Ukulele Dream Girl: Love at a Distance | Adelaide Fringe 2021 review

A performer literally laying their beating heart out on the table … now that’s what Fringe is about.

Ukulele Dream Girl: Love at a Distance. Picture: Jewel Chenoweth Photography

Ukulele Dream Girl: Love at a Distance

Cabaret

Rating: ****

The Lark, Gluttony and Laneway Garden Stage, MixedCreative

Until March 8

Phi Theodoros (aka Ukulele Dream Girl) attempts to perform her one-woman show barefoot but the steaming hot stage puts a stop to that, and she is forced to stop mid-song and retreat in search of shoes.

It’s an unexpected but sweet start to a performance full of and inspired by love. Armed with her ukulele “Willow”, Phi shares stories and lifts stigma through song.

Paper aeroplanes appear from backstage, each one written with a sweet nothing or poignant message that sparks songs about distant love.

The journey begins aboard a cruise ship where Phi explores polygamy and the relationships that come with it.

A mix of beautiful original songs about her grandparents and a schoolyard stalker, and unique covers of the likes of Amy Winehouse’s tune Valerie and Sia’s Breathe Me are beautifully executed.

Each audience member receives an envelope containing insight into the five love languages. It’s touching stuff. Raw, heartfelt and honest.

A performer literally laying their beating heart out on the table … now that’s what Fringe is about.

Take a hat … the seating is fully exposed to the elements and if you’re going to get a bit hot under the collar, you want it to be for the right reasons.