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One hundred people’s ninth favourite thing: [title of show] @swkplay

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[title of show] takes you back to a time before the fast paced social media where word of mouth for a positive show came from chat boards, video diaries or (god forbid) blogs. A simple staging makes it an ideal (and economical piece to stage), but it’s sweet and earnest take on just putting on a show, and putting it out there and taking a chance gives this show its heart. With a strong and energetic cast and endless musical theatre references, it’s hard to resist and it’s currently playing at the Southwark Playhouse .  It opens with Hunter (Jacob Fowler) and Jeff (Thomas Oxley) as struggling young writers in New York City. An upcoming New York Musical Theatre festival, inspires them to write an original musical within three weeks to make the deadline. As they discuss ideas, writers block, distractions and endless other good and bad musicals, an idea for a show emerges. Which is about writing a show for a musical theatre festival.  Their friends Heidi (Abbie Budden) and Susan (Mary Moor

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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