The Service: A Queer Kind Of Church
Image: Image: supplied
Brisbane audiences are invited to swap solemnity for sequins when The Service arrives at MELT Festival 2026 for two performances at PIP Theatre, Milton.
Created and presented by Daniel Gough and Zachary Lurje, this playful participatory cabaret transforms a familiar Sunday gathering into a gloriously queer celebration of belonging, connection and community.
Presiding over proceedings is drag sensation Quiche Loraine, a former youth group leader whose performance draws inspiration from evangelical television preachers, theatrical worship and the extravagant spirit of Tammy Faye. She leads the congregation through an irreverent service where the boundaries between performer and audience are deliberately blurred, delivering a night of queer worship audiences are unlikely to forget.
But sitting quietly in the pews simply won’t do here.
Throughout the 75-minute experience, the congregation will sing, sip cheap wine, share Arnott’s biscuits and perhaps even consider confessing a sin or two. Blending theatre, drag and communal ritual, The Service dissolves the usual divide between stage and audience, welcoming everyone to participate exactly as they are.
For anyone who grew up attending church, some of the rituals may feel strangely familiar. However, this congregation comes together under a very different kind of roof, transforming recognisable traditions into something playful, inclusive and distinctly queer.
Beneath its irreverent humour, The Service explores identity, chosen community and the spaces LGBTQIA+ people create to feel seen and connected. In doing so, the production plays with the rituals traditionally used to bring congregations together and asks what happens when queer people get to create those rituals for themselves.
There may not be any guarantees of divine intervention, but there should be plenty of laughs along the way.
Expect coarse language, spirituality, audience interaction and possible miracles. So gather the congregation, prepare to confess and get praying — because The Service is about to begin.
6–7 November
PIP Theatre, Park Road, Milton
piptheatre.org
You May Also Like
Support the Star Observer… while you still can
LGBTQIA+ media is under threat. Queer content is censored by tech conglomerates who amplify bigotry and push out AI slop — so we receive less financial support than ever.
When our community is muzzled and intolerance intensifies, we need queer media more than ever. Your donation means we can continue paying queer journalists to write queer news.
Don’t rely on the straight lies of big tech – support Star Observer instead and donate now.
Leave a Reply