A chic traveller in a trench coat is about to enter an abode on Christmas Eve. Inside, there are hints of Sinatra-styled Jingle Bells and our collective memories fill in the rest. Christmas is not merry for everyone, and Christie Whelan Browne’s character Liz is clearly nervous. It’s an intriguing but unsettling start to the show. Once inside, Whelan Browne hits her stride, and the revelations commence.

^{Christie Whelan Browne. Photograph: supplied}

Written by Steve Vizard, with music by Joe Chindamo Vigil centres on a mother-daughter relationship – though its plot is best met unspoiled. Suffice to say there is love, loss, rivalry, selfishness and tantrums.

Whelan Browne is spectacularly mercurial as reminiscences turn into impersonations, and she glides effortlessly from spoken word to song, splendidly manipulating the inadequacies of her character, and humorously casting a spotlight on the shortcomings of others she portrays.

She sings powerfully when required, with a clear, uncomplicated voice, bringing as much colour to her interpretation as her complex character later reveals. Her impersonations of Bev Palmer and Liz’s father are show highlights, lending much to the superb Barbecue of Love, a genius little number that easily elicits...