Tinney from Channel 7 filling the role of emcee (and showing a whole lot of leg!).
With a stellar lineup of international and local LGBTQIA+ performers, the night was filled with dazzling performances, fabulous fashion, and, most importantly, all things camp.
The rainbow carpet was rolled out to welcome guests, with local drag artists inviting ball-goers inside the main hall of the state’s art gallery. A moving Welcome to Country opened the evening, which included poignant reminders of our city’s past.
Matt Tinney then provided a sketch of the evening to come, describing the event as a “progressive parade where we start the party … in the garden of Adam and Steve, and move up to ART BALL Heaven on the rooftop and under the stars”.
There was a lot to take in, including a “tszuj” room by Manuao Makeup, food stations, Pink Pony Club (transformed AGWA rooftop) and of course the after party at Connections Nightclub.
Delivering the opening remarks, John Carey, Minister for Planning, Lands, Housing and Homelessness, spoke about the interlinked worlds of queerness and the arts, and why events like PrideFEST are important now more than ever. Carey acknowledged fellow Minister Stephen Dawson as a long time advocate and WA Premier Roger Cook as a strong supporter of the queer community, who were both present at the event.
To kick off the performances, guests were treated to a short preview of the powerful vocals of UK cabaret diva and icon, Le Gateau Chocolat who descended the spiral staircase from above.
The “casual, amuse-bouche” as described by Chocolat featured the opera numbers Dich, Teure Halle, Grüß Ich Wieder (Tannhäuser, Wagner) and Nessun Dorma (Turandot, Puccini).
Guests then adjourned to the rooftop where the party kicked into high gear with a little bit of help from the Smirnoff Bar’s seltzers. Ensuring no one went hungry, the team from Cheeky Waffles was on hand, serving up an assortment of delicious (and very amusing) phallic-shaped treats.
It was then time for the main act – flying in from Sydney, the Huxleys made their return to the ART BALL, dazzling the audience with their delightful debauchery and fabulous sequined costumes (the bedazzled black swans were the obvious local favourite).
Numbers included Go West and Love Is in the Air. Le Gateau Chocolat returned to the stage and gave comedy and a fabulous rendition of Madonna’s Holiday in a sparkling black jumpsuit.
When it finally came time to crown this year’s inaugural AGWA Glambassador, Marco Octaviano walked away with the title, invites to AGWA’s 2025 events and a pair of gorgeous Keiko Uno earrings, valued at $1200.
If ART BALL 2024 is anything to go by, we’re in for a glitzy, glamorous and very gay PrideFEST!
James Fowler
