Australia’s television darling Natalie Bassingthwaighte needs no introduction – but I’m going to give her one anyway. She’s the voice of electro-rock band Rogue Traders, the ultimate Neighbours troublemaker (Izzy Hoyland) and a judge on X-Factor. She even made a cameo in Elvis.

Now, she’s taking the stage solo at the Athenaeum Theatre as Shirley in Willy Russell’s one-woman show about middle-aged reinvention, unfulfilled dreams, and talking to the kitchen wall.

Natalie Bassingthwaighte in Shirley Valentine. Photo © Brett Boardman

For the uninitiated, Shirley Valentine was an ‘80s phenomenon – a BAFTA-winning film, a smash hit on the West End and Broadway. And for good reason too. The themes – feminism, revolution, and personal liberation – were daring, witty, and fresh, particularly within an era of deeply ingrained domesticity. Back then, Shirley Valentine captured the restlessness of a woman who had given everything to others and wanted, just for once, to do something for herself.

Directed by Lee Lewis, this iteration keeps things simple: a boxed-in kitchen set, with floral wallpaper, teal trim, and the soothing sizzle of frying eggs. Within these walls, Shirley pours herself an ever-replenishing glass of white wine,...