Eddie Perfect and Jason Arrow put a new musical spin on Christmas

One is the biggest name in Australian musical theatre, having played the lead role in more than 800 performances of Hamilton. The other has been a creative force from Shane Warne: The Musical to the Broadway production of Beetlejuice. But until they both stepped onto the stripped-back Hamilton set at the Sydney Lyric Theatre for the Beyond Blue fundraiser, A (Very) Musical Christmas, Jason Arrow and Eddie Perfect had never met.

While Arrow chose a Christmas pop favourite – Andy Williams’ 1963 hit, The Most Wonderful Time of the Year – Perfect insisted on an original work, a song from his Christmas musical in development with American book writer Robert Horn.

Hamilton’s Jason Arrow and Eddie Perfect performed in A (Very) Musical Christmas.

“When [Hamilton producer Michael Cassel] asked me to be part of this concert, I said, ‘I’ve got so many Christmas songs, I want to do my own,’” Perfect says.

The “philosophical” song, How You Get There, advises “not to be a dick, make the most of time, and prioritise things that are important over things that aren’t”, Perfect says.

“There’s an ease in nostalgia, and hearing a brand-new song with brand-new ideas can be challenging,” Perfect says. “But I also think it’s important, as Australians, to fight back against the northern hemisphere and put as many of our Christmas songs into the pot as we can because we’re getting outwritten and outmanoeuvred by wintry, climate-specific Christmas stuff … It’s important to offer a fresh perspective, and hopefully this song manages to do that for people. And if it doesn’t, it gets cut!”

Eddie Perfect performing on the Hamilton set, which was given a festive makeover for A (Very) Musical Christmas.Credit:

Arrow was impressed with the song: “It was amazing! Eddie did such a good job. He said he hadn’t trod the boards in a while, so to get back on the stage and flex those muscles – honestly, you never really forget it, it’s like riding a bike, clearly. Watching him, it was like, oh, he’s fine. He’s still got it. He’s got a good crooner’s voice.”

Which is fortunate, as Perfect will step into the lead role of Beetlejuice at Melbourne’s Regent Theatre in May next year.

The Christmas concert – which will be broadcast on ABC TV – was also an opportunity for Arrow to extend himself beyond the rap-style lyrics of Hamilton that he knows backwards.

“The Most Wonderful Time of the Year is light-hearted and there’s quite a lot of singing, which I haven’t done in a few years,” Arrow says. “Hamilton is a little bit of a lower sing, so it was nice to sing up a bit after all that. Without giving too much away, it’s a blend of the structure of the Kylie Minogue version and the original, and I’ve added my own flavour at the end.”

Hosted by the ABC’s Jeremy Fernandez and Megan Burslem, the concert showcased performers from the musicals, Dear Evan Hansen and Titanique, as well as Casey Donovan (Sister Act), and Ruva Ngwenya (TINA: The Tina Turner Musical). Also on the bill were Justine Clarke, Tim Draxl and Cody Simpson. A sizeable contingent of the Hamilton cast had the surreal experience of performing on their familiar set transformed for one night into, as Arrow puts it, “a Christmassy cabin”.

“It was so weird,” says Arrow, who is starring in Guys and Dolls on Sydney Harbour after Hamilton wraps in January. “I’ve been up and down those stairs hundreds of times, and I’m still doing that every night. It was strange to be on there not in costume … It was a crazy turnaround for the crew and I have no idea how they did it.”

Like Arrow, Perfect felt the goodwill resonating through the auditorium, with performers, including the Hamilton band, donating their time to raise money and awareness for the mental health charity.

“Christmas is a lot of pressure,” Perfect says. “Families and individuals out there are doing it tough, so it’s great to be able to support Beyond Blue in supporting people who are finding this a difficult time … I’m a big fan of Christmas and the time of year as a stocktake moment. It’s a time when we’re at our most open to each other.”

A (Very) Musical Christmas premieres on Friday, December 20, at 7.30pm on the ABC.

Beyond Blue 1300 22 4636.

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