Ekletlika is a 12 voice ensemble who have stretched conventions of choral music, finding associations in pop, classical, liturgical and media contexts. They have shown admirable use of differing venues – historical, liturgical and well as theatrical – and also a connection with public issues and causes such as Covid, and the war in Ukraine and Gaza. They have shown an admirable effort to work in locations far beyond their secure base in the Northern Illawarra of NSW.
Their experimental approach to multiform work, evidenced in their recent work inspired by Radiohead, is continued in this testimony to Kate Bush. Under the hand of creator, composer and musical director Judy Stubbs, Kate Bush Unmoored does not fall in the rank of innumerable homages that populate Sydney clubs and pubs. This show is more an interpretative celebration, even collaboration, with Bush, taking her iconic style, universally seen in music videos, into new, even unfamiliar directions.
This show might surprise some of the vast Bush fan club, many of whom undoubtedly came to see it. On the one hand Kate Bush Unmoored was vastly more entertaining than the lukewarm Kate Bush one woman homage offered up at the Sydney Festival in 2024. It is hard to reproduce the impeccable voice and performance of Bush. Eklektika were superb in their harmonic arrangements of Bush melodies, bringing a particular energy, a sense of listening to each other and giving space for arrangements to find their mark. It all added to a sustained mood and allowed subtleties of arrangements to properly emerge. The songs were all there – twelve of the best known – and Stubbs was uncompromising in her effort to reinvent and rejoin the legacy of Bush.
Female singers featured in selected solo work with the choir. Singers such as Amanda Lamberger or Nicole Murphy could have been featured even more, even miked, deriving more from the intensity and volume of Bush and meeting any audience expectation of such and adding more action and clarity. However, this is Ekeltika’s piece, and entirely enjoyable on its own terms.
Stubbs layered texts and understanding of Jung, on the unconscious, as part of her interpretation. Again, it is up to the audience to decide how far they were willing to go from their existing familiarity with Bush. Perhaps a mix of Bush’s own diverse themes and philosophies, along with Jung, would have been a good fit. But probing fresh meanings is intriguing.
It is good to see in several works by Ekletika, an experimental approach to projected video (Thony van der Mol), that layered in real time the singing. Video streamed on a very large screen through the entire 55 minutes – some sections were very successful. The last minutes, of minimalist running animation to the latter day hit “Running up that Hill” (Nic Russo), was superb. Other parts had great potential but seemed overdone and distracting. There is a real art to combining forms such as music, dance and video. I have seen over six theatre pieces this year immersed in video. While it is hard to compare styles, it is possible to ask how successful each work in its own right. The combining of artforms is a language all its own, as precise as musical composition in itself.
In view of the Bush legacy, it was very appropriate to have dancing as another artform layering this performance. I remain unsure how inspired or deferential the style done was drawn from Bush. It was admirable to see singers like Nicole Murphy being willing to extend their skills in this way. There was also the opportunity to use a choreographer or a fully trained dancer – even male and female dancers, after the recent re-recreation of “Running up that Hill.” It is indeed possible the current show could be further developed with more resources.
Judy Stubbs carries a lot of responsibility in this type of performance. It would probably be good to have a stage director to assist, at least in a consulting role.and one able to work in the layered environment she uses.
I enjoyed this show. Ekletika are encouraged to continue to refine their experimental approach to ensemble music I saw the performance that took place on Friday 12th September 2025
Eklektika is a 12-voice vocal ensemble directed by Judy Stubbs, performing an eclectic range of music and genres – from cabaret, festivals and pop-ups to more formal performances, including reimagining of classical, traditional, liturgical and contemporary music. Eklektika has performed at international festivals, toured nationally, and with professional orchestra, Steel City String.
