Ballet, Belly Laughs and Boozy Festivals: 18 Things To Do This Month in Perth

After a big month of public holidays, we’re back to normal programming. But normal doesn’t mean boring. There are plenty of reasons to get yourself out and about this month.

Here are the 18 best things happening in Perth this month – and all the food news you need to know.

Jump to:

• Festivals

• Theatre

• Art

• Food and drink news

Festivals and events in May 2026

There are so many events, food festivals and pop-ups coming to Perth this year. We’ve got heaps of them bookmarked – but these are the events happening this month.

• Subi Blooms x Gather, April 17 to May 10: There’s plenty to feast your eyes on at this festival. It includes The Light Within, a free art installation at Market Square Park from artist Matthew Aberline that invites you to wander through large-scale lanterns with bright floral patterns. Sydney florist and Instagram darling Bryce Heyworth of September Studios is also coming to WA for the first time to collaborate with Fox & Rabbit on an installation for the festival. Free.

• Bickley Harvest Festival, May 2 to 31: Autumn in the Perth Hills means it’s Bickley Harvest Festival time. Over 20 venues will open their doors for tastings, long lunches  and special events that celebrate the best Bickley Valley produce. The full program is available online.

• Perth Comedy Festival, April 20 to May 17: Four weeks. Five venues. More than 70 gigs. Head to the Regal Theatre, the Astor Theatre, The Rechabite, Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre and the State Theatre Centre of WA for sets from Daniel Sloss, Josh Thomas, Matt Okine, Geraldine Hickey and more. Tickets on sale now. 

• Unwined Perth, May 15 and 16: Despite what its name might suggest, Unwined looks beyond vino. Over one weekend, you’ll be able to taste the state’s finest craft beer, boutique spirits, cocktails and, of course, plenty of wine. There will be live music, food, and discounts on bottles. Tickets are on sale now.

•  Kith aperitivo afternoons, Thursday to Sunday 4pm–7pm: Kith is an AM go-to in Nedlands, but now it’s making the move into the arvos. From Thursdays to Sunday, Kith will serve aperitivo classics like Gildas, anchovy toast, pork cottoletta and more. Bookings are open now.

Theatre in May 2026

There’s so much great theatre coming to Perth this year, there are our picks.

• Which Way Home: Murrawarri actor and playwright Katie Beckett based her play on her memories of growing up with a single Aboriginal dad. She wanted to show how loving and caring men like her father are, which she says isn’t often portrayed on stage. In Which Way Home, Tash takes her dad on a road trip back to Country. It’s a story filled with reconnection – to each other and to place – with plenty of humour and heart. Real-life father and daughter Derek and Shaquita Nannup star in this Yirra Yaakin performance. Which Way Home runs from April 28 to May 9 at Subiaco Arts Centre Studio. Tickets are on sale now.

• Pretty Woman: The Musical: Fall back into the 1990s in this adaptation of one of the most unlikely rom-coms to be given the musical treatment. Yes, a wealthy client still falls for the charms of a living-for-the-moment sex worker and promises to rescue her using the trappings of capitalism, but this time there are belting songs, such as I Can’t Go Back and Anywhere But Here. Samantha Jade and Perth-born Ben Hall play Vivian and Edward respectively, and you can guarantee the audience will chime in on “Big mistake. Big. Huge.” Pretty Woman: The Musical runs from April 18 to May 10 at Crown Theatre. Tickets are on sale now. 

• The Shepherd’s Hut: Friendship can be forged in the most unlikely places. For 15-year-old Jaxie, on the run after the death of his abusive father, it’s in the remote saltlands of Western Australia where he meets Fintan MacGillis, a disgraced Irish priest living in exile. WA is the backbone of this Tim Winton story about survival, masculinity and forgiveness, which has been adapted for the stage by acclaimed playwright Tim McGarry (Boy Swallows Universe) and director Matt Edgerton. May marks its world premiere. The Shepherd’s Hut runs from May 9 to 31 at Heath Ledger Theatre. Tickets are on sale now.

• Dracula: Queensland Ballet, West Australian Ballet and the West Australian Symphony Orchestra have teamed up for a biting new production of Bram Stoker’s Dracula. It’s the creation of Polish choreographer Krzysztof Pastor, who had a critical smash with its debut in 2018. The gothic horror is camp, dramatic and seductive, leaning into the themes of repressed desires and sexuality. You’ll recognise the score from Francis Ford Coppola’s 1992 film. There will be waltzes, stakes driven into hearts and, you guessed it, plenty of blood. Dracula runs from May 15 to 30 at His Majesty’s Theatre. Tickets are on sale now.

Art in May 2026

There’s never a bad time to be an art lover in Perth, with killer exhibitions planned for 2026. But May is a particularly packed month. Here are our picks.

