Bette Midler and Me ★★★

Of all the things that The Recs imagined we might be doing one early evening in Edinburgh, watching a show that culminates in a three-minute puppet show version of the schmaltzy 1988 movie Beaches was not on the list. And yet West End leading lady Sue Kelvin’s Bette Midler and Me is a timely reminder that the Fringe will always be the Fringe. 

Kelvin presents a pleasing timeline of the indomitable Better Midler’s life and career, filled with stories of how it collided and coloured Kelvin’s own adolescence and eventual following of footsteps in becoming a musical theatre actress herself. The production is solid and any Bette fan would be happy and fulfilled spending an hour of the Fringe watching it, but The Recs couldn’t help but feel it is a tad safe and lacks any spark where you see Bette from a different perspective or discover something new. 

The surprise gift we didn’t even know we needed was undoubtedly Billie Kerr, who makes up this two-hander. Whilst Kerr is clearly not the generation to have lived through Bette’s career highlights, her appreciation comes through in a polished, pitch-perfect and beautifully placed performance as the supporting role, with a musical theatre-style vocal quality and assured acting which The Recs hopes will be filling the auditoriums of London’s West End in years to come. Her skill in harmonising at the perfect level with Kelvin’s seasoned brassy Broadway belt is pleasure to listen to, and when she is given the opportunity to take the spotlight and perform a rendition of Midler’s ‘From a Distance’, the true talent of this young actress is clear to see.