Charlee Watt is barely in her early twenties, yet she has taken a curated selection of Beatles tunes and made them her own. This year, the Adelaide Fringe has increased the number of performance hubs and Plant 4 at Bowden is one of those hubs. Charlee is playing at various venues, but this sunny Saturday afternoon was at the Plant 4 hub.

Upstairs from the usual hustle and bustle of the food market, the mezzanine floor is packed with an expectant audience. Many of them have seen Charlee perform before and have come for another look. Even Sarah-Louise Young of “An Evening Without Kate Bush” fame is spotted in the audience.  There is a buzz in the air as Charlee takes the stage. Dressed in a black dress, white boots and a platinum blonde wig, she looks every bit the star. Her backup performers, saxophonist Jordan, bassist Declan, drummer Lewis and keyboardist Andrew are decked out with matching Beatles t-shirts.

Opening with a jazzed-up version of “Money Can’t Buy Me Love”, she weaves stories of her personal life and background into the show. Growing up in regional South Australia has given her a certain perspective on life. She explains that she’s a country girl at heart and even has a raffle draw during one of the breaks between songs.

Where Charlee really shone, was when she reimagined the songs in a soulful jazz style. “I Saw Her Standing There” was a stripped-back jazz reinvention that really caught the audience’s attention. An enthusiastic partial standing ovation completed the set. Charlee is an act that leads us down memory lane, in a unique and imaginative way.