An Evening Without Kate Bush

Are you one of the Fish People? Even if you’re not and have no idea what that means, there’s still much to enjoy in this Kate Bush tribute show cum comedy cabaret. If you are one of the Fish People (i.e. Bush’s die-hard fans), you’ll be hoarse by the end, so frequent are the opportunities to sing along with Sarah-Louise Young’s impressive vocals in An Evening Without Kate Bush.

Bush’s fans are nothing if not supportive and the spirit of collective celebration is strongly encouraged through Young’s frequent audience engagement. Don’t sit in the first couple of rows if you’re shy about being lured to the stage. One brave couple slow danced to Don’t Give Up while Young sang Bush’s part beautifully.

While not trying to do a straight impression of one of pop’s quirkiest divas, Young pulls off a spirited and highly entertaining homage. Her powerful voice doesn’t quite have Bush’s freakishly huge range, but who other than Kent’s favourite daughter could sing the opening notes of Wuthering Heights? Young, to her credit, doesn’t try. Her renditions of Bush’s biggest hits and some lesser-known B sides are stunning and her ability to pull off Bush’s signature dance moves is astonishing and hilarious by turns. The comedy highlight is a rendition of Babooshka in Russian, including its correct pronunciation of BAH-booshka.

Stage manager Will Spartalis becomes an unintended star when Young’s head mic battery fails not once but twice. Young’s stellar ability to improvise song lyrics about buying more double As at the supermarket makes this technical glitch even funnier.

With just a red leotard plus various add-on costume pieces and wigs, a few props, and some fantastically creative lighting effects (all by Young), the performer’s segues between songs are a joy to watch and keep the show flowing.

If you want to howl with the Hounds of Love, go Running Up That Hill with the other Fish People, or snigger knowingly at the Stranger Things reference, you can’t go wrong with An Evening Without Kate Bush.