Review: An Evening Without Kate Bush at the Lotterywest De Parel Spiegeltent

Review by Tatum Stafford

‘An Evening Without Kate Bush’ is perhaps the show with the best word of mouth this Perth Fringe season – and after hearing all the hype from a lot of different people, I’m very glad I got the chance to catch it in its final weekend, as it was absolutely fantastic. 

This is a passionate, funny, and heartfelt one-woman show presented by UK cabaret performer Sarah-Louise Young. From the get-go, it’s clear that this show is a love letter not only to Kate Bush and her music, but to all of the Kate Bush fans out there that Sarah has had the chance to connect with through her show, online, and out in the world.

The show features a selection of songs from Kate Bush’s extensive catalogue, including crowd favourites and a few lesser-known gems that pockets of the audience nodded in recognition of. After the opening number, Sarah hopped in and amongst the audience to ask people about their favourite Kate Bush songs, and also to ask how they know each other, which led to some really gorgeous moments later on in the show. This segment is essentially the ethos of the show; Sarah is adamant that Kate’s music brings all sorts of people together. Colleagues, couples, and solo superfans were in the audience on the night I attended, and were all more than happy to profess their favourite songs into the mic with a smile.

Sarah’s voice is absolutely stunning, and it soars through the Kate Bush catalogue with ease and warmth. She manages to infuse all of the songs on this show’s setlist with a cheeky smile, a costume and wig change or two, and plenty of comedy (her cover of ‘Babushka’ in the traditional Russian pronunciation was a clear audience highlight). 

Sarah is a natural storyteller, and the pacing of the show was absolutely perfect. She broke up songs with a few walks through the audience, some clever costume changes and propwork, and with stories about her childhood as a Kate Bush fan. I particularly enjoyed hearing about her eccentricities as a child, when her teacher told her she should instead look up to someone like Karen Carpenter.

The most beautiful moment of this show came at the very end in a beautiful, organic and touching moment shared by a bunch of strangers with a love of Kate Bush’s stunning music. 

This show is hilarious, powerful, and approachable to the most experienced or novice Kate Bush Fan you know. I highly recommend catching this if you get the opportunity.

Image Supplied