REVIEW: Dusty at Sheffield Lyceum theatre

SOUL singing legend Dusty Springfield brought black American artists to British TV screens - and was famously deported from South Africa for refusing to play to segregated audiences.

Dusty - born Mary Isabel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien in London into an Irish Catholic family - was one of the biggest music stars of the 20th century, a glamourous iconic figure with a unique voice that brought chart success in the 60s. 

Her TV show, It Must Be Dusty, was highly successful and she was instrumental in showcasing US soul singers. She was also involved in the Ready Steady Go Motown Special broadcast. She made the front pages for her stand against apartheid, determined to have it written into her contract that she would only perform to mixed audiences.

But, as this world premiere musical about her life by Jonathan Harvey shows, she was also a tortured soul, struggling with her sexuality and wanting to be someone else. 

Katherine Kingsley as Dusty, carries the whole show, brilliantly capturing the talent and the torment of a woman who took on the sexism that ran through the industry and tried to take control of her songs and production. Like the song says, if "I close my eyes" it's hard to believe Dusty's not there, such is the power and emotion of Kingsley's voice.

By the time Dusty died in 1999 from breast cancer, everyone was aware of the turmoil behind the smiles. And the show documents her battles with addiction, her outbursts and penchant for hurling crockery around, while hinting at the mental health problems that seem to have blighted her later years. Plus her comeback with the help of the Pet Shop Boys.

Director Maria Friedman keeps a fast pace and cleverly uses Dusty's hits to tell her story before a showpiece finale of You Don't Have To Say You Love Me.

Dusty's impact on the music of the time, and her relevance to this day, exemplify the unifying nature of popular music. She was influenced by Motown and introduced Martha and the Vandellas, The Supremes and Stevie Wonder to a British audience through her TV shows, challenging the racism that affected their careers. 

She was the first female entertainer to admit she was bisexual. But she couldn't be herself in those times.

Much of the story is told with the help of her loyal friends and helpers, nice but not-too-bright dresser Pat (Esther Coles) and sex-mad Aussie make-up artist Ruby (Ella Kenion), a slightly grating double act, but who touchingly exude their love for Dusty which clearly knows no bounds.

Joanna Francis is tremendous as Lois, Dusty's long-time lover, encapsulating the joy and heartbreak of loving and living with Dusty, with powerful vocals to match. Rufus Hound as Dusty's wheeler-dealer manager Billings and Roberta Taylor, as Dusty's harsh, heavy-drinking mum Kay, offer strong support along with nice cameos from Alex Bowen as Kiki Dee, Adam Bailey as Morgan and Paul Grunert as Wexler.

Dusty pulls no punches in a worthy tribute to the legacy of a singer now influencing a new generation.

To book visit https://www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk/whats-on/dusty. Dusty runs until Saturday, July 14.