• All That Country Holds: Noongar artist and curator Zali Morgan has brought together nearly 200 works by more than 100 WA artists, for a huge celebration of Aboriginal art split across two exhibitions. The first includes 42 significant artworks by 10 Aboriginal artists from the Kimberley region, which were recently shown at the Australian Embassy in Washington DC. That same exhibition is now coming to Pica. See works by John Prince Siddon, Angelina Karadada Boona and Leah Umbagai, alongside seven other impressive artists. All That Country Holds runs until June 14 at West End Gallery, Pica. 

• Revealed: New and Emerging WA Aboriginal Artists: Morgan was also on the selection panel for this exhibition, which runs concurrently with All That Country Holds, and shares the same beauty, depth and creative energy of WA’s art communities – but this time it focuses exclusively on emerging artists. Around 180 works by 101 artists are on display. There are photographs, sculptures, paintings and textiles. As part of the programming, you can purchase artworks to take home, with proceeds going directly to the artists and their communities. You can also drop in for making sessions and book artist-led workshops.  Revealed: New and Emerging WA Aboriginal Artists runs until June 14 at Central Gallery, Pica.

• Tran Luong: Tam Ta – Soaked in the Long Rain: Artist Tran Luong is a major figure in Vietnamese art. Political, pioneering and working across several mediums, Tran’s works unpack political repression, the impact of ideology and memories of wartime displacement. AGWA’s exhibition is the first significant presentation of his art in Australia. Tran Luong: Tam Ta – Soaked in the Long Rain runs until August 16 at the Art Gallery of Western Australia.

• Dolphin: Bold, colourful and almost childlike in their big expressive style, Elle Campbell’s artworks conjure feelings of freedom and play. Her latest solo exhibition features 25 paintings made during her residency at the Heritage Collective, which will be on display across three buildings. They’re all linked by the Dandaragan-raised artist’s memories of coastal holidays where dolphins felt like magical creatures. Dolphin runs from May 9 to 31 at the Heritage Collective, Cottesloe. 

• Jemi Gale | promise to sing for you: Narrm / Melbourne-based artist Jemi Gale uses all sorts of unconventional elements in her paintings, such as nail polish and charms. Her practice is an exploration of loneliness and companionship. In this Goolugatup exhibition, two new works (made while the artist was in residence) will be shown in adjoining rooms, representing the bridges friends often form across physical and emotional distances.  promise to sing for you runs from May 9 to July 26 at Goolugatup Heathcote.

• Ida Lawrence: A Bigger Misha: In Ida Lawrence’s own words, her paintings “make a big deal out of small observations, tiny gestures and little feelings”. Lawrence’s paintings are inspired by the places she’s lived, including Sydney, Ubud and Berlin, where she’s mostly based today. See her entertaining artworks in this upcoming exhibition. Ida Lawrence: A Bigger Misha runs from May 9 to August 2 at Walyalup Fremantle Arts Centre. 

• Leyla Stevens: Groh Goh (Rehearsal for Rangda): Indonesian Australian artist Leyla Stevens makes compelling video works informed by cultural histories. At Walyalup Fremantle Arts Centre, you’ll be able to watch her 28-minute film about the Balinese mythological figure Rangda. It looks at the passing on of knowledge through matrilineal storytelling and movement, and repositions the mythical demon queen as an empowering female force. Leyla Stevens: Groh Goh (Rehearsal for Rangda) runs from May 9 to August 2 at Walyalup Fremantle Arts Centre. 

• The West Australian Pulse 2026: More than 300 teenage artists submitted their works for this year’s exhibition, with sixty-three shortlisted pieces exhibited. Come vote for your favourites in the People’s Choice Award, or simply marvel at the results of a talented bunch of year 12 visual arts grads. More into textiles? The Pulse fashion show takes place on May 23. The West Australian Pulse 2026 runs from May 16 to September 13 at the Art Gallery of Western Australia.

• Attachment Styles: Modes of Belonging in Modern and Contemporary Art: With pieces plucked from AGWA’s 18,000-strong collection, Attachment Styles is a curious exhibition themed around therapy talk. Whether you identify as “anxiously avoidant” or “securely attached”, there’ll be a painting here that speaks to your soul. Frederick McCubbin’s Down on his luck, for example, has a hint of self-soothing. Stewart MacFarlane’s The border seems to depict jealousy or sibling rivalry. Then there’s John Nash’s The Bathers, with its lone individuals sitting in close proximity to others. Whichever one you relate to most, it’s clear these artists understand our deep-seated need to feel seen. Attachment Styles: Modes of Belonging in Modern and Contemporary Art runs until October 11 at the Art Gallery of Western Australia.

Food news and new openings:

What we’ve covered recently:

• A local fish’n’chipper gets a gourmet glow-up at Gwelup Fish’n’Chips.

• Masa Mesa pushes Latin American cuisine beyond tacos with pupusas and dishes cooked on the parrilla.

• Start your day the Jakarta way at Bakmi Kochan 88.

• Wise Child Wine Store is making the move into the wine bar space, with plans to introduce drink-in services with plenty of snacks.

Reporting by Emma Joyce and Chelsea Seale.

Editor's note: This article was originally published on February 11, 2026. It is updated every month with new information.