Court Hotel

Court Hotel or The Court is a music venue and bar in Perth, Western Australia.

It is a historic hotel, located at the corner of Beaufort Street and James Street. It was built in 1888 and has been continually used as a hotel since then.

It has been a LGBTQ+ friendly venue since the early 1990s.

Description
The venue is located on the corner of James St and Beaufort St, on the east side of the James St Mall through the Perth Cultural Centre. It neighbours Curtin House, the former headquarters of the WA Police detective unit.

The venue features a large astroturf outdoor courtyard, with a stage area. The outside of the venue is painted in a colourful street-art style.

It is marketed as a LGBTQ+ friendly venue. The venue is known for hosting drag shows.

History and operations
The Court Hotel was constructed in 1888 in the Victorian Regency architectural style, and later renovated to include Federation Free Classical style and, mostly internally, the Inter-War Art Deco style. The name of the venue comes from its position across the road from a building in the Perth cultural precinct that used to operate as a Magistrates court.

From 1903 it was operated by Con O'Brien, the first Labor Member of the Legislative Council.

Extensive renovations were undertaken in 1938, 2007, 2012 and 2017.

As of 2016, the venue is solely owned by Bree Maddox, a Perth socialite and former Penthouse model. The venue was formerly owned jointly by Maddox and her partner, Malcolm Day; prior to their separation.

In 2019 and 2021, the venue has faced criticism from members of Perth's LGBTQ+ community. This criticism followed the resurfacing of historic images of a drag queen Scarlet Adams performing in blackface at the venue; as well as claims from some patrons that antisocial and anti-queer behaviour had been experienced by patrons. In response to these criticisms, the venue adorned its entrance with rainbow colours while its owners publicly stated their support for the LGBTQ+ community; and hired additional security, but declined a requested ban on non-queer patrons. In response to the blackface allegations, the venue issued an apology.

In 2022, a mural was painted onto the side of the building by Fremantle-based artist Jackson Harvey.

In September 2023, Australian Venue Co. entered an agreement to purchase The Court from Maddox.