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The greatest show and other bromances: Adam Riches and John Kearns ARE Ball and Boe @sohotheatre

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Alfie Boe and Michael Ball seem to be a bit of a joke act anyway. Their endless interpretations of popular songs (also known as covers) and their double-act bromance make them quintessential crossover artists where popular music meets opera and Broadway. And a perilous choice for the discerning listener. It’s not that they aren’t talented musicians and performers in their own right. Still, their musical choices are always safe, predictable and less than their potential. But every country deserves to have a pair of self-described national treasures that can tour the local arenas and give people a good time for the bargain price of £175 a seat.  And so the concept of Adam Riches and John Kearns - two world-famous from the Edinburgh Fringe comedians taking on this bromance seems like a curious choice for a Christmas musical fare. One can only hope that over the fourteen nights, it is playing at the Soho Theatre that the show evolves into something more substantial than a series of po...

Thanks for all the fish: An Evening Without Kate Bush @sohotheatre

Sarah-Louise Young in full flight 

A Kate Bush tribute for someone who isn't a Kate Bush fan might seem a daunting night at the theatre. Will the in-jokes fly over the head? Yes. Will the fear of being in a confined space of Kate Bush fans be overwhelming? Well, not if you brush up on a playlist beforehand. But An Evening Without Kate Bush is an initiation into the world of fandom and her music. Kate Bush, the phenomenon is equally revered and lovingly teased in this hour-long celebration of her music and cultural impact. It's currently playing downstairs at the Soho Theatre. 

Presented by Sarah-Louise Young, you don't have to be a Kate Bush fan to appreciate her work. And you'll be soon joining in to howling along to the Hounds of Love and partaking in all sorts of participatory theatre (in as much as socially distant theatre allows). And along with the songs and trivia, you learn what it is to be a Kate Bush fan (or fish as they are known). 

Publicity shot for Sarah-Louise young

Young is an expert teacher in the crazy world of Kate Bush fandom and tribute acts. With a mix of impeccable comic timing, eighties nostalgia and strong vocals, she takes us along a brisk journey of the life and music of Kate Bush so far.

With an array of comic costume changes, she interprets a range of songs from Kate Bush and how her fans see them. Including a correctly pronounced Babooshka song, at the suggestion of a Russian fan, changing the emphasis of the words and putting the rhythm out. But hilarious all the same. 

Young also recounts the impact of Kate Bush on her younger self through a school presentation of a Kate Bush song, complete with dance movement and a borrowed leotard that falls flat. But failure only serves to strengthen the passion for the music. 

I suspect the assumption is that you will too become a convert after an hour of the music. But that need not be the case. Music is a personal choice. But what is clear is how Kate Bush moves and motivates her fans and inspires them in all sorts of ways. 

Co-written by Sarah-Louise Young and directed by Russell Lucas, An Evening Without Kate Bush plays downstairs at the Soho Theatre through 26 February.

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 

Photos by Clive Holland (live) and Steve Ullathorne


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