Review by Mikyla Gilbert – Performance date: Thursday 6 March 2025, The Garden of Unearthly Delights, Adelaide, South Australia
Just know that something good is going to happen…
Love or loathe the unconventional, completely original, theatrical, emotional, and haunting artistic force that is Kate Bush, the award-winning Adelaide Fringe show An Evening Without Kate Bush will have you howling to the moon, swaying, and singing along (to the songs you know). Then, I guarantee you’ll get in the car and search for her greatest hits on Spotify on the drive home.
I don’t like to read up on shows I’m reviewing beforehand – that way, I don’t have any heightened expectations. However, as a Kate Bush fan, I was expecting swirling chiffon, dramatic arm movements, and at least one person dressed like a windswept gothic enchanted forest spirit.
In fact, come to think of it, I should have thought more about my outfit – I was dressed in hot pink. What the? I should have worn a red dress and exited the venue with dramatic twirls recreating Wuthering Heights through the Garden of Unearthly Delights. This show should come with a Kate Bush dress code. If you don’t have the wigs, wear a mop (you’ll get the gag when you experience the show).
I was expecting a full-on tribute show. What I didn’t expect was to be completely absorbed by a charming comedic cabaret so witty, heartfelt, and eerily in tune with the spirit of Kate herself. Sarah-Louise Young doesn’t impersonate Kate Bush – because that would be impossible. Instead, she channels her, celebrating the music, the madness, and, most importantly, the fans who have kept the Bush mythology alive for decades.
Whether you’ve been whispering Babooshka in the mirror since 1980 (probably pronouncing it wrong for over 40 years) or only recently discovered Running Up That Hill via Stranger Things in 2022, this show welcomes you with open arms and a healthy dose of dramatic eccentricity.
Young is a joy to watch, effortlessly involving the audience and turning a cabaret performance into something that feels like a cult gathering – in a fun way.
The setlist is a dream, the humour razor-sharp, and Young’s vocals? Spellbinding. She playfully adapts Bush’s signature style without ever descending into parody, reminding us that beneath all the whimsy, it’s the music that keeps people coming back.
By the time the night ended, I wasn’t just convinced I’d seen one of the best cabaret performances of this year’s Adelaide Fringe – I went home, draped myself in flowing scarves, played Running Up That Hill on repeat, and screeched at the top of my lungs into the oscillating fan.
Warning: If you don’t like or know many Kate Bush songs, you’ll still have an enjoyable night out, but this may not be the show for you.
On until Sunday, 23 March
Le Cascadeur at The Garden of Unearthly Delights
Tickets: $32 to $46
Ticket link!
