Review: The Last Dinner Party at Red Hill Auditorium
The Last Dinner Party at Red Hill Auditorium
w/ Sir Chloe
Saturday, January 9, 2026
The Last Dinner Party are true to their name, having crafted a trademark image and stage show over the last few years whose mix of opulence and grit makes you feel like you’re at a final supper. Those in attendance at Red Hill Auditorium certainly got their fill on the night, in what was a feast for the eyes and especially the ears.
Opening proceedings was Sir Chloe, AKA Dana Foote, an indie rock artist from New York who has gone from strength to strength since initial virality on TikTok. Sir Chloe played a set of hooky songs that touched on grunge, post-punk, shoegaze and all points in between. Things got off to a shaky start with Foote’s vocals mixed too high and sounding gratingly out of key. Things were soon forgiven as the set gathered pace and she found her voice more comfortably across a set of well-received and fun tracks such as the Breeders-recalling Hooves, the pure pop-rock callbacks of Forgiving, and Sudonia, where the Courtney Love comparisons are most clear. Naturally she closed with her initial breakout, Michelle,whose minimal arrangement was made to explode live, and Sir Chloe made the most of it.
The Last Dinner Party came on to much fanfare. Show (and latest album) opener Agnus Dei set the standard for the performance: theatrical showmanship backed up by excellent ensemble playing. Frontwoman Abigal Morris immediately made an impression, commanding the stage effortlessly in a flowing white robe and delivering an effortless but pitch-perfect performance.
The stage design matched her elegance. It was two-tiered and featured a backdrop straight from a Greek tragedy with arches, a podium and swirling white blinds all set against a projection of what looked like endless satin, which glowed different hues throughout the night. It lent a heavy cinematic air to proceedings, and the band used it to full effect. Abigail was a mix of elegance and menace throughout the night and a natural showwoman. Her stage banter was top-notch too, as was hers and the band’s heart. The list of thanks to close the show, for instance, included all members of their entourage down to their caterers and road crew. The band also took time to promote their work with OzHarvest in Australia as part of their Ribbons for Provisions fundraising campaign to battle food waste, and earlier in the night, Australian-born bassist Georgia Davies took time to acknowledge the land’s traditional owners and speak to our Indigenous peoples’ power of community.
The opener gave way to Count the Ways, which saw a snarlier vocal performance from Abigail before member introductions and a launch into Feminine Urge. The band carried it off flawlessly, with all five members contributing vocals. As one of the band’s biggest and most anthemic tracks, its early inclusion was surprising. Perhaps this was by design in order to elevate the material from the band’s latest LP, Under the Pyre, with all of its songs played on the night. I can certainly see why, with the material coming alive on stage and showcasing its depth and variety. I came away with a greater appreciation for the sophistication of arrangement on these newer tracks.
The band is a five-piece with a touring drummer, and the well-rounded instrumentation makes its presence felt. A particular sequence of note was three songs played in inverse order to their sequencing on the latest LP. The piano-led I Hold Your Anger was beautiful and saw Lizzie Mayland taking vocal duties. This transitioned to all five members harmonising what sounded like a Celtic séance for a superb rendition of the folk horror-esque Woman is a Tree. First album cut Gjuha featured creative use of the mandolin and carried on the traditional theme before giving way to a dark and brilliant take on Rifle, whose swelling chorus was the most intense moment of the night. The band struck further gold whenever they played quieter numbers, such as minimal and beautiful renditions of On Your Side, Inferno and Sail Away. The band even brought out a flute as soft and loud came together on the superbly executed The Scythe, arguably the highlight of the whole evening.
Meanwhile, older cuts featured more pared-back and rocking arrangements and were a guitar lover’s dream. Guitarist Emily Roberts has a background in jazz, and her serious chops came through on the monolithic riffing on hard rock love letter Big Dog, the snarling and frantic fan favourite Sinner, and a huge guitar solo on the guitar-driven ballad Mirror. The stop-start histrionics of My Lady of Mercy were big fun, with keyboardist Aurora ripping out a keytar and Abigail indulging in some crowd surfing. Naturally Nothing Matters got a huge reception, with crowd call-and-response and a massive synchronised wave getting started. A short encore unfortunately saw a lot of people turning to leave (either due to mistaking it for the end or looking to get out before the Red Hill Auditorium exodus queues). Hopefully most of them still caught the closer, an excellent rendition of This is the Killer Speaking. It was an appropriate end to the set, with the band highlighting the tune’s raucous country inflections and playing up the showbiz element with a James Brown-inspired ‘rest break’ from Abigail against the piano before launching into the song’s final stanza.
This was a superb set that had a bit of everything, highlighting The Last Dinner Party’s baroque pop talents and their ability to rock out on stage with theatrical aplomb. With such a wide range of songwriting talent and ability at their disposal, here’s hoping for a new album and tour soon from these five legends.
MATIJA ZIVKOVIC
Adrian Thomson
