A hush settled over the auditorium as the transgender diva Crystal Love, dripping with jewellery and unfurling a handheld fan, moved into the spotlight and began lip-syncing to a pop power ballad.
In the tiered seating opposite, a small crowd of mostly queer and Indigenous people watched dutifully on.
"We are still very marginalised," Ben Graetz, the creative director of the event that had brought them all there, said.
