An Evening Without Kate Bush - Underbelly Boulevard ★★★★★

Sarah-Louise Young opens by telling the audience that “she is not present, but you are.” Despite her disclaimer, the spirit of Kate Bush is ever-present, embodied by a performer who clearly reveres her subject. This cabaret evening weaves classic songs from the Bush oeuvre – sung gorgeously – with sharply funny physical comedy and engaging anecdotes.

Any audience members nervous about participation in An Evening Without Kate Bush are quickly put at ease as Young engages them with warmth and respect. Props to the couple who spend five minutes locked in a revolving hug, in a recreation of the video for “Don’t Give Up”. Even non-“Fish People” (the collective noun for Bush fans) find themselves singing along to the barking (mad) chorus of “Hounds of Love” or appreciating the emphatically first-syllable Russian pronunciation of “BAAA-booshka”.

This show is an extended version of the one originally devised by Young (and co-creator Russell Lucas). The additional time allows Young to explore a series of “Fans of the Bush” encounters: the cleaning lady at the Hammersmith Apollo during Bush’s 2014 comeback tour, belting out “This Woman’s Work”; or her 13-year-old self performing “James and the Cold Gun” at a school assembly, with a wig made from a pink Vileda SuperMop (a remarkable likeness of Bush’s “Lionheart”-era hair).

A few of these skits run slightly too long, but Young is quick to wrestle back attention through hilarious self-deprecation – wondering aloud why she’s “still doing this at 50”, while pointing to the HRT patch visible through her shocking red leotard.

Young has clearly studied her subject’s every expression and movement. She perfectly captures the wide-eyed, ingenue eccentricity of the young Kate, alongside Lindsay Kemp-inspired mime and dance and the essential “cape choreography” of 1979’s Tour of Life. And while she doesn’t replicate those famous vocals (who could?), Young’s own voice is gorgeous. Her rendition of “The Man with the Child in His Eyes” is especially lovely.

Whether it’s for committed Fish People who already know about the odd cover of “Sexual Healing”, or those who only recognise “Running Up That Hill” thanks to Stranger Things, this show is 90 minutes of pure, Bush-infused joy. Young communicates her delight directly to the audience, who gleefully sing “Wuthering Heights” back to her, albeit aided by Kemp-style mime. Expect to assemble a playlist of Bush classics before you’ve even made it home.