Sydney Archbishop calls on government to withdraw funding as Divine Playhouse resurrects

Sydney’s Archbishop Anthony Fisher has called on the NSW Government to withdraw its $100,000 grant from the Divine Playhouse, accusing the arts outfit of mocking Catholicism with its new resurrection pop-tour after it was evicted from its former home in a deconsecrated church.

In July, the organiser of the Divine Playhouse – formerly Unholy Playhouse – an LGBTQ Sydney nightclub housed in a 158-year-old former church building, was forced to close and cancel all events after Christian groups protested on opening night.

Christian communities expressed issues with the venue’s allusions to Catholicism in its programming, including events of “live exorcism” and a “Sunday mess”. Some attendees at the venue’s opening night wore nun and choir costumes.

The Museum of Contemporary Art has announced that the Divine Playhouse would return as UNHOLY/DIVINE and reunite more than 50 artists for a three-night celebration in October.

The program for the first night was for an “Unholy Funeral” to lay to “rest the memories of Divine Playhouse”. The second event was for an awakening, and the third was a night to “bring your secrets, confess your sins and surrender to a night of delicious indiscretion and very naughty art”.

On Tuesday, Fisher said in an open letter to Arts Minister John Graham that while he recognised the “right to freedom of artistic expression … we are deeply concerned that the government is financially supporting productions that mock, degrade or deliberately provoke the Catholic community”.

“Divine Playhouse attracted significant criticism over performances and events planned for July 2026 that incorporated Christian imagery and religious themes. The NSW Government provided a reported $100,000 Create NSW grant for its programming,” the letter continued.

Fisher said UNHOLY/DIVINE’s promotional material for its return featuring three inverted crosses and promises adoration, confession, hymns and processions, was “not merely incidental references to Christianity”.

“They involve the deliberate appropriation and, in our view, sexualisation and denigration of symbols, language and rituals that are sacred to Catholics,” he said. “The Government cannot credibly call for religious tolerance and social cohesion, while quietly funding intolerance and division based on religious belief.”

Graham said the government couldn’t withdraw the money because it had already been spent setting up the venue before developers Revelop, co-founded by billionaire cousins Anthony El-Hazouri and Charbel Hazzouri, evicted the group.

Graham said: “I don’t really support people mocking each other, but the idea that government is going to say yes and no to who’s performing on stage is not a principle that we accept. It’s up to companies to determine what they’re performing, and we’ll be continuing that approach.”

Liberal MP Susan Carter asked Graham in parliament on Thursday how much government money was being used to “support this disrespectful depiction of the Christian faith”.

Graham said the government provides significant support for the Museum of Contemporary Art through both Create NSW and Placemaking, and already provided funding for the original Divine Playhouse.

Greens MP Cate Faehrmann said the government had previously funded and supported Mardi Gras.

“This happens in so many different communities and it is an acknowledgment as well that under the Catholic faith the LGBTQIA+ community has been discriminated against, persecuted and traumatised. For a lot of people, this is their way to celebrate where they are now,” Faehrmann said.

“Sometimes [it] involves a little bit of a thumbing of the nose to faith. I say that is OK. It is not going to harm anyone. It is really fun and enjoyable. Everybody should get along to it.”

Organiser Kat Dopper, founder of events company Heaps Gay, said she received “constant” death threats and homophobic messages following the opening of her experimental venue and said she changed the name to “Divine” 12 hours before opening to avoid offending people.

“The landlord mentioned that they had some Christian groups reaching out about it. I just wanted to keep the space open, so I offered to remove the things that they felt were offensive, even though I believe they were not offensive,” Dopper said at the time.

Dopper has been contacted for comment.

Revelop evicted Dopper from the venue under an obscure law, “offensive trade”, used to regulate foul smells and industrial waste. Both parties said they would challenge and defend the eviction legally.

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