There is one thing that unites most tribute shows: they’re made with fans in mind. Good autobiographical shows tend to have a genuine desire to portray the subject in the best possible light, excavating their personal life in a tasteful way that does their story justice. As a production company, you’re performing to an audience who want to love what you’ve created. As an audience, you collectively unite with the production company in your mutual desire to see the act brought to life in all their glory.

Dusty, the new tribute show about leading sixties pop singer, Dusty Springfield, fits perfectly into the conventions of a typical tribute show. A lot of careful research has clearly gone into researching Dusty’s internal and external journey from London pub singer to internationally acclaimed pop star, and bringing her story to life in a thorough and accessible way.

With a sentimental production like this, it’s perhaps unsurprising that the script is cheesy and full of clichés of affection, particularly between Dusty (Alison Arnopp) and her lifelong best friend Nancy Jones (Francesca Jackson), through whose eyes the story is told.

Phil Lindley’s set design is a little uninspired with its neon lights and projections of sixties décor, but Jason Kealer’s costume design captured the sixties glitz perfectly, particularly the myraid of wigs.

The holographic videos of Dusty were impressively high-tech and unique, but arguably a bit eerie. Perhaps it was fitting that ‘Spooky’ was the first number in which we witnessed this fusion of 3D projections and live performance. The effects were certainly impressive though, and I imagine they’ll be well-received by die-hard Dusty fans.

Other moments combining digital media and live singing were hit and miss. The slight delay between the black and white video and live music was frustrating and distanced us from the real Dusty. Attempts to merge the video Dusty with Arnopp’s impersonation were also jarring at times, particularly in the song ‘I Only Want to Be With You’. The switch halfway through the song between video Dusty and Arnopp was a poor decision as Arnopp, despite giving a strong, lovable performance, lacks Dusty’s husky, sensual voice.

However the fusion worked better in ‘In the Middle of Nowhere’, where the video and live music worked together instead of competing for our attention. Here, the musicians and dancers worked with the video Dusty, and supported her performance. There was also a beautiful bit of a cappella singing led by Jemma Geanaus at the end of the song.

Despite the cliché-ridden script, the narrative covered all the big milestones for Dusty. There was a feeling of victory in the auditorium as Dusty declared, “The law is wrong!”, before being deported from South Africa for refusing to abide by segregation. We laughed as she became a backing vocalist to Martha’s Vandellas, and felt crushed as she was rejected by her lover, Norma (Sienna Sebek). The collective emotional investment conjured among the audience makes this production’s flaws forgivable. For really we were there to get a fix of Dusty, and there was a collective buzz of appreciation for her to be heard as we headed out of the doors.

Dusty plays the Charing Cross Theatre until 21st November 2015. For more information and tickets, see the theatre website.